“I know that now, love. I regret I ever distrusted you. I should have listened to my heart, not my head.”
She gazed at him with longing. “Your heart?”
Taking her hand, he pressed her palm to his chest. “I love you, Brynn. I have for a long time, even though I refused to acknowledge it.”
For a long moment she simply stared. Then blindly she walked into his arms. Burying her face in his shoulder, she gave a sob. “I thought you hated me…”
“No, I could never hate you.” His arms wrapped around her, holding her close. “Even when I thought the worst… Ah, don’t cry, Brynn.” He could feel love and despair pulse through her body, feel her trembling.
“I fought against loving you,” he murmured. “I tried to convince myself that what I felt was merely an obsession. But I should have realized the truth much sooner.”
She shuddered. “The thought of you hating me tore me apart.”
He drew back, gazing down at her, seeing her lashes spiky with tears. Her hair in the firelight shimmered like molten embers. Gently he touched her face. “You arouse any number of feelings in me, siren. You make me burn with passion or fear or fury, but never hate.”
She gave a shaky laugh. “Certainly fury. I’ve given you ample reason to be furious with me.”
“Even so, I’ve loved you almost from the first time I saw you.”
Slowly Brynn shook her head. “It was only the curse.”
“No,” he said gravely. “Perhaps a spell could make me want you, desire you, but it couldn’t make me love you. I love you, Brynn, not because of any Gypsy spell or your physical allure, but because of the woman you are. You make me feel complete. You fill the part of my soul that was missing.”
“Oh, Lucian…”
He took a deep breath, seeking courage. “Brynn, I know ours was to be a marriage of convenience, that you wanted us to live apart after our child is born, but I hope to God you will reconsider. I want to be your husband, Brynn. Loved, honored, cherished for all the world to see.”
Her expression softened. “You are loved, Lucian. I told you the truth earlier tonight. I love you. I was afraid to admit it only because of the curse. I hope you believe me.”
“How can I not believe you after tonight?” Lucian asked, his voice suddenly husky. “You proved your love more than adequately, throwing yourself in front of a bullet meant for me…” He shuddered with soul-deep terror, realizing how close he had come to losing Brynn. He had wealth, titles, all the privileges money and rank could buy, but they were all worthless if he lost the one thing that mattered most. And he knew Brynn felt something similar if she had been willing to sacrifice herself for him.
His brows drew together as he recalled something she had said earlier. “What was it the Gypsy at the fair told you? That you must be willing to give your life for me?”
“That I had to love you enough, yes.”
“If her prophecy is true, then the curse should be broken.”
Her eyes widened. “Perhaps it is,” she said in wonder.
Lucian held her gaze. “So you don’t intend to leave me?”
“No. I never wanted us to live separate lives. I only thought I must to protect you.”
“The best way to protect me is to stay with me. I might as well cut out my heart if you leave me.”
“I won’t ever leave you, Lucian. I can’t live without you. I know that now.”
The soft light in her eyes reflected her quiet smile, catching his heart and sending it thudding after his racing pulse.
He drew her into his arms once more, pressing his lips against her hair, his relief overwhelming. Only now was he realizing how desperately he needed her love, how rare and precious that love was.
Brynn stood in the warmth of his embrace, cherishing the feel of his hard body against hers. She could feel her fear easing. Perhaps the curse had indeed been broken because she had risked her life for him. If so, then she was free to love Lucian with all her heart.
“I love you so much,” she murmured, repeating her own declaration of love.
That made him raise his head. His voice was gentle, as were his eyes. “I’m not certain I know why. I’ve never given you any reason to love me.”
“That isn’t true. What you did for Theo was reason enough. And now Grayson… I thank you from the bottom of my heart, Lucian. Can you ever forgive me for what I did?”
“Only if you can forgive me.” His soft laughter was self-mocking. “What an arrogant bastard I was… Arrogant, selfish, thinking only of myself, my own needs. I thought I could easily charm you into doing my bidding. I forced you to conceive a child because that was what I wanted… You deserved more, Brynn. I would say that you have far more to forgive than I do.”
“But still…”
He pressed his fingers to her lips. “No more regrets about the past. We have only the future ahead of us.”
His arms encircled her once more, and she reciprocated, relishing his embrace. For a long moment they simply held each other, until Lucian broke the silence with a quiet question.
“Brynn, will you come away with me?”
“Come away with you? Where?”
“I thought the castle in Wales, the one I gave you as a belated wedding gift.”
Pulling back, Brynn glanced up at him, trying not to leap to conclusions. “Why?” she asked, feigning lightness. “You want to incarcerate me there to keep me from committing treason again? ”
“Not in the least. You said I don’t know you well, and it’s true. But I want that chance to know you, Brynn, and for you to know me. We need time to explore each other, time for love and trust to build. If we were to go away together, we could have that time. It could be a new start for our marriage.”
“But what of your duty? You have yet to apprehend Caliban.”
“I’ve come to realize you’re far more important to me than apprehending traitors. There will likely be a lull in his treachery in any case. We dealt a blow to his ring tonight, and he will have to reorganize. I’m not proposing we live there forever, merely visit for a few weeks.”
“I should like that,” she said softly. “A new beginning.”
The smoldering look in his eyes made her breath catch.
He bent his head to kiss her, to seal their pledge. Fire flowed between them as their lips met, fire and want and need.
Lucian felt himself tremble with it. Fierce desire burned through him, desire that had nothing to do with any curse.
They would make a new beginning, Lucian vowed solemnly. Yet this time he would earn Brynn’s love. He would prove himself worthy of her. And he wouldn’t rest till he had wholly won the enchantress who had enslaved his heart and soul.
Epilogue
Gwyndar, Wales, October 1813
A half smile playing on his lips, Lucian watched his countess cavort in the sun-warmed tidal pool. They had arrived in Wales two weeks ago at the castle that had been his wedding gift to her.
Gwyndar was a place of strange enchantment, with its crystalline caves and secret coves and cascading waterfalls, but until now Lucian had never appreciated the beauty. By some quirk of nature and ocean currents, the climate of this northern stretch of Welsh coast was as temperate as southern England; newborn lambs and rare butterflies thrived here. And despite the lateness of the year, this was a particularly glorious afternoon, drenched with sunshine, caressed by the mildest of sea breezes.
He and Brynn had discovered the sandy cove during their first exploration of the castle environs. Although the tidal pool was heated by the sun’s rays, it still wasn’t warm enough for Lucian to brave the water, yet Brynn seemed to relish the chill. She was part sea siren, he was convinced.