ESME
I never in my life expected to marry anyone. It's just not that common for a witch to marry. A lone witch might. My mother became a lone witch so that she could marry my father.
I have been ordered to wait in the carriage outside the coven house. It's the first moment I've had to catch my breath and think about agreeing to join the coven. My mother might be rolling in her grave.
The door swings open, William jumps in, and takes my hands. "What’s wrong?"
"Nothing."
"If you're going to lie, you'll have to close your mind off, my love. I know something is troubling you. If you don't wish to marry so quickly, I'll call all of this off. I'll wait for you no matter how long you need. I thought this was what you wanted." The abject despair in his handsome face is near comical.
"I was thinking about my mother's reaction to joining the coven. I want to marry you more than anything." Leaning forward, I kiss him soundly on the lips.
He relaxes. "Did she forbid it?"
I let loose the sigh that's been building. "Mother never forbid anything. She told me not to be bullied or do another's bidding for their sake. She disliked the coven because they wronged her."
His gaze softens. "Do you think that perhaps she would see my acceptance as a sign that the coven has changed and made amends? Perhaps she would be appeased. Or perhaps you believe your mother would not approve of me as your husband?"
"I think she would love you. I can't imagine anyone not loving you. You are all that is good in the world." I ease off my bench and into his lap, wrapping my arms around him. "I hope Mother is happy with my decision, as it was mine."
He squeezes me and kisses my cheek. "It was. If you'd been opposed, I would have declined."
"I know." It's perfect to know without trepidation that this man would never go against my wishes and needs. When our minds first connected, I thought it would be an invasion of my privacy to have another in my thoughts and feelings. I couldn't have been more wrong. Knowing him as I do is the greatest blessing.
"William?"
"Hmm?" he hums against my neck.
"Will you marry me now?"
As he pulls back, the brightest smile lights his already too handsome face. He slips out from under me, and backs out of the carriage, still holding my hand as I join him on the street.
Alight with candles and magic, the coven house is open for all to see. They've not closed the blinds as they did when the tribunal and trial were going on. People outside are welcome to see the marriage take place, even if they don’t understand the ceremony.
Magically placed lights dance above like tiny fairies skittering across the walls and ceiling. The hearth crackles with a good fire to keep out the chill of fall. Candles light the tables as well as form an aisle on the floor to guide William and me to where we’ll be joined.
As soon as we enter, Theodora rushes over with wide eyes. "Oh, Esme, you're quite beautiful."
Looking down at my pale-green gown, I thank her. "This is the finest dress I've ever worn. You are too kind to let me wear it."
"It is yours, dear. I'm sure your husband will buy you all the fine dresses you will need for a life I can only imagine will be very interesting." She gives William a stern look.
"I shall lavish her with everything I have. You needn't worry, Mother." He squeezes my hand where it rests on his arm.
"Isn't the hall lovely?" Theodora asks. "William, did you know, you and Esme will be joined for all your lifetimes? Minerva told me that witches believe we live many lives."
The look he gives me sends flutters to my stomach. His warm eyes and joyful smile are full of love for me. "I think Esme and I have been joined many times in past lives. No one shall ever convince me otherwise. It's not possible to love someone so utterly with only one life to guide the heart. We are meant through time and time again."
My sigh mixes with Theodora's, and then we both giggle like young girls.
"I suppose we should get started, if you're ready," Sara Beth says from the far side of the lighted aisle.
William looks at me. "Esme?"
"I'm ready."
The witches, along with most of William's staff, gather outside the rows of candles.
We start at the near end and walk together toward Prudence.
Henry stands at the front as the best man, while Minerva has honored me by standing as my maid of honor. The butterflies in my belly have turned to bats. I can't imagine why I'm nervous. This is everything I want but never knew I did. Joy flushes my cheeks with heat, and I know I'm grinning like some town idiot.
Prudence smiles and lifts a silk ribbon.
William and I face each other, and he takes my left hand in his.
Speaking a spell, Prudence magically lifts the ribbon. "Bound through time, these two souls renew their vows to have unto each other only and forever. Neither man nor god may separate them through time, magic, or battle. For each time they are from the earth, they will seek their togetherness with Goddess and again in every lifetime."
The ribbon slips around our hands and wrists, joining us as one.
