The Day of the Duchess (Scandal & Scoundrel, #3)

by Sarah MacLean

“I suppose you loved me then, too.” “I did,” he confessed. “I’ve loved you from the start, and you never believed it.” “When is that? When you stole kisses and threatened my reputation feet from the rest of London?” A fist knotted in his gut. “Yes,” he said. “And when you made love to me here? At Highley?” “Yes—Sera—” “And when I forced your hand?” He’d been so furious then. But it hadn’t changed anything. Not really. “Yes.” “You didn’t believe me then. That I loved you. That I was afraid for my sisters and myself. Everything you and I had ever done had been so clandestine. And I’d loved it. But what would happen in the light?” She shook her head. “I regretted it all the moment I did it. I once told you that I would do it again if I had the chance. I wouldn’t. If I could take one day of my life back, it would be that day, here. At Highley.” She looked away, to the horses, the meadow, the estate in late-summer perfection. “I regret it.” He nodded. “I know.” She returned her gaze to his, clear and honest. “I told myself then that I did it for my sisters. That’s how I kept myself sane. But I did it for myself, as well. I did it for myself, full stop. Because I loved you and I was afraid I would never be enough for you.” “You were,” he said, reaching for her again, running his hands down her arms, taking her hands in his. “You were more than I could ever dream. I had spent so much of my life believing that love was impossible that when I had it in hand—I wanted every bit of it...