Page 104 of A Change of Location
“I’m about to resolve that issue.” He placed his glass on the table before kneeling on the carpet. “Don’t laugh.”
“I won’t.” She didn’t have enough breath for it.
“Will you marry me? Please.”
She joined him on the floor. “Absolutely. Yes. Definitely.”
“No need to think it over?”
She shook her head. “For an ultra-modern marquess, this is a surprisingly old-fashioned proposal.”
“I’m predictably unpredictable. You should know that by now.” From his inside pocket he removed the brown leather ring box and raised the lid.
She’d never seen, or imagined, a diamond so large. When he put it on her finger, she felt the weight of it. “It’s real, isn’t it?”
“Of course. Just before you arrived at the house, I was showing it to Caroline. Our great-great grandfather purchased it in Paris. He wanted a stone that would impress a Belgian princess. The Prince of Wales attended their wedding, representing his mother Queen Victoria, in 1898. That date is engraved on the inside of the band.”
“Stop right there. You never told me you’re related to Continental royalty.”
“They barely acknowledge the connection. Anyway, this treasure of mine was sitting in a London bank vault. Waiting for you.” He started untying the robe’s thick sash. “Although that ring seals our engagement, I came here with another ritual in mind.” He pushed away the voluminous terrycloth covering, revealing her scanty attire.
She pulled off his jacket and unbuttoned his shirt. “I didn’t think this evening could get better,” she murmured. “How wrong I was.”
They finished undressing and moved to the bed. Their foreplay didn’t last long, their mutual need was too intense.
Hannah, shaken to her soul and thoroughly sated, lay comfortably within the curve of his body, conscious of the simultaneous rise and fall of their bare chests.
“What do you think about a December wedding? On your birthday. Can you wait till then?”
“If you can,” she said drowsily.
“A small and private ceremony at St. Anne’s in Milverston Magna. We can fly your parents over. We’ll include your Gran and your aunt and uncle in Wales, and the ones near Wimbledon. Perhaps your violinist cousin and some of his orchestra mates will provide the music. Afterwards, an intimate family dinner party at Stanwell.”
“What about Alicia?”
He scrunched up his face.
“She’s your grandmother, Martin.”
“I suppose we ought to invite her. She’ll come.”
“Grampa and Chase can’t. They don’t have passports.”
“We’ll spend Christmas and New Year’s in Maine and arrange a blessing ceremony in your parish church. Your grandfather and your uncle will be there. Plus anyone and everyone you and your parents want to include. And Liz and Tom. All your Boston friends. Followed by a huge reception.”
Hannah released a long sigh. “I could get used to this.”
“What do you mean?”
“Being presented with a very detailed plan that covers every contingency and all the logistics. And I didn’t have to develop it.”
“Mother helped me,” he admitted. “She suggested a candlelight wedding, because by December it gets dark at such an early hour. She’s impatient to discuss church flowers with your mother. And she planned a dinner menu. But none of it happens unless you approve.”
“When did you two start conspiring?”
“Before I left for London.”
Big Ben clanged. She reached across Martin to pick up her phone from the bedside table. “Liz—again.”
