A wicked grin came to his face.
Laughing, Anne slapped his shoulder. “I never knew you possessed such roguish tendencies, Mr. Hawke,” she chided him. “I must say I’m discovering all new sides to you now that I’m your wife.”
“Are you disappointed?”
A slow smile spread over her lovely face. “I didn’t say that, now did I?”
Impatience burnt in Tobias’s veins as he pulled her into another deep kiss, overwhelmed by how life had changed in the past few months. While Anne was still his friend and they continued to tease and laugh as they always had, she was now so much more than that as well. There was a deeper understanding, a bond that went beyond what they’d previously shared. Every day, they discovered something new about one another and, every night, he fell asleep with a deliriously happy smile upon his lips.
“Ah! There you are!”
Cursing Anne’s meddlesome cousin, Tobias reluctantly released his vice-like hold upon his wife and took a step back. He hadn’t even heard Louisa approach, let alone enter the room; however, judging from the disapproving look on Anne’s face, his wife had been equally oblivious.
“What are you doing here?” Anne asked her cousin, her hands quickly moving to right the wrinkles Tobias’s hands had left upon her gown.
“Looking for you,” Louisa replied with a self-evident look in her eyes. “After all, it is your wedding day, and you cannot simply disappear without it being noted.”
Anne cast him a meaningful look.
“Very well,” Tobias relented, offering his wife his arm. “We’ll return to share in the festivities.”
“I think that is advisable,” Louisa remarked as she stepped closer and tucked a loose strand behind Anne’s left ear, a knowing grin upon her face. “I do love to see you two so happy,” she told them then, her blue eyes moving from Anne to him before returning to his wife. “You must admit you’re quite fortunate to have me as your family. After all, without my assistance, I doubt we’d be here today celebrating your union.” Her brows rose meaningfully.
Tobias laughed, “Are you fishing for a compliment, dear cousin?”
Louisa smiled at him. “A thank-you will do, dearest Tobias.”
Sighing, Tobias offered her a formal bow. “I’m offering you my deepest gratitude for your wisdom in urging us to recognize the bond between us.” He smiled at Anne as she squeezed his arm, her eyes warm and glowing. “Your determination and selfless sacrifice shall never be forgotten.”
Rolling her eyes at him, Louisa sighed, “I must say that is a very unbecoming quality,” she miffed, her nose slightly wrinkled. “You sound just like your awful brother.”
“That reminds me,” Anne said as a slow, somewhat wicked smile came to her lips. “You have yet to fulfill your end of our bargain.”
For a second, Tobias frowned before he remembered what Anne had told him about everything Louisa had done during their visit to Windmere Park to make the two of them see what was truly between them. Not only had she tackled Anne to the ground and given Tobias a good talking-to, but she’d also promised to kiss Phineas if Anne and Tobias ever were to tie the knot.
Now, they had.
“Will you forfeit?” Anne dared her.
Louisa’s gaze hardened, and her jaw set in determination. “Never.”
As though on cue, footsteps echoed to their ears from down the hall, and a moment later, Phineas poked his head into the room. “What are you all doing in here?” he asked, looking from one to the other.
Louisa groaned and turned back to glare at Anne. “You did this on purpose!” she hissed.
Anne merely shrugged, an innocent smile upon her face.
Tobias tried his utmost not to laugh.
Huffing out an annoyed breath, Louisa spun on her heel and marched up to a rather bewildered-looking Phineas. “Don’t read anything into this,” she told him before her hands seized his face and pulled him into a kiss.
Tobias couldn’t help but stare at them, and neither could Anne, her hand now like an iron vice upon his arm.
Phineas seemed momentarily caught off guard as Louisa’s lips claimed his; however, he quickly recovered, returning her kiss with utter enthusiasm. His hands settled on her waist, holding her to him when she made to pull away.
“I told you not to read anything into this,” she snapped at Phineas, shoving him away with another annoyed eye roll. Then she turned to Anne, one brow arching upward. “There. Satisfied?”
Anne opened her mouth to reply; however, Phineas was faster. Tobias watched with wide eyes as his brother pulled Louisa back into his arms. “Far from it,” he answered her question, a wide grin on his face. Then he dipped his head and kissed her again, cutting off her startled gasp.
Anne turned to her husband then, clutching his arm. “Your brother and my cousin?” she whispered, her eyes wide and her lips twitching as she grinned up at him.
Tobias chuckled, “I thought you suspected them from the start.”
“I was merely jesting,” Anne mumbled as her eyes darted back to the other two in the room. “But now…”
“Do you think they’d ever admit that they care for each other?” Tobias asked, surprised by his brother’s strong reaction to Louisa. Was it possible that Phineas genuinely cared for her?
Anne shook her head. “Not in a thousand years. They’re far too stubborn. Both of them.”
Again, Louisa tried to free herself from Phineas’s hold on her, her hands curling into his lapels and giving him a slight, rather feeble-looking push.
Tobias frowned. “Should we…interfere?” He glanced at Anne. “Should we…save her?”
Anne shook her head, grinning. “Oh, she’s more than capable of saving herself. If she doesn’t, perhaps she simply does not wish to be saved.”
Smiling, Tobias pulled his wife into his arms. “This was to be our day,” he whispered before he placed a gentle kiss upon her lips.
“It still is,” Anne pointed out, a deeply seductive smile curling up the corners of her mouth. “Perhaps we should find another room.” She glanced at Phineas and Louisa, who seemed to have forgotten the world around them. “One with fewer people in it.”
Wrapping an arm around his wife’s waist, Tobias pulled her from the room and out into the hall. “That is an excellent idea, Wife.”
“Thank you, Husband,” Anne laughed as they sneaked down the hallway, leaving the other two to figure this out on their own.
After all, what could happen?
The End
About Bree Wolf
USA Today bestselling and award-winning author, Bree Wolf has always been a language enthusiast (though not a grammarian!) and is rarely found without a book in her hand or her fingers glued to a keyboard. Trying to find her way, she has taught English as a second language, traveled abroad and worked at a translation agency as well as a law firm in Ireland. She also spent loooong years obtaining a BA in English and Education and an MA in Specialized Translation while wishing she could simply be a writer. Although there is nothing simple about being a writer, her dreams have finally come true.