An Honest Heart (34 page)

Authors: Kaye Dacus

Tags: #Fiction, #Christian, #Romance, #Christian Fiction, #Historical

“I thought I should wait until we were in the garden, for a more romantic setting.”

Caddy fingered the lace hanging beside her soft cheeks and her eyes changed from challenging to inviting. She held her hands out as if to encompass the entire display. “This is my garden, Neal.”

“Then, Miss Cadence Bainbridge, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

“Before I answer that, I need a promise from you.”

His heart throbbed with unexpected anxiety. “Yes?”

“Promise you will always be honest with me, even when you think it might hurt me.”

“I promise. But only if you do the same.”

Her smile was beatific, but he could see the pulse pounding in her throat. “I promise.”

“Then I will repeat my question. Will you marry me?”

“Yes, Dr. Neal Stradbroke. Nothing in the world would make me happier.”

Because of the crowds around them, Neal dared not kiss her properly. Instead, he raised both of her hands in his and kissed them, then held them to his chest.

A cleared throat hinted they had blocked this part of the display too long. Caddy set the lace and silk back on the table, then wrapped her hand through Neal’s elbow and allowed him to lead her away.

“Neal, do you want to return to Australia—to live, I mean? I can tell you miss it, and you must still love it because it’s your home.” Caddy’s bonnet blocked her face, so he wasn’t certain exactly what she was thinking.

He pulled her to the railing that overlooked the main floor below, then tilted her head up with a crooked finger under her chin. “Yes, I would like to go back to Australia. I want to see my father, and meet my stepmother and half-brothers and -sisters. But I have not thought of it as home in a while now. Ever since I met you, in fact.” He traced her chin with the tip of his finger. “My home is North Parade in Oxfordshire—because that’s where you are. For the rest of my life, you will be my home, no matter where in the world that may be.”

Ignoring the crowds and decorum, he leaned down and kissed her, as he had been wanting to do for the past . . . forever, if he were honest with himself.

And he would be, too—with himself and with her. Honest now and forever.