Had he changed? Was there a chance his warmth would extend to her too? In the past few weeks he’d been distant, focused on work, while wedding arrangements had been drawn up around him, almost as if now that she’d agreed to become his wife he had no further need of her. But was there a chance her love might one day be reciprocated? Was there a chance that this marriage might mean more to him than the means of controlling his child’s upbringing?
Damien’s hand brushed against hers, snaring it in his grip and interrupting her thoughts. She looked up at him.
‘Did I tell you how beautiful you look today?’
She felt herself colour under his sudden scrutiny. The ivory silk gown was indeed a triumph of design and needlework, the line complementing her body as it moulded to her shape before spilling into an extravagantly full skirt. It was enough to wear it to feel beautiful. Having Damien tell her it was true was something else entirely.
He squeezed her hand and smiled down at her as the last of the guests drifted away. ‘I have something for you,’ he said. ‘Come with me.’
Dusk was falling, the light changing by the minute as the night inexorably clawed out to claim the day. Marjorie had taken her mother indoors as the summer heat tempered into warm evening and the wind picked up, bringing dark clouds and the promise of a summer storm.
She smiled back at him as he tugged on her hand. ‘Come on,’ he said.
He led the way around the house, their steps crunching on the white gravel leading to the garage. She frowned. There was a champagne-coloured sports car parked alongside—someone had left their car here, though why anyone would leave a car like that… Hang on, there was something else— It was tied with a wide ribbon and bow.
She looked up at Damien, confused, but he only met her stare with an inscrutably questioning look of his own.
‘Do you like it?’
‘Do I like it?’ He had to be kidding. ‘You mean…?’ She looked from Damien to the car and back again. ‘You mean, it’s mine?’
He dipped his head in the briefest affirmation. ‘Consider it a wedding gift.’
She thought about her mother’s ageing sedan that she used for the shopping and their infrequent trips, as different from this vehicle as a wooden dinghy to a top of the line ski boat. ‘I’m not sure I’ll be able to handle it.’
‘I’ll give you lessons. Starting tomorrow.’
He pulled something from his pocket—a loop of satin ribbon tied with a key. He lifted it over her head, placing it around her neck, his hands lingering at her shoulders.
She looked up at him, one hand cradling the key, stunned by his gesture and guilty that she hadn’t thought to make him a gift.
‘But I have nothing for you.’
He pulled her close, so that his fierce heartbeat was linked to her own but for fine layers of fabric in between. ‘I will collect mine…’ his head dipped and his mouth brushed over hers—a gentle touch that belied the heat and passion below, the heat she could feel in the look he gave her ‘…later tonight. But for now, it’s time we said goodnight to your mother. It’s time she learned our news.’
Daphne was resting in the large Victorian sitting room inside, sipping on a rare sherry. She beamed up at them as they entered the room, the delight on her face further reinforcing in Philly’s mind that for her mother’s sake at least she had done the right thing today.
‘That was a perfect day,’ she said as they both leaned down to kiss her. ‘Just a beautiful wedding. Thank you for making me so happy.’
Damien smiled. ‘We have more news if you’re not too tired already.’
She shook her head. ‘It’s been a long day and I’ll need to turn in soon but I don’t want it to end just yet. Though I don’t know what you could tell me that would top today’s excitement.’
He looked across at Philly and nodded, letting her give the news. Philly sat down alongside her mother and took her hands in her own. ‘Mum,’ she said, watching her mother’s face intently. ‘This might come as a bit of a surprise, but we’re going to have a baby. I’m pregnant.’
Daphne snatched her hands out from between Philly’s and slapped them up against her open mouth, her eyes wide with shock.
‘Oh!’
A second later tears welled up in those wide eyes until they brimmed over. ‘But this is wonderful. Just wonderful.’
Damien leaned closer. ‘You’re not disappointed? We jumped the gun a bit on the wedding.’
She pulled her hands away, brushing away the tears which were still falling. ‘How could I be disappointed? And don’t you think I know what it’s like to love someone so much you can’t wait until the wedding? Remember I was young and in love myself once.’