Midnight (19 page)

“I would have been happier with less, believe me.”

Faith studied him silently for a long few moments. The two of them had needed this quiet together because now she knew more about him. He’d claimed to be half tamed and she understood a bit better what he’d meant. All that he’d experienced helped mold him into the man he’d become, and in a few more days he was going to become her husband. How would that mold them both?

“What are you thinking, Faith?” he asked quietly.

She shrugged. “Just how we are molded by our lives. Mine has been a life of frugalness and self-reliance, all the things a goodly raised woman should be, yet I’ve never seen the sun rise or set except here in Boston, while you’ve seen it all over the world. Parts of me envy you those experiences.” She added, “Not the terrible ones though.”

He smiled his understanding. “Then maybe we’ll take a wedding trip when the weather warms. Since Philadelphia is the largest city in the colonies, we’ll go there.”

She brightened. “Truly?”

“Truly.”

“We’ll take the stagecoach and you can begin having your own experiences.”

“I’d like that.”

“Good.” Nicholas thought about how simple it seemed to please her. He’d known women in the past who would never have questioned the amount of money spent on them, but this little Tory-raised rose had fretted and nearly worried him to distraction. She was special; intelligent, bossy, beautiful, and blunt, but becoming even more special every moment they were together. Parts of Nicholas knew this was love, but he chose not to acknowledge it.

She had a question. “Will you be content to be a farmer after living life so freely?”

“I asked myself the very same thing a few days after my return, but I’m adjusting.”

He paused a moment to look into her face and then said, “Besides, I have you around now, and that will probably be all the excitement I’ll need.”

“We’ll see,” she said, smiling. “We’ll see.”

Chapter 19

T
he day of the wedding, Faith awakened to dark clouds and rain. She supposed somewhere in the world such a downpour was greeted as a positive sign for a couple about to embark upon marriage, but in the colonies, it was just wet. With no alternative but to put a happy face on the situation, she got out of bed to start the day.

Two days had passed since their talk in the kitchen and she’d spent the time in between preparing the house for the wedding and the guests. Nicholas searched out Adeline’s good china and found it packed away in tarp-lined crates in the cellar. The gold-edged plates had a single rose in the center, and their beauty outshone any other china Faith had seen. In the crates were everything from teacups to gravy boats, and she spent the remainder of the afternoon washing them and placing them in the dining room’s highboy where Nicholas said they’d been kept when he was growing up. There were crystal goblets and silverware, some of it still in its original packaging, which made Faith wonder sadly if Adeline had died before she could use them. When passing through the parlor, Faith stopped and looked up at her portrait often, wondering what she’d been like, and what role she’d played in the feud between her father and Primus, but Adeline remained posed and silent, offering only the secretive smile in her eyes as her reply.

But now Faith was in the kitchen. It was still dark and she hoped the pounding rain would run its course before the pastor and the guests arrived later that afternoon. With breakfast on the fire and Nicholas’s awful-tasting coffee ready to be poured, Faith was setting plates on the table when he walked in.

“Good morning,” he said to her. “I’d hoped to come down and make breakfast for you today but as I can see, I’m late.”

“Good morning, and yes, you are.”

“After today, you are allowed to get up after sunrise.”

“Why wait for sunrise when there are chores to do?” she asked, pausing to study his face.

He chuckled softly. “This isn’t the Kingston Inn, sweet Faith. No one here but the two of us.”

“And?”

He folded his arms and studied her. “You don’t have to work so hard anymore, is what I’m trying to say to you.”

She took that in for a moment and replied, “Oh.” Getting up later wasn’t anything Faith had ever considered. Rising before dawn so that she and her father could breakfast at six had been her routine since she was eight or nine years old. “I’ve never been a lazybones, Nicholas.”

“And I’m not asking you to be. I’m just asking you to be human.” And he added with an indulgent smile and voice, “If you can.”

That touched her heart. “I will try. I’ll get up at five tomorrow.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“Six then,” she said, amending her claim.

“Better.”

Faith decided she liked this man, very much.

“And besides, tonight will be our wedding night. You may not want to get up tomorrow until noon.”

“I’ve never stayed in bed that late.”

“There’s a first time for everything, Faith Kingston, and tonight will be one of those new experiences you’ve been seeking.”

She blinked.

“Coffee ready?”

Tearing herself away from humor reflected in his eyes, she stammered, “Um. Yes.”

