‘I know that your feelings lie with another woman, in another place and time,’ she breathed, ‘but I want you to know that I love you now, Seth...and I can’t live a lie and pretend that I don’t—no matter what inducements you put in front of me.’
Seth stared at her. His head was spinning. He was incredulous. Imogen apparently believed that he still loved Louisa and would never love anyone else. It took him aback, because he’d known for quite some time that his feelings had changed dramatically.
He hadn’t told her because he could hardly believe it himself. But a few minutes ago, when they’d been making love, he’d almost declared what he felt out loud. Somehow his beautiful, compassionate new wife had found a way into his wounded heart and started to help heal it. His plans for a ‘convenient’ arrangement had made a serious U-turn.
‘First of all, I don’t still love Louisa. She belongs firmly in the past. I know that for sure. In truth, I started to realise it quite a while ago—even before we met, Imogen, and I fell for you hook, line and sinker. It’s you that I love. You and only you,’ he announced, surveying her tenderly.
She was utterly stunned. ‘I can hardly believe it. Are you serious? You said in your note to her that you would only ever love her. How come you suddenly seem to have changed your mind?’
‘Like I said, I started to realise my feelings were changing quite a while ago. But I stupidly told myself that I’d be betraying her if I didn’t hold on to them. At the time I wrote what I did I honestly believed I would never love anyone else like I loved her. And as the years went by and I didn’t develop any new relationships I believed it must be true.’ Seth frowned. ‘I convinced myself that love must be a one-time-only deal.’
With her heart in her mouth, Imogen made herself wait for him to continue.
‘But you proved me wrong. Imogen. My feelings probably started to change when you showed up at the manor that day, looking like some tender sprite that had emerged out of the woods. You’d walked all the way from town to try to find out who the writer of that note in your book was. How many other people would have done that? Straight away you intrigued me. You showed me that you cared about what had happened to two perfect strangers—that the idea that they’d reunited gave you hope. Although I didn’t realise it, the more time I spent with you, and the more I was acquainted with your loving kindness, the more I fell head over heels in love with you.’
‘Oh, Seth...do you really mean it? You really do love me?’
He stared back into her incandescent brown eyes and gathered her tenderly into his arms. ‘Yes, I do. I’ll spend the rest of our lives together proving it to you, so that you need never doubt it. I don’t know what I’ve done to find somebody like you, but I’ll never take it for granted. Now, let’s go back to bed, shall we?’
Just a few moments later they lay against the pillows together and Seth pulled up the counterpane around them.
Feeling happier than she’d ever felt before, Imogen sighed. ‘You know I said that I knew I’d given my virginity to the right man? I was telling you the truth, Seth. I started to fall in love with you not long after I met you.’
They had both removed their sheets, so that they were naked again, and she was stroking her hand up and down his chest as she spoke. Her fingers kept dipping every now and then to the dark column of hair beneath his navel. Already his blood was heading eagerly south...
‘In fact I love you so much that I was prepared to go along with your marriage of convenience just so that I could be with you.’
‘And yet again put someone else’s happiness before your own?’
Appearing genuinely surprised, she stopped stroking him. ‘I wouldn’t have been unhappy, Seth. I might not have had your love, but I would have known that you respected me, and if all we’d ever had was a close friendship I would have gladly settled for that rather than be without you.’
For a moment he was lost for words. The phrase my cup runneth over sprang helpfully to mind, because that was exactly how he felt. It almost didn’t seem fair that he’d been given so much. This beautiful, incredible woman had just become his wife, and of all the things he had achieved in life this was undoubtedly the best...
CHAPTER ELEVEN
THEY SPENT THE whole of the next morning in bed. Seth had never allowed himself to be so lazy. Most of his life he had worked hard, risen early and gone to bed late. Even when he’d started to earn good money he hadn’t rested on his laurels. He’d worked even harder to increase his bank balance and to make a name for himself in the elite world his customers inhabited.