Chapter 16

CHAPTER 16

London

Three Weeks Later

Celeste, the small black kitten, hopped across the floral bedspread, each time swatting at Lily's retreating fingers before fumbling forward onto her pink nose.

"Oh, you silly bug, you," she cooed. "I fear it's time for us to return to work. Enough playing for now."

Lily rose, stretched, and cradled the kitten against her chest as she peeked out the window to the street below.

Since moving into Moore Hall last week, the old building had been a flurry of workers throughout the day. Once a hospital during the war and owned by the Duke of Dandridge, Moore Hall was quickly being transformed into Gairdner's Seminary for Young Girls where Lily was the new headmistress.

Most days, she felt as if she didn't have a clue where to begin, but she had never been happier.

"Where is that adorable fluff ball?" Kate bellowed from somewhere on the first floor. The floors were being refinished, and the plasterwork redone. Everything echoed for ages.

Lily was eager to choose window coverings and rugs to help dampen the sound. Moore Hall was far too empty for her liking. She looked forward to when the school finally welcomed an army of giggling pupils ready to challenge the world around them.

"We're up here," Lily said, shouting down through the open staircase from the girls' dormitory.

Celeste softly snored against Lily's chest.

"You cheat," she whispered, smiling to herself as the kitten relaxed. Oh, to be a cat. That, Lily was sure, was the perfect life.

Kate bounded up the stairs, stopping short as she spotted Lily. "Wait, what's happened?"

Confused, Lily looked around. Work hadn't begun on the fourth floor yet.

Her friend laughed, padding over softly to remove the sleeping kitten from her grasp. "I only mean what happened to you, Lilybell? You are glowing this morning."

Lily felt the blush bright on her cheeks. "It's only I never thought this was possible for me. I don't know if I believed I could be as happy as I am today. And content."

Silence lasted a beat too long, the obvious hanging between them.

She was mostly happy, mostly content. But the fact remained that she hadn't heard from Rafe, and she assumed he had sailed since their last meeting. He had broken her heart, yet she wished they hadn't parted as they had.

"Charlotte sent me to fetch you and pry you away from work to take a ride through the park."

"Well, that does sound nice." Lily motioned for Kate to head downstairs to the space she was using temporarily for her office. "But I have stacks of mail to read. Charlotte ran an advertisement last week for teachers. If we are to open this autumn as she hoped, there isn't a moment to spare."

They entered the small room that was generously bathed in afternoon light. The ceilings were tall, dwarfing Lily's petite frame. She had unpacked her books and lined them up on a small bookcase she had salvaged from another room in the building. But that was all she had for belongings.

She had sold her telescope, however foolish that plan may have been, because she believed Rafe was too scared to admit he wanted something else for himself. And perhaps it had brought him a small slice of pleasure. But now it meant she was alone in a massive building with nothing more than a temperamental kitten and her science textbooks.

Still, it was a start.

"Are you sure you don't wish to have a position here?"

Kate scrunched up her face, cradling the kitten tighter. "I am going to return to Stonehurst with Charlotte soon. I know when I am not wanted, and I don't wish to be in Town when the fashionable set return from their summers away." She spun, walking backward toward the bank of large windows. "I wouldn't mind caring for Miss Celeste, though."

Lily chuckled, sorting through the stack of letters. "Sorry, the kitten is not part of the deal. Plus, she's a biter."

"So was the Marquess of Brookhouse. I didn't complain until we were caught. The blackguard."

"Kate!"

Her friend shrugged, her eyes wide with teasing. It seemed no matter the circumstances, their paths would finally part. At least in London, Lily hazarded to guess she would still see Charlotte and Kate.

"No, don't make that face, now."

Lily patted her cheeks, worry knotting up in her chest. "What is wrong with my face?"

"I will only be a letter away. And Charlotte owns the school. It's not as if you will never see us again."

"Excuse me, m'lady."

A man covered in plaster stood in the doorway clutching his cap.

"Yes?"

"Someone to see you, m'lady."

She glanced at her calendar. Lily had appointments upon appointments, but this afternoon, she had purposely allowed a few hours free to catch her breath. It was all a whirlwind.

"I'm sorry, I don't know who it is, but I am unavailable."

"Hello."

Lily froze, too afraid to move at the warm sound of his voice. No, this she could handle. The hardest was behind them. Surely, she could.

Look, come on now.

Her heartbeat hammered in her ears as she swallowed and finally glanced up, soaking in the vision that was Rafe Davies standing in her doorway dressed in nothing else but a Savile Row bespoke suit.

"Oh, it's time for me to return to the duchess." Kate smiled at Lily, then passed off the kitten to Rafe. His eyes widened, panic filling his features. "Have a great afternoon."

"Wait, Kate!"

The only sound was that of her friend's quickly retreating footsteps down the stairs.

