‘Do you need me to book a hotel for you?’
‘No, I’m going to stay at the manor.’
‘But I thought you were going to sell it.’ She swung around in her chair to look at him as he reached for his jacket. ‘You told me to contact the agent about putting it back on the market.’
‘Sell it? Are you crazy?’ He snatched up his keys off the desk. ‘I’m going to live there.’
* * *
Poppy was emptying the display cabinet at the end of the day when the doorbell chimed. A shiver rose over her skin and her heart started to gallop. She slowly turned around and her breath caught in her throat. Rafe was standing there, looking as gorgeous as ever, if a little tired. There were shadows beneath his eyes and his face looked a little drawn, as if he’d lost weight.
She put on her business face, but it hurt to keep it there. He looked so worn out. She had to control the impulse to reach out to him and give him a hug. ‘Would you like a coffee?’
‘Actually, what I’d really like is a cup of tea.’
She blinked. ‘Tea?’
He gave her a wry smile. ‘The hospital coffee was awful. It was even worse at the rehab centre. I had to resort to tea; I got used to it after a while. Now I can’t get through the day without a cup or two.’
‘I never thought I’d see the day,’ Poppy said with forced lightness. ‘I don’t suppose you’d like a piece of cake?’
‘Do you have any butter cake?’
She blinked again. ‘Butter cake?’
‘Preferably raw.’
Her eyes almost popped. ‘Raw?’
He smiled again but there was hint of wistfulness about it. ‘My mother used to bake for us. She didn’t want us to grow up with cooks and housekeepers doing everything for us. My favourite cake was vanilla butter-cake. She always used to let me lick the bowl. The day before she and my father were killed, she’d baked one and gave me a spoonful of the batter.’
Poppy blinked again but this time to hold back her tears. ‘Oh Rafe...’
‘I guess it would be quite a novel thing, having a raw wedding cake,’ he said. ‘Do you think anyone’s ever done that before?’
Poppy’s heart sank. ‘You’re getting married?’
His dark eyes twinkled. ‘I hope to very soon.’
She swallowed a tight lump in her throat. She could barely look at him in case he saw the bitter disappointment in her eyes. ‘Who’s the lucky girl?’
Rafe took her hands in his. ‘That’s what I love about you, Poppy. You take nothing for granted. You’re modest and gracious and so incredibly sweet, I can’t bear the thought of spending another day without you.’
Her eyes were so wide they looked like satellite dishes. ‘You love me?’
‘I think I fell in love with you the first day I walked in here and met your beautiful eyes. I loved your feistiness, the fact that you were so completely undaunted by me. You were prepared to fight for what you believed in. But what I admire even more about you is how you put your own needs aside for others. The way you realised the manor and the dower house belong together. I was too stubborn to see that but, even though you wanted to keep your house, you saw the greater good in letting it go.’
‘I can’t believe I’m hearing this...’
Rafe smiled as he drew her closer. ‘Marry me, ma petite. Please?’
Her dimpled smile was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen. ‘Yes.’
He could not believe how one simple word could make him so happy. ‘I have something for you,’ he said, taking out a velvet box from his jacket pocket. ‘I had it designed specially.’
Poppy held her breath as he opened the box to reveal a princess-cut diamond that glittered brilliantly. ‘It’s so beautiful...’
He took it out and slipped it on her finger, holding her hand in his. ‘Diamonds are for ever, ma cherie. I won’t settle for anything less from you. I hope you realise that. And I want babies. At least two.’
She gave him a smile that made her eyes dance. ‘I love you.’
He gathered her close. ‘I love you so much. I can’t believe I didn’t realise it earlier. I must have hurt you so much by leaving you in Paris like that—and then when I came to see you at the dower house. I was so shocked in the change in you. I thought I’d lost you for ever, that I’d changed you for ever.’
Poppy rested her head against his chest. It was the most wonderful feeling in the world to belong to someone who loved her. She felt it in his touch, in his gaze, in the strong, protective shelter of his arms. ‘It was so hard to be like that with you. I’m surprised you didn’t see through it. I was sure you would call my bluff. But you’re here now, that’s all that matters.’