One of the older women seemed reluctant to join the others for the photograph. “We’re not the sort for a posed photograph,” she said.
“Nonsense!” Caroline exclaimed. “You nine ladies are the only sisters I ever had.”
The older woman beamed in reply and fell into place. Soon the women left, and Nathaniel posed with a group of Secret Service officers for their photograph with the bride. Jokes flew as the former White House colleagues reunited for the first time in almost a year.
A group of army officers, including Colonel Phelps, stood only a few feet away. Old instincts kicked in, and Luke immediately started eavesdropping. Often people felt compelled to jabber when they were anxious, but Luke had always found one could learn far more by simply listening. He held the glass of flat champagne in his hand, pretending to enjoy the view but privately scrutinizing Colonel Phelps.
The officers were speculating about additional army encampments moving out west, and if there was any room for promotion by accepting postings that far out of the limelight.
“If a rebellion in the Indian territories happens, it will come quickly,” Colonel Phelps said. “Things may appear calm at the moment, but the promotions will go to the men out in the field, not the staff officers in Washington.”
Personally, Luke would like nothing better than to have Colonel Phelps transferred out west. Perhaps Hawaii.
Soon the conversation shifted to the quality of the crab salad and the bacon-wrapped filet mignon. Luke’s stomach growled, but he had fended off worse hunger pains than this, and he was curious to hear Colonel Phelps’s opinion of Caroline’s gourmet selections. If Colonel Phelps aspired to an alliance with the Magruder family, he would have to become a fan of potted ham and chicken spread.
Sadly, Colonel Phelps said nothing disparaging about the food. He comported himself like a perfect gentleman for the entire ten minutes Luke eavesdropped.
Until the colonel slipped and made a derogatory comment about Nathaniel. “I don’t personally know the man, but a Delacroix marrying a civil servant is a bit of a step down, isn’t it?”
Luke didn’t wait to hear the reply. He pushed away from the wall and approached the group of officers. “That ‘civil servant’ is my brother-in-law,” he said coolly.
Colonel Phelps blanched and took a step back. “My apologies,” he said. “I had no idea any family members were in the vicinity.”
“Obviously.” Luke’s gaze flicked to Colonel Phelps’s collection of medals and the epaulets on his shoulders. “Nathaniel Trask doesn’t have medals or a fancy title to prove his heroism. He has worked quietly behind the scenes for years, but he’s the reason the paycheck you draw each month isn’t rendered worthless by an ocean of counterfeit. He is the kind of man that keeps the heartbeat of America strong, and I am proud to call him my brother.”
He hadn’t bothered to lower his voice, and several people were surreptitiously watching him. He didn’t care. He wasn’t going to stand aside and let Caroline’s husband be insulted at his own wedding.
“My apologies,” Colonel Phelps said. “I’ve heard nothing but fine things about Agent Trask.”
Luke nodded his head in concession. “Myself as well.”
He turned away, rubbing his chest and wondering at the strange ache he felt. He was lonely. Marianne should be here. He was proud of her and didn’t want to sneak behind her parents’ backs any longer. He was ready to venture into the world with the woman he loved beside him, but he feared Marianne might never be able to cross that bridge.
Marianne waited for Luke on a bench in the arboretum. The moon was bright enough that she could show him the pictures she developed that morning. The ones they’d taken of each other in the treetops were dazzling, probably because they looked so happy.
“For you,” she said as she handed him the box of photographs. “Two for you, and two for me. They aren’t fully dry, so be careful for the next couple of days, because they can still smudge.”
Luke was somber as he gazed at the photograph she’d taken of him standing in the trees. “You need to be careful with these pictures for longer than that,” he said. “Your father would implode if he caught you with this.”
She didn’t want to dwell on her father. Their time together was too fleeting to waste it on worries. “Tell me about the wedding. Tell me everything.”
He started pacing before the koi pond in the center of the arboretum. “Caroline was beautiful, and the music almost made me weep. The weather held, and the setting was perfect. The food smelled and looked good, but I can’t vouch for how it tasted. All I know is that I was mostly miserable because I kept missing you and wanted you there. I’m tired of running around behind people’s backs. I want us to be together. I love you, and that’s never going to change. Please say you feel the same.”
The hint of uncertainty in his eyes cut straight to her heart, and she stood to clasp his face between her hands and look straight into his eyes. “You adorable man. I fell half in love with you when we were on the ice, and then all the way when you found out my last name was Magruder and you still treated me like I was a princess. I know we have stumbling blocks ahead of us. I’ll clear them away. No more waiting.”
Instead of looking delighted, he looked even more worried. “Your parents might disown you, like they did your Aunt Stella. I can’t bear being the cause of that.”
“You won’t be the cause of it. They will.”
He grabbed her hand and pressed a kiss to her palm. “I love you so much,” he murmured. “I need to know what you are willing to risk for us to be together.”
“Everything,” she said without hesitation.
“Would you be willing to skip a fancy wedding? Walk away from your family’s fortune and burn the bridges behind you?”
“Fetch me the match,” she replied, and he smiled but sobered quickly.
He squeezed her hands. “Your father hates me. He’s already destroyed my office, and it will get worse once he knows our intentions are serious. Are you truly willing to walk away? Follow in your Aunt Stella’s footsteps?”
She swallowed hard. She didn’t even know what happened to Aunt Stella, so how could she answer? All she knew was that she loved Luke, and if her family couldn’t accept him, she would follow wherever he led.
“You once painted a dream of San Francisco,” she said. “A place where we could have a garret apartment and live like vagabond artists.”
It was hard to keep speaking when he kept kissing her, but she loved every moment of it.
“We’ll try to do everything right,” Luke whispered as he traced kisses along her jaw. “We’ll be patient. I’ll behave myself. I’ll offer a truce with your family and turn the other cheek. Whatever it takes, we will find a way.”
He shed his coat and laid it on the grass for her. They watched the moon and the stars rotate overhead. Tomorrow their world might topple over in chaos, but for tonight, they held hands and dreamed of the world to come.
Twenty-Three
Luke was still floating on air the following morning as he headed to church. The pieces of his life were falling into place. The moment he reached the pew, he was going to fall to his knees, give thanks for the miracle of meeting Marianne, and pray for wisdom in navigating the tricky road ahead. It wasn’t going to be easy, but they loved each other and were ready to move forward.