Padding her hand with a cloth, she picked up the coffeepot and carried it to the table.

Charity showed up just as Faith was finishing the kitchen cleanup. She had the cake, her hair irons, the food she was providing for the wedding meal, a tarp-covered crate of unknown contents, and a tarp-covered garment on a hanger. Faith assumed the hanger held the dress Charity planned to change into later for the wedding. However, after they stowed the food and she and Charity went up to Faith’s room, Faith found her assumption had been wrong.

After removing the tarp, Charity laid the dress on the bed, and when she drew away the layer of linen it was wrapped in, Faith stood gaping at the most beautiful ball gown in the world. “Mama said you are to wear this.”

The bodice and overskirt were the palest yellow. The layers of tiered petticoats visible between the open panels of the over skirt were snow white, as was the lace on the square-cut décolletage and the cuffs of the long sleeves. The dress was breathtaking enough for a queen. “Charity, I can’t wear this.”

“We knew you’d say that so I’m simply going to ignore it.”

Faith stared in amazement. “She couldn’t have finished this in the time since I’ve seen her. Where did this come from?”

“Paris. Mama shipped it to a client last fall but the woman returned it with a note saying it didn’t fit well. It arrived yesterday. We’re hoping it’ll fit you.”

A few days ago, Faith had made the decision to wear her new gray suit as her wedding clothes, but this gorgeous confection would be unlike anything she’d ever worn before. “I will be very careful not to dirty it so that your mother may have it back.”

Charity smiled and shook her head. “If it fits you are to keep it. Mama says it’s her wedding gift. She’ll be here in time for the ceremony.”

Faith gaped.

“Close your mouth and sit so that I can start your hair.”

Faith complied, but her eyes kept straying to the dress.

With her hair done and her dress on, Faith viewed herself in the mirror and felt tears wet her eyes.

Charity scolded, “Don’t you dare cry. We’ll both be downstairs with swollen eyes and that won’t be a pretty sight. You look beautiful.”

“Yes, I do,” she whispered. The dress fit well. The square neckline offered only a tiniest hint of the rise of her breasts but to Faith’s eyes it appeared very daring. “I’m not accustomed to showing my neck this way.”

“It’s only for a few hours, Faith. You can go back to being clothed to your ears tomorrow.”

Both women grinned.

There was a knock on the door.

“Yes,” Faith called.

“It’s Bekkah Clegg. May I come in?”

“Yes, please,” Faith replied earnestly.

Bekkah was tall and had hair the color of a bonfire. She also had a smile on her face. “You look so beautiful. Oh my word, what a gown.”

Faith beamed.

“I came up to introduce myself and to see if you need any assistance.” She nodded Charity’s way. “Wonderful seeing you again, Charity.”

“How are you, Bekkah?”

“You know each other then?”

Charity explained that they had worked on a church aid project together a few years ago.

Faith said, “I’d like to thank you for bringing over the food while I was sick, and for your helping out today.”

“I’m glad to do it. I’ve known Nicholas since we were very young and I’m looking forward to the two of us knowing each other as well.”

They spent a few minutes talking about the dishes she’d brought over, and once that was done, Bekkah turned to leave, but Faith stopped her. “Please stay. If we’re going to be friends I’d like for you to enter the parlor with us.”

Bekkah paused and met Faith’s eyes, then she gave an almost imperceptible nod. “How can I turn down such a gracious request. Thank you, Faith.”

“You’re welcome.”

Twenty-five minutes later, at precisely two o’clock, Faith entered the parlor to become Mrs. Nicholas Grey.

Dressed in his formal attire and with Arte by his side, Nick turned to watch her enter. At the sight of her his heart swelled with so much pride, he thought it might burst from his chest. He’d no idea where she’d gotten the stunning dress she was wearing, but she looked like a queen. From her gleaming hair to the faint paint on her lips, he could honestly say she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever laid eyes and he was humbled that she’d agreed to be his wife. She was followed in by a teary-eyed Charity and the smiling Bekkah, but he saw them only in passing. Faith, holding a small bouquet of red primroses, was his focus.

She seemed to glide as she walked over to stand at his side, and as she reached him she looked up into his face and smiled. Nick knew from that point on he would do everything humanly possible to keep that same smile on her face for the rest of their life together or die trying.

