Thirty-eight

Eveline

As I rolled over in bed this morning, I recalled the date—18 October 1815. My wedding date. My second wedding date, but the one I had waited a lifetime for.

Though my body wanted to jump out of my skin from the excitement I felt, I took a moment to reflect on all that happened since I stepped foot inside Gottling Hall—from the archery contest, to the games, shooting the musket, canoe rides, and picnics—and while I believed my life might change after this most unusual house party, I had no inkling how much, at least not in the beginning.

That day after Zachary met me in the woods and shared his heart, I felt my life shift for the better, but it wasn’t until we were standing at the top of the watchtower with the sun setting behind us that I knew my life was no longer my own. Zachary and Patrick were my everything and I could not ask for one solitary thing more.

“Evie!” A scratch came to the door. “Evie, I’m coming in,” April announced. I sat up as she barged in, followed more gracefully by my mother.

“You are still in bed?” Mother exclaimed. “There is so much to do.”

They arrived last night having departed the same day the messenger was dispatched. There wasn’t time to send a carriage, so Zachary paid for a rented coach to bring them straightaway from London. They hardly had time to think or hesitate, but I was so grateful for their timely arrival. I could not imagine getting married without them.

“Oh, is this the dress?” April walked over to my armoire where a beautiful lavender gown hung by a wire. Gwendolyn had offered me one of her finest and paid the local dressmaker to make a few adjustments, especially since she was taller than me. A dainty wreath of flowers, constructed by Helena herself, sat upon my desk. She could not risk the walk down the stairs or the ride to the church, but while she remained in bed, she expertly crafted the last of the forget-me-nots from the garden into a charming garland for my head.

“Yes,” I said to April as I stood up and stretched. “What do you think of the gown?”

She sighed. “You will be the most beautiful bride. I can’t wait to be one myself.”

“Oh, that will be later, much later.” Mother chuckled. “We first have much to do before your first season.”

April scrunched her nose and shot me a dry look as if this had been discussed many times.

Mother embraced me. “I always believed you and Zachary would be together.”

“You did?”

She nodded. “As rascally as the boy could be and all the things he and Lucas got you into…”

“What things?” I asked in a curious way.

“Oh, please, love, it would take hours for me to list them all.”

“You knew?”

“Well, some.” Her mouth pinched. “I’m certain I don’t want to know all of them.”

I laughed. “No, you definitely don’t.” I arched a brow. “Why didn’t you stop me from going out to the pond or to see Lucas and Zachary?”

“Because I truly believed that one day he would be your husband and would not mind your odd behavior.”

I chuckled again. “Thank you, Mother. I had always hoped it would be Zach in the end.”

Mother reached for my hands, directing me to get moving. “Now come, Eveline. We have a bride to prepare.”

Three hours later, I stepped out of the doorway of my bedchamber where my mother, April, and Gwendolyn stood to receive me.

“You should see the ballroom, Evie!” April shouted. “It’s as if it’s decorated for a grand affair.”

“It is a grand affair,” Mother said as she hugged me. “The grandest.”

“Now, take a moment to breathe before you step down these stairs,” Gwendolyn advised. “I know your mind is not on the walk at this moment.” She chuckled.

As they each took turns kissing me on the cheeks, they disappeared and suddenly the realization of what waited for me struck me hard. I was about to marry the man I have loved my entire life. How am I so blessed?

As I took each step one at a time, I held onto the deep cherrywood banister with one hand and lifted the hem of my dress with the other, watching every step I made in my cream-colored slippers. It wasn’t until I reached the last two steps that I glanced up and found Zach standing before me. He wore a black tailcoat, a deep red and silver waistcoat that matched the silver of his cravat, and I thought my heart could not fall any harder.

He held his hand out to me as his eyes lit up. “You’re stunning, Evie.”

Smiling bashfully, I took his hand.

He leaned in and gently kissed my cheek before he whispered, “But you always have been.”

My heart fluttered as if it grasped the sound of my other half… the other half of my soul.

He took me by the hand but, instead of leading me out the doors to the carriage that would take us to the local parish, he led me to the parlor and before a set of open windows. Turning me to face him, he held both my hands.

“Before we go, I wanted to share something private with you, for in a moment we are going to be standing before our friends and the vicar, but right here, right now, I want this to be between us.”

I smiled.

“Since you were nine years old, I saw you differently, Evie.” His thumbs brushed against my skin. “I saw someone who didn’t care if she dirtied her hands, or tore her dress, or laughed unabashedly. Even when you grew into a lovely woman, that same fire and excitement never left.” He chuckled. “It may have simmered a time or two, but I knew… I knew at a young age that you were the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.” He brought my hands to his lips and kissed them softly. “God has given me that chance. I will never stop worshipping everything about you, never stop showing you how precious you are to me, and certainly never stop loving you. You are my heart, my soul, my breath, and my everything. Thank you, Evie, for loving me in return.”

His kind words of love and affirmation threaded through me and clutched my soul, keeping hold as he eliminated the distance between us and kissed me sweetly.

In sweet summation, the elusive, irresistible Lord Zachary Collins persuasively captured my heart.