Persephone stood, bemused. They’d left her here. Without a chaperone or a footman. It was odd, even for them. She turned on her heel, trying to get her bearings.
She was standing in front of Bullock’s Egyptian Hall. It was as magnificent as the drawings she’d seen. It was a partial replica of the Temple of Dendera, with lotus columns flanking the door. There was a winged sun disk, the sacred uraei serpents. Even though the voices around her spoke English and the air was scented with coal smoke and the Thames, it was a beautiful mirage of Ancient Egypt dropped squarely between two perfectly ordinary London buildings. There were no crowds jostling for entry which she found strange.
Two statues perched above the door, watching her approach. Her belly fluttered with nerves. Meg’s parting remark had not been subtle. The door opened before she could reach for the handle. A man smiled at her genially. “Lady Persephone, we’ve been waiting for you.”
She stepped inside because so many different types of curiosity had gripped her, she could no more have stayed out on the stoop as she could have learned to fly.
“This way, if you would.”
He led her past a truly impressive collection of fossils. There were plants waving fronds over her head, large rocks with patterns of curled creatures embedded on the surface and amber with insects frozen inside. Her guide moved at a fast clip, proceeding to the entrance of the main hall. He bowed and left. She hesitated, peeking inside. Her breath caught.
This was the replica of Karnak, with its towering columns with lotus designs and hieroglyphs painted top to bottom. They soared up to a gilded ceiling. Even knowing they weren’t authentic, her fingers itched to reach out and touch. What a gift to be able to visit Egypt, even when one could not leave London. She hadn’t realized she’d even moved by the time she found herself in the center of the space.
“That is the most beautiful smile I have ever seen.”
She started. Conall stepped out from behind one of the pillars, pale eyes warm.
“You brought me here?”
“I want to make you smile like that every day of your life.” She stared at him. He tilted his head, amused. “I was hoping for more of a reaction, I admit.”
She shook her head, as if it could realign her brain with the excited fizzing in her blood. He was so handsome, so patient.
Cautious.
She read it in the slant of his smile, the real one, not the one he wielded in society. She stepped closer, leaning her head back. “I’ve never visited the Egyptian Hall before.”
“One day I’ll take you to Egypt, if you’ll let me.”
She felt like laughing. There was too much bubbling inside her. “I thought I might not see you for a long time.”
“You broke off our engagement.”
She winced. “I thought it was what you wanted.”
“You know, for such a clever woman, you have the oddest notions. I never wanted that.”
“Truly?”
“You’re the one who ran scared.”
She made a face. “I suppose I did.”
“And now?” He was so close, his lips brushing her cheek, lightly, gently. It sent shivers up her spine. “Do you love me, Percy?”
She turned her head, trying to kiss him but he grinned and moved away. He nuzzled her ear instead. “Ah, ah.” Frustration nipped at her when his hands ran up her arms. “I need wooing.”
She nipped at the corner of his mouth in happy retaliation. His fingers dug into the hair at her nape, sudden, strong, but still gentle. “Tell me you love me.”
She met his eyes, slipping her hands inside his coat to feel the warmth of him. The fierceness of his expression flickered. “I love you,” she whispered.
“Good god, woman. Was that so hard?”
She was laughing when his mouth finally closed over hers. He teased her with his tongue before pulling back slightly. “Say it again.”
“I love you.”
“Enough to marry me and be my marchioness?”