Page 89 of An Orphan for the Broken Duke

“There is only one way to find out. But do not do it for me. Do not do it for Lucy. For once, take a chance on yourself, Violet. Nobody deserves it more.”

He knew then that he had her.

It was the smile that slowly etched up her face that told him so. It was the way her shoulders relaxed. It was the dismissive way that she shook her head at him, as if she could not believe that he was doing this… just as she could not believe that it was working.

And then, ever so slowly, Violet stepped into the rain.

It bathed her so that she was drenched in seconds. Her hair was matted. Her clothes became stuck to her. But her skin glistened in the rain, her eyes sparkled, and never before had she looked so beautiful as then.

That was the exact moment when Rhys finally accepted how he felt. He did not care for her. He did not simply see her as the mother to his child. No… what he saw was the woman he loved.

She took his hand, and he pulled her into his body.

She gasped as his other hand went around her waist. For a brief second they looked into one another’s eyes, accepting the moment for what it was and what it meant. No more lies. No more denying their feelings. From then on, the truth only.

With that realized, Rhys leaned forward, brought his face to Violet’s and kissed her as he had never kissed anyone before. She kissed him right back, and as their lips met, as their mouths opened, as their tongues danced, the storm parted and the midafternoon sun shone upon them as if to announce to the world the dawning of a new day.

Slowly, Rhys pulled back so that he could look at her. “Is now a good time to tell you how much I love you?”

She raised an eyebrow at him. “It is a little late, but I suppose that now will do.” She smiled. “As I love you. Also a little late but…”

“Better late than never.”

Rhys kissed Violet again, she held that kiss, and he knew for the first time in years that he was not just happy, but that this was the type of happiness that had been worth the fight. For all the pain that Rhys had been through, all the heartache and the suffering, that kiss made it worth the cost.

What was more, he knew that what was born from that kiss would be the type of life that he and Violet not only deserved, but had both earned. And neither of them would take it for granted ever again.

Epilogue

Violet took a moment to look across the nursery, trying to appreciate a scene that would once have seemed like a dream that had no chance of touching her reality, but now she knew it to be one that she ought to start growing used to.

She sat on a chair by the window, a book open in her lap, the morning sun shining across her body so that she felt its warmth as if she was the source of that light.

By the wall stood Rose, with her back to Violet. Her sister had a paintbrush in her hand, and she was busy painting over the fairytale scene with white so that a new mural could be drawn and then painted. She hummed pleasantly as she did so, a smile on her face, as happy as Violet had ever seen her.

Across the room, sitting with her toys, was Lucy. She laughed gaily, and the sound was like music to Violet’s ears. Surrounded by toys, the one that held her interest the most was a wooden horse, and she pretended to make it gallop across the floor in front of her.

Sitting with her, his legs open so that Lucy was snuggled between them, was Rhys. He laughed along with Lucy, and he played with a stuffed bear that he used to try and attack the horse.

“No!” Lucy demanded as she pushed the bear away. “No bear. Horsey!”

Rhys threw back his head and roared with laughter, then he wrapped Lucy in his arms and fell backwards. She giggled as she went with him, and they rolled around on the floor together.

Maybe this is a dream? For there is no way it can be real…

“Why did you stop?” Rose turned from the wall and scowled at Violet. Her paintbrush was pointed towards Violet accusingly.

“The paint!” Violet cried and pointed as white paint dripped from the brush and onto the carpet. “Be careful.”

Rose grimaced and put the brush back in the bucket of paint. “Whoops…”

Rhys looked up. “I told you to put sheets down, Rose.”

“And I told you that I do not need them.”

Rhys scoffed. “Clearly that was a lie.”

“No, not a lie,” Rose said with a wicked grin. “Perhaps it was more a miscalculation of my own abilities.”