Leonora was about to excuse herself to seek out her new husband when her gaze fell on a slightly familiar face. For a moment, Leonora could not place him. Yet, she knew she had definitely seen him before. However, it was not until she saw Christina’s disapproving frown, followed by a hastened exit from the drawing room, that Leonora felt the penny drop.
Mr. Sharpe.
The man Christina loathed beyond all others because he was the very one Lady Hartmore was currently considering as her daughter’s future husband. “Did you invite Mr. Sharpe?” she asked, turning to her parents, surprised to see him here in such an intimate assembly.
“Mr. Sharpe?” her father asked, a slight frown upon his face as he turned in the direction Leonora indicated. “I’m afraid I’ve never met the man. Who is he?”
Leonora sighed. “That is hard to explain,” she mumbled when her gaze fell on Grandma Edie as she sat in her armchair, her pale blue eyes wide open and watchful, but with a scheming sparkle in them. “Will you excuse me?”
Quick footsteps carried her across the room to her grandmother’s side. “What did you do?”
Her grandma looked up at her, an innocent smile coming to her face. “Whatever do you mean, my dear?”
Leonora could not say what made her think her grandmother had something to do with Mr. Sharpe’s invitation. Perhaps it had been years of being acquainted with her. “Did you invite Mr. Sharpe?”
Her grandmother looked past her at the young man. “I find him a most delightful fellow,” her grandmother replied, that innocent look still upon her face.
“That is not an answer!”
Grandma Edie smiled at her. “Have you not recently been married? Have you already grown tired of your new husband?” A mischievous glimmer lingered in her grandmother’s eyes as she urged Leonora toward Drake.
Considering that this was her wedding day, Leonora did not care to argue with her grandmother. “Very well, but the last word has not been spoken on this. I want to know what you’re planning.”
A slight chuckle followed her as she made her way across the room to her husband’s side. Drake had a bit of a frown upon his face, his eyes searching hers. “Is something wrong?” He glanced behind her at her grandmother.
Leonora shrugged. “That, I cannot say. Although I have the feeling that my grandmother is up to something, and from experience I can tell you that is never good.”
A warm chuckle rumbled in Drake’s throat. “Are you certain? Honestly, if it hadn’t been for her, I’m not certain how everything between us would’ve played out.”
Leonora frowned at him. “What do you mean?”
“Although you might not have noticed, I have spoken to your grandmother on a few occasions. Or rather she spoke to me.” He reached for her hands, holding them gently within his own. “She all but urged me to look at you and see more than someone to protect. She helped me realize what it was I felt whenever you were near.” He shrugged, his gaze once more drifting to her grandmother. “She has a way of seeing things others do not or are afraid to realize.”
Leonora smiled. “She did the same for Louisa and Phineas. Although, I suppose, at the time they were rather annoyed with her meddling.”
“I admit, as was I,” Drake replied honestly. “Now, however, I am glad she did what she did. What do you think she’s up to now?”
Leonora shrugged, then stilled when she found her grandmother’s armchair suddenly empty. “Where did she go?” She craned her neck, trying to discover her whereabouts. After all, the woman walked with a cane. She could not have gone far, could she?
However, upon searching the room, Leonora realized something else. Something equally unsettling. Not only her grandmother seemed to have disappeared, but so did Mr. Sharpe.
“Why would she invite him?” Drake wondered as they retreated to a quieter corner, trying not to alert the other guests to their suspicions. “I did not know they were acquainted.”
Leonora did not know what to think. “Neither did I.”
“He spoke to me the night of…” Drake’s voice trailed off and he wiggled his brows in that delightfully new way that Leonora was coming to treasure. Despite his often-serious demeanor, he had a bit of a whimsical side to him, hidden behind all those layers of repressed hopes and dreams. “He said you were an exceptional woman and asked me when I would ask you to marry me.”
Leonora stared at her husband. “He did? Why would he do so? The two of you were not acquainted thus far, were you?”
Drake shook his head.
“That still does not explain why he is here or why my grandmother would invite him,” Leonora mumbled, trying to make sense of things.
Still reading her thoughts, Drake once more reached for her hands. “You do not need to understand everything, especially not right away, especially not today.”
Leonora smiled up at her husband. “You’re right. I cannot wait for our lives to begin.” She glanced around at her new home. “You don’t mind if we make some changes to the furnishings, do you?”
“Not at all,” Drake assured her with a sigh. “In fact, I insist we make changes. When we are finished, I want this to be our place, our home, for our family.”
“I want that to.” Allowing her husband to pull her into his arms, Leonora rested her head upon his shoulder. She looked around and saw all the people she loved, and she felt fortunate to be one of them. Life could have gone very differently, but it had not. It had led her through obstacles, but it had led her to Drake.
And that was something she would never regret.
Unfortunately, what Leonora would come to regret was not going after her grandmother immediately because only moments later Christina would be found in a most compromising situation together with none other than…
...Mr. Sharpe!
Judging from that mischievous twinkle in her grandmother’s eye upon their discovery, Leonora strongly believed that the old lady had had something to do with it.
Of course, that was nothing out of the ordinary.
THE END
Thank you for reading Once Upon a Temptingly Ruinous Kiss!
If you want to read more about the Whickerton family, make sure to check out Once Upon a Devilishly Enchanting Kiss (Louisa’s story) and Once Upon a Kiss Gone Horribly Wrong (Anne’s story).
Christina’s and Mr. Sharpe’s story will be coming soon in Once Upon an Irritatingly Magical Kiss! Click here to pre-order your copy!
In the meantime, have you checked out other novels by Bree Wolf?
Read on to find an excerpt of first installment of the Love’s Second Chance Series: Highland Tales: Tamed & Unleashed – The Highlander’s Vivacious Wife!
Claudia Davenport sets out to find her child, only to receive unexpected aid in her quest from a handsome stranger. A man who seems more familiar than he ought to be. A man she has met before. If only she could remember him!
Get your own copy of Tamed & Unleashed and fall in love with this emotionally gripping quest! Or read on for a sneak-peek!
PROLOGUE
Gretna Green, Scotland, Summer 1808 (or a variation thereof)