Blind Faith (40 page)

With tears in her eyes, Serena said the one word that had the power to make him the happiest man in the world. 

“
Yes
.
”

EPILOGUE

Serena woke with a smile on her lips.  Yesterday morning she was Serena Cross, engaged to the most wonderful man in the universe.  But this morning…her heart tripped…this morning, she was a married woman. 
Mrs. Will Duncan
.  It left her breathless just thinking about it.  After six months of agonizing over flowers, food, color schemes, and picking out where and when the wedding would take place, not to mention the endless hours of dress fittings…she was finally married.  Deliriously happy didn’t even begin to cover how she felt.

Even having McKinley there hadn’t dampened her spirits
. 
Their conversations had been a bit strained, but thankfully brief. 
There was simply too much joy in her heart to let anything affect her in a negative way, with the possible exception of not being able to see her groom as she walked up the aisle.  She’d been so sure her eyesight would return, so hopeful that her vision would be restored before the wedding, but it hadn’t happened.  It was disappointing, but Will adamantly refused to postpone the wedding any longer.  At any rate, she had so much to be grateful for, it seemed selfish to want more.

Still a little groggy from lack of sleep, mostly because Will had been insatiable
and
partly because she
had
been too wound up to sleep afterwards, Serena forgot she wasn’t at home in their own bed. 
Easing back the covers so she wouldn’t disturb Will, she slipped out of bed and shuffled towards the bathroom.  Except the bathroom wasn’t where it was supposed to be
.  Serena
silently cursed when her hip rammed into the edge of a high backed wooden chair. 

Feeling her way around the table did little to orient herself because she and Will had been so anxious to peel each other’s clothes off the night before, she hadn’t been paying attention when he’d hurriedly given her a layout of the hotel suite.  Heat fused in her cheeks when she recalled how ardently they
’d
made love.

“
I want to make a baby with
you
,” Will had whispered as his trembling hand settled over her belly.

Serena suppressed a giggle.  It was highly unlikely she
had
conceived on her wedding night but it certainly wasn’t for lack of trying.  The poor man was dead to the world right now
.  S
he was reluctant to wake him just
s
o he could guide her to the bathroom, but the call of nature
was
growing more insistent by the moment.  With her arms in front of her and fingers splayed, she inched her way forward, hoping at least to find the bed again so she would know where she was. 

A soft rustle of movement off to her right told her Rufus was only a few feet away.  Serena made her way towards him.  Even if she
had
been too distracted to remember which way the bathroom was, Rufus would have had it down within minutes.  Misjudging how close she was to him, she nearly tripped
when
the unexpected brush of his fur
against her bare legs start
ed
her.  Instinctively, she reached
for something…anything to prevent an ungraceful fall
and managed to catch herself when her fingers curled around the heavy folds of a curtain.

Heart pounding and still clutching the curtain with one hand, Serena leaned down to pat Rufus and apologize for nearly trampling him.  His wet nose pressed into her palm
, followed by an even wetter swig from his tongue
.  Inching her fingers along the bridge of his nose to his head, she stroked his soft fur a few times before slipping her fingers beneath the edge of his collar.  Serena opened her mouth to whisper a command to lead her to the bathroom but all that came out was a whoosh of air
.  A
thin stream of light wavered in front of her, shimmering as it danced across a carpet of gold.

She couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe, mesmerized by its brilliance and terrified that if she looked away it would disappear.  She watched it for several minutes before Rufus shifted restlessly and it finally dawned on her that what she was seeing wasn’t gold at all.  Slowly, slowly, the fingers gripping the curtain parted the fabric.  Sunshine spilled through the opening, illuminating golden fur and two anxious brown eyes.

“Rufus,” she whispered hoarsely. 

Tears filled her eyes and she blinked them away impatiently as she dropped down to her knees and gave Rufus a fierce hug.  No doubt thinking she
had
lost her mind, Rufus squirmed out of her arms and backed up a step, eyeing her curiously for a moment before letting out several excited barks in rapid succession.  Serena tried to quiet him but she was laughing so hard, it only enticed him to bark louder.

Will called out her name, obviously alarmed by
her
hysterical laughter and Rufus’ odd behavior.  Light
suddenly
flooded the room and she squinted against the brilliance of it.  Will was nothing more than a blur as
he
charged across the room, but before Serena could tell him she was all right, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her back to the bed.  Lowering himself down on the edge of the mattress, he settled Serena on his lap, anxiously checking her for injuries.

“What happened?  Did you trip and fall?  Are you hurt?  God, honey, I should have taken more time to make sure you knew the layout of the room.  I shouldn’t have been so impatient to get you into bed.  It’s my fault you…”

Serena’s fingertips covered Will’s lips.  “I’m fine,” she whispered. 

She gazed up him, her breath catching in her throat.  He was the most beautiful thing she
had
ever seen.  His hair was raven black, just as she remembered; his cheek bones and chin even more finely chiseled than they were in his teens.  Serena moved her fingers to reveal lips that were full and sensuous, and she couldn’t resist the temptation to kiss them.

Will’s voice trembled when he pulled his head back.  “Serena…?” 

Her smile broadened.  “There
’s
only one thing better than hearing you say you love me.  Do you want to know what it is?”

“What’s that?”

She reached up and cupped his face. 
“Seeing
it for myself
.”

Serena waited for it to sink in.  She knew the precise moment comprehension hit him
; it was like watching the sun come up the way his tentative smile slowly spread across his
handsome face
, dazzling her with its brilliance. 
He filled her heart so
completely,
there was no room for fear, no place where darkness or the demons of her past could hide from the luminescence of Will’s love. 

And when he gently laid her back against the cool sheets and proceeded to make love to her…Serena didn’t close her eyes.