The ceremony conducted by Arte’s uncle Absalom took only a few moments. Nick solemnly pledged his love and fidelity, and when her turn came, she pledged the same. Pastor Absalom then declared them man and wife and with a kind smile invited Nick to kiss his bride. Knowing that he couldn’t kiss her with the passion he felt in his heart because of the guests looking on, he gifted her with a soft, gentle kiss, then stepped back.

The guests applauded. Charity cried. Bekkah cried. Mrs. Locke cried. The baby Peter cried in Ingram’s arms. Faith glanced up at her husband through tears of joy, and Nick took her hand and kissed her fingers. “Thank you for marrying me,” he said to her softly.

“You’ve made me very happy today, Nicholas. Thank you, too.”

The wedding feast was held in the formal dining room. Faith sat at one end of the table and the pleased Nicholas at the other. Even with everyone gathered around helping themselves to the food, offering toasts, and drinking ale, the newlyweds couldn’t take their eyes off each other.

When the time came for the Cleggs and the Trotters to leave, Faith wondered if the rain had been a blessing after all. The day had been perfect. She and Nick walked their guests to the door, exchanged farewell hugs, and thanked them for their love and friendship.

Then Nick and Faith were alone. Standing with his back to the front door, Nick took in the sight of his lovely wife and wondered how long it might take him to get her out of that beautiful dress.

Faith could see the mischief in his eyes and so asked, “And what are you thinking, my handsome husband?”

He grinned. “How long it will take me to get you out of that dress.”

She dropped her head. “What am I going to do with you?”

“I believe I can answer that as well.”

Anticipation shot through Faith. Come morning she would know everything about the intimate mysteries of being a married woman and she was admittedly anxious to begin.

And so was Nick. With that in mind, he walked over and kissed her until the room spun. While Faith fought to recover from the sensual opening volley, he picked her up and carried her up the stairs.

He set her back down on her feet in the center of her bedroom and she asked, “Shouldn’t we be in your room?”

He dropped a kiss onto her neck and his hands began to roam languidly. “You said this should be the room of my wife, remember.”

And she had, but Faith was finding hard to think with the passion he was kindling in her with his kisses and hands.

“We’ll initiate it . . . and you.”

Faith moaned. His lips on the exposed expanse of her throat above the square neck of her dress were so hot, she thought her skin might catch fire. Her limbs were trembling, her lips were parted, and she reached for him to pull him close. It was all the incentive he needed. Running his hand up and down her silk-covered back while he licked at her lips set Faith on the road to desire. They fed on each other with humid kisses and slowly mating tongues, taking their time and prolonging the moments because they had all night.

“Let’s get you out of this dress.”

In the firelight from the grate, Nick played lady’s maid and undid the buttons at the back, one by one. He paused between each opening to brush his worshipping lips against each patch of soft skin, then gently slid the silk down her shoulders. Holding the frothy dress against her waist, Faith, her eyes closed, felt the warmth of his fingers grazing her back, followed by the return of his lips. The familiar haze brought on by pleasure melted around her and encompassed her senses. He allowed her a moment to step out of the dress and laid it across a chair. She faced him wearing her snow white shift, drawers, white stockings, and shoes.

“You look ravishing.”

Faith trembled in response to his husky voice and stepped out of her shoes. When he joined her again, he led her to the bed. And once he rid himself of his coat and breeches, he joined her there.

He looked into her eyes.

She confessed, “I’m a bit nervous, Nick.”

“Don’t worry. I know this is your first time and I’ll make sure it’s very special.”

She whispered, “Thank you.”

He smiled and traced a slow finger from her mouth and down her throat and then circled it over the small nook at the base. Leaning in, he flicked his tongue against it and moved his lips slowly across the bare spaces above her shift. She knew he could feel her small shakes, but his hands moving up and down the tense arms soon lulled her into ease and all she wanted to do was to feel what might come next.

The opening of the three small ribbons on her new shift followed. He eased the thin straps from her shoulders, then opened the fluttering halves to his admiring eyes. Faith didn’t remember lying flat but somehow she was and he was above her looking down. Holding her eyes, he passed a strong hand over the dark nippled twins now free for him to explore, then dropped his head to reacquaint himself with their sweetness.

She groaned from the bliss in his loving of her. The erotic sucking and tugging from his lips made her hips rise. He moved a hand over her waist framed by the open shift, then down her legs encased in the silk hose and squeezed the flesh tenderly.