With Victoria’s Blessing. Mary Nichols

Чтение книги онлайн.

СКАЧАТЬ a muff lined with swansdown but only one hand was in it, the other was tucked into the crook of his arm.

      ‘I must not stay out too long. Papa might wonder where I am and then there would be awkward questions to answer.’

      ‘Why, my dear? Have you not told your parents of our meetings?’

      ‘No. Only Margaret knows.’

      ‘But I do not want it to be a secret. I want to proclaim to the world how much I love you.’

      She stopped and turned towards him, obliging him to stop too. ‘Do you? Love me, I mean.’

      ‘Of course I do, you goose. Have I not made it plain enough? I adore everything about you—your smile, your laughing eyes, your sweet mouth and your lively mind. Everything.’

      ‘Oh, Richard.’

      ‘I have been meeting you for weeks now and I thought perhaps you loved me a little too. I had begun to hope you might do me the honour of consenting to become my wife.’

      ‘Richard!’ Her eyes lit up and her mouth flew open.

      ‘You are surprised?’

      ‘Surprised and delighted. Have you spoken to my papa about it?’

      ‘No, dearest one, I wanted to be sure that it was your wish before I did that. Have I your permission to approach him?’

      ‘Yes, oh, yes.’

      He took her hand from his sleeve and raised it to his lips. ‘Thank you, my darling, you have made me the happiest man in the world.’

      They walked on and it seemed she was floating on air, because her feet hardly touched the ground. She was hanging on to his arm with both hands in order to feel him close to her, well aware that it was a shocking way to behave. But she was also aware that her parents expected her to marry someone of her own rank and Richard could hardly be called that.

      ‘You know we cannot marry immediately,’ he said, almost as if echoing her thoughts. ‘Although I do not have to rely on my lieutenant’s pay. Admiral Grayson, my maternal grandfather, invested some of his own prize money on my behalf, which brings in a fair return, but even with that, I still could not give you the life you have been used to. And I have no title or noble connections which might make a difference.’

      ‘I do not care about titles. I would live in a garret with you.’

      He laughed. ‘My darling, brought up in luxury, you can have no idea of what living in a garret is like. I promise you, you would not care for it, and as I am often away at sea you would be lonely without a companion.’

      ‘You ask me to marry you in one breath and then tell me we cannot in the next,’ she said, her joy slowly evaporating.

      ‘I know. I should not have said anything to you, but it has been eating away at me, day by day, until I could keep silent no longer. I simply had to speak.’

      Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

      Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

      Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

      Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.

/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAgEASABIAAD/4RItRXhpZgAATU0AKgAAAAgABwESAAMAAAABAAEAAAEaAAUA AAABAAAAYgEbAAUAAAABAAAAagEoAAMAAAABAAIAAAExAAIAAAAUAAAAcgEyAAIAAAAUAAAAhodp AAQAAAABAAAAnAAAAMgAAABIAAAAAQAAAEgAAAABQWRvYmUgUGhvdG9zaG9wIDcuMAAyMDExOjAy OjE0IDE2OjI1OjQ3AAAAAAOgAQADAAAAAQABAACgAgAEAAAAAQAAAzmgAwAEAAAAAQAABLAAAAAA AAAABgEDAAMAAAABAAYAAAEaAAUAAAABAAABFgEbAAUAAAABAAABHgEoAAMAAAABAAIAAAIBAAQA AAABAAABJgICAAQAAAABAAAQ/wAAAAAAAABIAAAAAQAAAEgAAAAB/9j/4AAQSkZJRgABAgEASABI AAD/7QAMQWRvYmVfQ00AAf/uAA5BZG9iZQBkgAAAAAH/2wCEAAwICAgJCAwJCQwRCwoLERUPDAwP FRgTExUTExgRDAwMDAwMEQwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwMDAwBDQsLDQ4NEA4OEBQO Dg4UFA4ODg4UEQwMDAwMEREMDAwMDAwRD

СКАЧАТЬ