Never Fall for Your Fiancee
- Автор: Heath Virginia
- Год: 2021
- Язык: английский
- Год: St. Martin's Publishing Group
- Жанр: Исторические любовные романы
Электронная книга - «Never Fall for Your Fiancee». Краткое содержание книги:
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Virginia Heath's fun characters and situations will have you laughing out loud! Don't miss this wonderful read! - Sabrina Jeffries, *New York Times* bestselling author**
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The first in a new historical rom-com series, a handsome earl hires a fake fiancée to keep his matchmaking mother at bay, but hilarity ensues when love threatens to complicate everything.**
For fifteen years he’d been angry at the man who had shaped him—unfairly. His father hadn’t deserved that.
Had it shown in those final moments?
His concern must have appeared in his expression, because she shook her head and came to stand behind him, wrapping him in a motherly hug and stroking his hair. “You were a good son, Hugh. The best. Just as he was a wonderful man. A great father to both you and Sarah—but I always thought he had a special bond with you. You are so like him. In every conceivable way—aside from your mischievous streak and outstanding sense of humor, which I like to think came from me, of course. And because you are so like him, all he saw was your love at the end and so did I. I never knew you despaired of being his exact image.”
“Well, I suppose that explains why I’ve tired of the bachelor life.”
“And while you were trying so desperately to do the right thing, you did the absolute worst thing in the end. He couldn’t bear to hurt anyone’s feelings either.” The hand that had just lovingly stroked his hair clipped him around the ear. “You have some serious amends to make!”
“I know.”
“To me, to Jeremiah, to that lovely young lady who is miraculously prepared to wait for you despite your total idiocy…”
He was an idiot. Because she didn’t have to wait!
Neither did he! The Standish blood that ran through his veins wasn’t tainted. It was his father’s blood, not his grandfather’s. Therefore it was loyal and decent and capable of lifelong, deep, and abiding love!
What a wonderful revelation!
“… to Reverend Cranham, the entire congregation of Saint Mary’s, Madame Devy…”
Hugh knocked the heavy oak chair over in his hurry to get up.
“Where do you think you’re going, Hugh! I haven’t even got through the half of it yet…”
But he wasn’t listening. He dashed across the hallway and back into the drawing room and skidded to a halt.
Jeremiah was still seething. Lucretia still snoring. Vee sat on the settee. Eyes red, swollen, sad, and remorseful behind her spectacles. Diana next to her, her gaze instantly narrowed at the sight of him, looking out for her sister. Giles munching on a biscuit, waiting for the next gripping installment in Hugh’s epic farce to unfold. Payne hovering while still doing his best to merge into the woodwork.
And Minerva.
Rushing toward him, concerned. Wonderful, selfless, passionate, uncoordinated, outspoken, and perfect Minerva worried entirely about him. Because she loved him.
“Is everything all right?”
“It is better than all right. It is…” Frightening, exciting, unexpected, mind-boggling. The floor was tilting and his head was spinning—but he was free. “Truly … excellent.”
Hugh grabbed her hand and dropped to his knees.
“Do you remember when I said I believed vows should last forever?”
She nodded, confused.
“Well, I still believe it! Marry me, Minerva. Not next year or next month or even next week. Marry me now because I cannot wait another day to spend the rest of my life with you.”
“But you said you wanted to wait…”
“All the more reason to ignore it! Look at the mess I’ve made. I’ve been a blithering idiot! I’m a menace to myself and those around me. I can’t be trusted to make important decisions all by myself.”
“That’s true.” His mother sailed into the room, grinning. “‘Marry me today’ indeed—when the banns still need to be read on Sunday and Madame Devy won’t be able to get Minerva’s beautiful wedding gown here on time! No indeed!”
“But I don’t understand … last night…”
“Last night I believed I was just like my father, and I assumed that was a bad thing, but now I know it wasn’t. It isn’t.” It was wonderful. Truly excellent in every way. “You see, it turns out he wasn’t a philanderer at all—that was just my grandfather.” He could see she was struggling to keep up—and no wonder; he was making no sense. “What I mean is, I was wrong, Minerva. About him. About me. About us. About everything. I will never let you down because you already know I’d rather die than hurt you. So marry me and you have my solemn vow I’ll spend eternity proving it.”
Minerva smiled, her beautiful eyes brimming with love, but before she could respond, his meddling mother decided their nuptials were a fait accompli.
“A Christmas wedding is better, I think. Don’t you, Minerva? Valentine’s is such a long way off. Besides, I’ve already ordered the musicians and sent out the invitations, although I am a bit annoyed I shall have to redo the table plans, now that your nonexistent relatives from the Cairngorms won’t be coming.” Then she rolled her eyes as Lucretia began to snore again. “Although at least we’ll be spared the Mozart—so every cloud … What music would you like, Minerva dear?”
“It will make no difference…” She laughed and tenderly stroked Hugh’s face. “I cannot hear it.”
“Is that a yes, Minerva?”
“And once again, I have been proved right.” A smug Giles addressed nobody in particular. “I warned him. Actually falling for his fake fiancée would only end in catastrophe. And here he is, stumbling headlong into the parson’s trap like a man possessed! The biggest catastrophe of them all. If I wasn’t so delighted to have been so prophetic, I’d be devastated for him.”
His mother sighed. “He’s a man in love, Giles dear. You should try it. In fact … Diana’s awfully pretty. I’ve seen you watching her when you think nobody is looking…”
Diana was outraged. “I wouldn’t have him if he were the last man on earth!”
“And I wouldn’t touch that harridan with a barge pole!” Poor Giles looked absolutely terrified.
“Can you all just shut up so the lady can answer!” Jeremiah’s bellow brought a welcome silence to the room. “Unless you want to run from all this madness, Minerva? In which case, I’ll have the horses saddled.”
“She can’t ride either.” Jeremiah glared at Vee, and she set her jaw stubbornly. “Well, as we are all suddenly telling the truth, I thought I should mention it…”
Hugh felt his lips twitching at the ridiculousness of it all and saw Minerva’s do the same. What bizarre stock they both came from. So much so, life was never destined to be dull. Their children would be interesting. He had never considered them before but suddenly couldn’t wait to meet them all. A house full of adorable green-eyed troublemakers to make their happiness complete.
“So what’s it to be, my love? A wedding followed by a life of nonsense with all of these escaped lunatics or the blissful quiet of a life of delirious exile on a beach in Italy?”
“I’ve become rather accustomed to the chaos these past few weeks.… And Madame Devy’s design was rather wonderful…”
“I am going to need the words, Minerva. The actual words.”
“Then, yes. I’ll marry you.”
He kissed her, and all the chaos receded temporarily into the background. That was something he decided to do whenever life got out of hand. He would kiss his wonderful wife and she would make it all better exactly as she was doing now.
“Then all’s well that ends well. And I promise that is the absolute last theatrical reference I ever use, my love.” Two words that felt perfect on his lips and that he would use wherever possible.
My love.
His. For all eternity.
“Did I ever tell you I played Helena at Drury Lane…”