He caught up to her by the foyer doors, and he commanded a footman to fetch his carriage. "I will escort you home, Sutton," he stated, coming up behind her. She shook her head, wrapping her cloak closer about her shoulders.
"There is no need. I'd prefer to go home alone."
Now away from thetonand the gossiping matrons that surrounded the ballroom, her tears had been given free rein, and he could see that she was silently crying.
"I've been so horrible to you. I blamed you, cursed, and blackened your name at every opportunity. I seethed and ranted at my brother over you for years, and all the time, it was him who caused all my pain. I should not have believed his lies. How could I have thrown you to the wolves without a backward glance?"
The carriage rocked to a halt before them, and without argument, she allowed him to help her inside. Logan called for her home and sat beside her. He wrapped his arm about her shoulder and pulled her against him, reveling in her warmth and presence.
"He is your brother. It is hard to think he would lie in such a way without remorse, but I do not think he intended the letters to go public, even if that is what happened in the end," he found himself saying, not wanting the rift she now had with her brother to be continued by him.
He had years to live with the lie and move on from it. It was new and painful for Sutton, and he needed to allow her to grieve her loss, the truth, before she too could move on from the hurt.
"He stole the letters from your home. Is that what he truly did, and all because of childhood hurt that you had no control over?"
Logan sighed, rubbing her arm in comfort. "So it would seem. It was never my intention to insult your brother, but my parents were very high in the instep and only wanted the best for the family and their heir. There is little doubt that I slighted Malcolm at Eton, and mayhap should have stood up to my parents, but then, they never listened to me in any case, so I doubted it would have made a difference in the end."
She turned in his arms, reaching up to cradle his face. "I'm so sorry, Logan. Please tell me you forgive me."
He threw her a small smile. "You did not know the truth, and all I ever wanted was for your brother to own his mistake. He has done that now, in a roundabout way, but I want our friendship to continue. I want to help you gain all that you desire in life. A husband and a family."
She nodded, swiping at her cheek when a lone tear slipped free. "Yes, a husband. Had I not made such a terrible error six years ago, we would have already been married."
He chuckled, clucking his tongue. "I do not think I had asked you to be my wife, had I? Or is my memory wrong?"
A blush kissed her cheeks. "You had not asked me, but I believed with all my heart that you would."
Unable to deny himself a moment longer, he leaned down, closing the space between them, and took her lips. She opened for him, her tongue tangled with his, and sent his wits to spiral. "I would have asked you to be my wife, Sutton, and you would have been mine six years since."
"And I would not have had any use for theWallflower’s Guide."
"No, you would not. " He laughed, pulling her against him and taking her lips yet again. The kiss deepened, and Logan took all that she gave, wanting her with a need that went beyond sanity or reason. "Mayhap, you do not need the guide any longer," he suggested.
She looked up at him, a question in her blue orbs. "What do you mean?" she asked. "How else am I to gain a husband when I'm a wallflower in need of guidance?”
"Well, as to that, should I ask you to be the future Countess of Jersey, the guide would be superseded by that offer, would it not?"
She sat up, pulling away. "What are you saying?" she demanded.
He tipped up her chin, kissing her again, a slow melding of their lips and mouths before he answered. "Marry me, my darling Sutton and make me the happiest of men."
She stared at him, mouth agape and eyes wide with shock. She was the most adorable woman he'd ever beheld, and her surprise at his declaration only made him love her more. "You must know that all that I did for you this Season, helping with the book, the guidance, the jealousy," he smirked, "was because no matter how much I tried to leave what I felt for you in the past, it would never do and I failed miserably. I love you, Sutton. I have always loved you, even if sometimes that love was in the form of anger and despair. I never stopped loving you."
* * *
Sutton could not believewhat Logan was saying. Well, she could believe it, for everything he said was the mirror of what she had been living these past weeks. Hating him while adoring the man at the very same time. A most vexing and addictive combination that she had not wanted to end.
He loved her? Had always loved her?
She loved him too.
Oh, how delightful to know the truth. The innocence of his part in her scandal six years ago made what she had wanted to say to him for days now so much easier to declare. "I should have trusted you. I should not have believed you capable of such a heinous act after never giving me a moment of doubt when we were together. I'm so sorry, Logan. How I must have frustrated you this Season."
"I only ever wanted you to know the truth. I loved you the moment I saw you six years ago. I could never do such a thing to anyone, nevertheless the woman I wanted to make my wife."
Her heart melted at his words. She slipped her arms about his neck, kissing him in a slow, luxurious fashion that left her aching with need. "I want to be your wife, your lover, and friend. I want to be yours." She smiled, hope thrumming through her for the wonderful future she could envision. "I will marry you, Logan Carleton, Earl of Jersey, and I shall be your countess."
He kissed her hard, lifting her to sit on his lap, and Sutton learned another marvelous thing, just how very wicked a carriage could be and what fun they would have during their journeys to the Jersey country estate.