The Widow and the Rogue Read online

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  After their guests had left, Beau and Kathleen strolled quietly by the lake. The moon shone clearly upon the water as the two walked, hand-in-hand, along the edge. Tim ran down the lawn in front of them.

  Kathleen unwittingly shuddered. She fingered the enchanted brooch, remembering she had stood at this very spot and observed the banshee wailing, the night her husband had died and she was freed from his tyrannical control.

  “Are you cold?” Beau asked, placing an arm around her.

  “No, I’m fine . . . I was remembering the night Bangford died.”

  She drew closer. The feel of his arms around her was comforting. He’d shared in the dangers she’d faced. Courageously, he’d protected her, never giving a thought to his own safety. He had put her first.

  Looking out at the lake, she contemplated her life. Orphaned at a young age and then sold by her greedy uncle, she’d been the child bride of a controlling lord. She’d been made a prisoner in her own home, which was ruled over by a dangerous woman, the housekeeper, a female pirate smuggler, but whereas before she had been alone, dominated, and made to feel small, she was no longer. Beau now stood solidly beside her.

  He’d helped her from the minute she’d buried her husband up to this moment. Because of him, she was able to live the life she’d always dreamed. She was empowered. She’d faced down death and was no longer afraid that any man would again completely control her life.

  She looked up at his profile and tried to picture her life without him. She could not. He’d become too important.

  “Beau,” she said looking up into his eyes. “I have made an important decision and I need you, as my guardian, to agree to it.”

  “And what would that be?”

  “A special love charm was cast upon me,” she said, touching her brooch lightly. “And I have no desire to be cured of it. Indeed, I would like very much for it to continue to enchant me. If you’re agreeable . . . and in love with me . . . I would like you to ask me to be your wife.”

  He blinked then gave a shout of laughter.

  He turned to her, and gently cupped her face; a tender smile lit his.

  “Vixen,” he said, “You’ve become quite your own woman.”

  “Yes,” she smiled, “but you have become the other half my heart has been longing for. I think it will break if you do not become completely mine.”

  “Well, we mustn’t have that, now must we?” He smiled and went down on one knee.

  He took her hand and gallantly asked the question she most longed to hear, “Kathleen, you are the woman I have been looking for all of my life. You’re strong, brave, and yes, beautiful, as well as amazingly resourceful . . . all qualities which I greatly admire. You have made me feel a jumble of emotions that I have never felt before, from terrifying fear to sweet, heady desire. Darling, I cannot imagine my life continuing without you in it. I am in love with you. Please, will you marry me and make me the happiest of men?”

  She laughed with delight, nodded her head, and said, “Yes—Yes, I will.”

  He stood and took her into his arms. They shared a kiss that warmed her heart and changed her life. Never again was she to be alone. Their lives were to be filled with the challenging adventure of raising a family, running an estate, and being completely enchanted by each other.

  About the Author

  Engaging, romantic frolics, with a touch of magic, are how author, Beverly Adam, describes her Regency Romance series: Gentlemen of Honor. The redheaded writer currently resides in California where she revisits history on a regular basis as a romance novelist and biographer.