Sara Beth hands a silver goblet to Prudence, who waves a hand over the cup. "Wine to bring you joy and abundance." She hands it to me.
I take a sip of the rich wine before handing it to William.
His eyes have not left mine. It feels as if he sees my soul and loves what he sees. He sips the wine then passes it to Henry, who drinks and passes the goblet on for all to drink of our happiness.
Minerva places a broom on the floor in front of us. We're both wearing the silliest grins as William takes my other hand and we jump over the broom.
The wedding guests cheer, and we're surrounded by well-wishers who hug and kiss us.
With the end of the magic that tied it, the ribbon slips away, but William snatches it before it can tumble underfoot. Gaze still fixed on mine, he presses his lips to the satin and tucks it into his coat pocket.
It's such a small gesture, but tears prick my eyes.
Wilma takes my hand and pulls me into a hug before a pianoforte is rolled in and Sylvia begins playing a lively tune.
Townsfolk wander in, and everyone dances.
Laughing and twirling around the room, I catch a movement at the edge of my vision. At the back of the room, Trina is curled up on the stairs peering through the spindles like a lost child.
It takes some maneuvering, but I extricate myself from the dancing and go to the steps. "You're welcome to join the party, Trina."
She's clean and fresh-faced in a simple cream dress. Her hair is tucked under a sweet bonnet, but she won't meet my gaze. "You cannot wish me at your celebration, Miss Esme. After all I did, you must hate me."
I hate the catch in her voice. "Neither I, nor Sir William hate you. We'd not have helped you if that were so. He risked quite a lot to pull you from that dark place. Do you think he would have done so for someone he didn't care about?"
Lifting her chin, she cocks her head and finally looks me in the eye. "I think your husband is too good and would risk his life for most people. That's why he was a war hero and that's why he saved this coven from Orin. Where others fear, he jumps in and stands firm. You are very lucky to have won his heart."
I love the sound of "your husband," and I can't disagree with anything she said. William is the bravest person I've ever known. I reach out toward her. "Come and join the dancing."
She shakes her head. "After how I behaved in the country, and the evil you saw inside me, I cannot." She buries her face in her hands.
Sitting a step below her, I take her hands from her face. "That was not you. You were harmed by someone as surely as William's drowning. You were taken and used in a terrible way, but that was not you, Trina. This coven will stand by you and see you well again. It will take time to heal your heart and mind, but you will be whole again." I cup her cheek and brush a tear away with my thumb.
"Do you think so?" Doubt laces her question.
"I know it. I felt the healing begin this morning. William and I will help you if you let us." I have no need to ask him, I know his heart.
"How shall I ever face him?" Her cheeks burn bright red. "I acted like a trollop then became a monster."
William must have sought me out and heard the nature of our conversation. He reaches out both hands. "Two beauties like you shouldn't be sitting like wallflowers. Come and dance with me."
Love overflowing, I take his hand and stand beside him.
Staring at her feet, Trina shakes her head violently.
William kneels so that he can see her downcast face. "Trina, will you not dance with your friend and the groom?"
"I don't know how you can call me friend." Her tears drip on the stairs.
He places a finger under her chin and lifts her gaze to his. "I have been in your heart, Trina, and you have been in mine. I know you are good and kind. We are friends in a way that most people can never understand."
Wide-eyed, she looks ready to jump into his arms like a child. Instead, she nods and takes his hand. "I will dance with you and your bride."
The other witches are happy to see Trina join the party. A young man from town looks particularly happy to see her. His sandy blond hair is overly long and shadows one brown eye, but the other is focused on Trina.
In William's arms as the music slows, I feel at home. "There will be a battle to come."
"Yes." He kisses the top of my head.
"Trina will need a great deal of healing." So many worries tumble through my mind.
"She will and should come and stay with us to be cared for by you, and so she has a family who loves her." He's so good it's almost too much.
"You don't think the coven will give her what she needs?" I press my cheek to his chest, as most of the townspeople have left in these early morning hours.
His chest expands with a deep breath. "They will care for her, but it was this coven who sent her away when she was not ready. They put her at risk because they thought a girl without family should learn to be useful, even though she was vulnerable. If her mother were still alive, would they have sent her to Kent?"
"I don't know, but I would think her mother would have known she'd not be strong enough to fight dark magic," I admit.
"If you don't wish to bring her into our family, I understand. She has wronged us both, but it was not truly Trina committing those acts, Esme."
