She allowed him to lead her out onto the floor.
As the dance began, so did Lord Harrison. “I was recently drawn into a corner by a friend and informed of what an unmitigated fool I am.”
“Is that so? I had a similar experience most recently.”
“Indeed.” Lord Harrison smiled at her.
For the first time, Regina understood why people could be so enamored with dancing. In dancing with Lord Harrison she was no longer simply enjoying herself with a partner along with a dozen others.
Instead, it was as if none of the others existed.
She could have been alone in the room with Lord Harrison for all that she took notice of the people around her.
“This friend told me that I had been a fool not to notice that my affections for a certain young lady were returned, and I was encouraged to inform that young lady of how my regard for her had turned into something much deeper.”
Regina’s breath caught in her throat and for a wild moment she thought that her heart would stop beating. He wasn’t—was he?
“You see, I started out thinking that I was in love with this young lady’s eldest sister. And I do have quite a high regard for that sister. She is a remarkable young woman and very accomplished.
“However, when I spent more time in the company of this young lady, I found that… that even her remarkable elder sister paled in comparision to her.
“I struggled to hide my feelings, for I was certain that they could never be returned. How could they, when I had agreed to marry the lady’s sister in a move that was, I realized, selfish and unfair to both the lady and her sister?
“I had treated the elder sister like property and taken advantage of the family’s dire straits. Surely this woman could not fail to realize this and would hate me in her heart.
“So, I resolved that I would not say anything. I was so certain that this woman could not love me in return. Everything spoke to me only as a testament to that fact. I was a source of learning for her. I was a safe place. I was a mentor, a tutor, nothing more.
“After all, when one is desperate for a way out, one will take any escape offered, even if that escape is made by a man one should not esteem.”
“How could I not esteem you?” Regina cut in. “You cannot have such a low opinion of yourself. If you may sink into despair for your actions regarding our agreement, then you must allow me to hate myself as well, for I offered up my own sister.”
“No. No you were desperate, you had no choice. I should have been magnanimous—”
“Are you saying that you love me?” Regina blurted out.
Never before had she been so grateful for how crowded and noisy balls were. Nobody heard her. Nobody marked what she said. The entire swell of people didn’t stop and stare at her for being so bold.
Instead, everyone just carried on.
She and Lord Harrison even continued to dance.
But now they just looked into one another’s eyes, not speaking. Just staring.
What she saw in his eyes then was devastating. “Yes,” he managed to whisper, his voice hoarse. “Yes, I have—I have come to be devoted to you. I wish nothing but for your happiness.
“If I thought that you might allow me to be by your side I would in a heartbeat. I would not spare a single coin or moment if I could invest it in your happiness. I want to spend every day proving to you that you are worth so much more than you believe you are.
“I know that you have already started to believe it. But you don’t yet understand—you cannot know—”
“I never should have thought that I would see you at a loss for words,” Regina said, her voice soft and awed.
Lord Harrison laughed. “Yes. Well. You rather take the words right out of my chest.”
The dance finished and they began another without asking, unwilling to be parted.
“I suppose what I am asking, then,” Lord Harrison said, “Now that we have understood one another, is if I can dare to hope. Our mutual friend led me to believe but I cannot… I must hear it from you.”
“You may do more than hope,” Regina assured him. “You may presume as much as you would like.”
“And dare I ask if you would join your sisters in entering into an engagement?” He asked. “Bridget will be settled on the Continent. Miss Elizabeth and Miss Louisa are engaged. I should not think it too impudent if the youngest sister then entered into an engagement of her own.”
Regina felt sad for Natalie for a moment. She would be the only unmarried one—or uncommitted one, she added to herself, thinking of her eldest sister. But she would find someone in time.
After all, Regina had found someone, and she hadn’t even been looking.
“Are you asking me for my hand?” She asked. “Because I must tell you, sir, that to do so without my father’s permission and in a crowded ballroom is most unconventional.”
“Using a masquerade ball to steal into a man’s card game and strip a rake of his fortune is also most unconventional.” Lord Harrison smiled. “It appears we are a match, Puck.”
“Oberon.”
The second dance ended. Lord Harrison directed his head towards some doors that led outside. “Shall we?”
As they walked through the crowd, Regina finally caught sight of Bridget. She was standing next to Cora, and their arms were linked. Bridget was smiling, smiling as Regina had never seen her smile, and Cora—
Oh, she realized.
She smiled to herself and allowed Lord Harrison to lead her just outside, where they might take in the fresh air.
“Consider this a promise,” he said. “I must speak with your father, of course. I must obtain his blessing. But I wish to have your agreement first.”
“You have everything of me,” Regina confessed. She laughed, giddy. This felt unreal. “Let us strike another deal.”
“Oh?” Lord Harrison smiled down at her, infinitely amused. “What sort of deal?”
“A deal that you will obtain my father’s blessing and we shall be married.”
“In that case, I had better make this official.” He took her hand in his. “Regina Hartfield. Puck. My… my everything. Will you marry me?”
Regina nodded quickly. Her heart felt so full that she was sure it would burst. She might start crying as well. “Yes.”
“Our last deal was signed with a handshake. How shall we seal this one?”
“This deal…” Regina smiled at him, letting him draw her closer. In the darkness of the balcony, nobody could see them if they engaged in this one last impropriety. “This deal shall be sealed with a kiss.”
He took her face gently in his hands and lifted her face up, and did just that.
It was everything that she had dreamed it would be, back when they had almost kissed to fool and appease his friends. His lips were warm and gentle as they worked against hers, and she sighed into it. She hadn’t known there was happiness such as this in the world.
“I love you,” he whispered against her lips.
Regina could only smile, and reply in kind.
The Extended Epilogue
Falling for the Governess
I am humbled you finished reading my novel The Lady’s Gamble, till the end!