Epilogue

 

Epilogue

 

Winter became spring, which quickly turned to summer, and Lucy smiled as Andrew guided her along the garden path. True to his promise, a brighter day had come, returning life to the once dreary day. A blanket of green now covered the once bare branches of the trees and hedges and the garden plots, previously barren dirt patches, now held a multitude of colors and varieties of flowers. They stopped before the rose bush that had guarded a sweet memory, and she gazed up at him, their love still strong since that day on the hill. Or rather, since before that day, for now her memories had all returned, and she felt whole once again. It was the most wonderful of feelings being in love, and she anticipated the life which lay before them, much like the path beneath their feet.

“You know,” she said teasingly, “you are quite handsome for a Duke.”

“I have never heard such insult,” he said in mock rage. “Especially from a woman who sneaks to sip at brandy at every turn.” His smile belied the words as his arm encircled her.

She giggled. “I once drank brandy, but now I cannot,” she said as she ran her hand over her swollen belly. Soon she would bring forth a new life, and they would love the child dearly, of that she was certain.

Andrew smiled, reached over and plucked a single rose from the bush and handed it to her. She brought the flower to her nose and inhaled its fragrance. Lowering it, she smiled as he lowered his head, their lips meeting. The kiss held passion and hunger, as it always had, and now it possessed an even greater emotion: Love.

When the kiss broke, and with her arm in his, they continued their stroll down the path in the garden toward the iron gate, and most importantly, toward the light and their love.