Easing back, I meet his gaze. "I know. I have no objections to caring for her. She'll need much care for some time. The things she's done and seen will stay with her all her life, and she'll need to learn to live with them and overcome them."
"Can you think of any other people in the coven who will offer to make her their family?" He lifts his brows, already knowing the answer.
"I don't know, and I can't say that I would trust her care to anyone else. Minerva is a fine healer, but I think she will be sent to Kent very soon." My stomach knots at the thought of my friend facing whatever danger lies in Kent.
William stiffens. "Is Minerva blessed with more than healing powers?"
"I suspect that she holds close her true abilities so as not to frighten the rest of us. Also, she is a strong shield. Dark magic will bounce off her."
"I really have so much to learn about magic and witchcraft. It's all so fascinating." He looks around the room at the remaining witches as if he's trying to decipher each one's gifts.
A long yawn pulls at me. "I think you must take me home, husband."
Grinning wide, he spins me once around the room. "It would be my greatest pleasure.
We gather our household, and William's mother, and make our way out to the two carriages and the cart that will carry us home.
Theodora rides with us. "You make a handsome couple. I'm very happy for you both."
"Thank you, Mother."
Smiling warmly at me, she says, "And I finally get the daughter I always wanted."
"I'm glad you aren't disappointed, Mrs. Meriwether. I'm sure a shopkeeper and a witch weren’t the notions you had to wed your only son."
She shrugs. "One adapts when the shopkeeper and witch is so magnificent."
Heat flushes up my cheeks.
William kisses the back of my hand. "We will bring the young witch Katrina Davidson to live with us, Mother. She's been ill and needs care."
Theodora cocks her head. "The skinny girl who sat on the steps most of the night? She looks as if she could use a few good meals."
"Indeed," I say. Those meals couldn't hurt either.
"There was much talk of trouble despite the festivities tonight." Theodora pulls at the edge of her glove.
"Yes. We have much to do to protect Windsor." I brace myself as the carriage pulls to a stop.
The staff is sent to bed, and other than Theodora's maid, relieved of their duties for the night. William and I are capable of getting ourselves ready for bed. We climb the stairs, and my legs feel like they're full of stones.
We slide into our bed without a word. I love the feel of his body wrapped around mine. In the back of my mind, the oddity of marrying a man who has expectations of a society wife worries me. I shall never be such a wife. Perhaps I am not all that he needs.
"What is it?" he whispers against the back of my neck.
I roll to face him. The fire and the breaking dawn light the room. "I must return to my shop tomorrow. I cannot be a lady who keeps your house and stitches useless pillows or paints tea sets."
"I don't recall asking you to change." He brushes strands of hair away from my cheek and tucks them behind my ear.
"Men often have expectations of their wives. We should have had this conversation before we committed for all time." I don't know what could have gotten into me that I would leap into a marriage without laying down my own needs.
A deep frown and the ache of his disappointment settle hard in my heart. He takes a breath. "Esme, our vows to each other were made many lifetimes ago. Of that, I'm sure. However, let's address your concerns. I don't wish to change anything about you other than my being in your life. I never dreamed you would leave your shop, only your apartment above."
Simon jumps on the bed and stretches long between us.
"I hope you will wish to stay here, but if you dislike this house, I will give it to my mother and live with you above the shop. The only thing I'll not compromise about is our being together." He scratches Simon's ear, and the cat calms his growing worry.
"Then you don't want a wife to stay home and have babies while managing kitchens and nannies?" I lean forward and press my cheek against his chest. I know these fears are my mother's warnings and have nothing to do with us, but I need to hear him say it.
William pulls me in tight, displacing Simon, who curls up at the end of the bed. "If that were the kind of wife I wanted, I would not have fallen so thoroughly in love with you. I want a wife who drains a pond to save me from drowning, then breathes life back into my lungs. I want a wife who cares that Mrs. Bates' son has a rash and likes a certain skin cream. I want a wife who is so beautiful inside and out that she takes my breath away every time I see her."
"I want a husband who sees me as I am and loves me anyway." I breathe him in like a drug, and all my worries float away.
"Oh, sweet Esme, not anyway. I don't love you in spite of who and what you are. I love you because of all you are." His lips find mine, and I know the decision to marry William was the best of my life.