Lily bit her lip, fighting back a giggle as Rafe examined the small black kitten, unsure how to hold her. With a tiny meow, she climbed up his chest to sit on his shoulder.

"Don't move. I will help." Lily walked around the desk and slowly approached. He didn't speak, didn't say a word as she reached out and plucked Celeste off his shoulders. She glanced up to meet his heated stare.

"So, you aren't on a ship right now?" She scolded herself. She had meant that as a private thought, not something she shared with him.

"No."

She swallowed, her eyes darting down to his mouth. How she missed it against hers. How she missed him and the way his arms wrapped around her, and how he would place his chin on the top of her head, tucking her in close. She felt at home then.

But that might as well have been ages ago.

She was a schoolmistress now. And he was…

"And you're still in London?"

"I am."

She nodded, backing away until she was met with the top of the desk at her hip. Thoughts swirled inside her mind, yet she couldn't find one to give a voice to. They all seemed unimportant or too important all together, and she didn't know where they stood, only that she should be furious with him.

Lily was certain she was still furious with him. But she missed him more.

"I saw this advertisement in the newspaper," he said, clearing his throat. He produced last week's copy of The Times from behind his back. "A new seminary for young girls seeking teachers."

"And you wish to be a teacher?" She set Celeste down. "Sorry, we are currently not accepting men who take advantage of the brokenhearted."

"What about retired naval lieutenants seeking to make apologies to the headmistress? Any vacancies?"

She gripped the edge of the desk behind her. "It depends on the apology, I suppose."

Rafe peeked up, that warm crooked smile returning as soon as his eyes spotted the night sky she had slowly been painting onto the ceiling. "No pressure then." He stepped closer. "I'm not sure where to begin."

"At the beginning is usually best."

"So logical."

Lily shrugged. Her body ached to be wrapped in his arms. She had dreamt of this moment enough, certain he was well on his way across the world. She never expected he would be well on his way toward her, in her office, in the seminary she was to become headmistress of. And all because she decided to rescue herself and answer a marriage advertisement after being jilted at the altar one too many times.

"Retired?"

"I'm the proud partner of R & L Shipping. I thought it best to take a chance to claim the life I wanted. Nothing is guaranteed to us. I couldn't re-enlist knowing I would…" He swallowed. "I didn't wish to leave you behind."

"I don't understand. I thought I was clear at Cliffstone."

"You were, and you were right to be furious with me. I only meant to distract Henry enough that I could make a decision for myself. I never thought that decision would lead me to you. And I certainly never thought it would bring you harm. Lily, you are everything to me. I am in London to make something of myself, to prove to myself I can be my own man."

Thank goodness the desk was there to prop her up. Lily was certain her knees had grown weak. She brushed her hair back.

"I brought something today that belongs to you." He held up his hand, then dashed out into the hall before returning with the familiar case.

"I sold that."

He held her mother's telescope out for her. "I couldn't sleep until it was yours again."

Her eyes burned. Oh, she hated crying. She wouldn't do that. Lily clutched it to her chest and tried to swallow past the lump in her throat. "Thank you."

He inched closer, his hazel eyes pinning her there against the desk. It would be a nearly impossible task to flee if she wished.

Though she didn't.

"I love you, Lily. And I'm sorry I couldn't trust you and allow you to love me. I didn't wish to see you hurt. We've been apart, but I can't breathe. I barely sleep and I ache to touch you. I came here to deliver your telescope and only that… but?—"

She waited, and he sucked in a deep breath. Lily reached her hand out. His fine wool jacket was soft beneath her fingers. He looked the part of a gentleman through and through, and he was standing in front of her, apologizing.

But if he had stormed into this room and kissed her, it would have worked just as well. Loving Rafe Davies was all-consuming, and she was ready to hand her heart over, for the good and bad parts of love.

Rafe edged closer and placed his hands on her hips, then quickly lifted her up onto the top of the desk.

"I love you," she whispered.

He bent down and placed a soft kiss on her forehead as she leaned forward and rested her body against his. His heart drummed against his chest, and she closed her eyes, inhaling the familiar bay rum cologne. She traced her hand upward, up the warm skin of his neck, to slide back into his black, curly hair.

When she tilted her head back to gaze up at him, she was struck by his hazel eyes and the earnest love that awaited her there.

"I came here only to return that telescope, but I have something else I must ask." He kissed her cheeks, then the top of her nose. "Lily, will you be my wife? And think hard about your answer because I have a special license. You will walk down an aisle, and I will be waiting eagerly. And you will leave with me as your husband, and I won't ever leave you again."

She slipped her fingers into his vest beneath his jacket, discovering the slip of paper tucked against his heart for safe keeping.

A smile played on her lips. "I was rather good at being a jilted bride."

"Be my bride, love. Always."

She cupped his cheeks and drew his mouth down to hers, whispering, "Yes" before kissing him well and good, and for some time.

One kiss would never be enough. But Rafe was hers, and they had a lifetime now.