Arriving at the station, he hailed a hansom cab to take him to Nellie’s hairdressing parlour. Impatience got the better of him. He tapped his cane on the roof and urged the driver to make all haste. Now that he had made up his mind, he could hardly contain himself, he wanted to propose immediately.
He had never noticed before just how congested the London traffic was as the cab jostled between omnibuses, trams, carriages and carts. It was as if this infernal traffic was trying to deliberately thwart him from reaching his goal. But now that his mind was made up nothing, not even the London traffic, could stop him. Despite his irritation he was still smiling. He patted his top pocket, which contained a beautiful diamond and ruby ring. It had belonged to his mother and was so appropriate. His mother was a woman who had given up everything for the man she loved. And now Dominic was doing the same, giving up everything for Nellie Regan.
Finally, after a seemingly interminable amount of time, the cab pulled up outside Nellie’s business premises. He paused outside the door to try to get that foolish grin off his face. And he was a fool, a fool for Nellie Regan, a fool for love. But that didn’t mean he wanted to look like an idiot, not when he was about to do something so serious. He took a few deep breaths and tried to compose his face.
The door opened and the jingling bell announced his arrival. She was standing alone in the empty shop, her account ledgers open in front of her. He had timed his appearance perfectly. It was past closing time. There would be no distraction from clients or staff. He had her to himself and that was what he wanted, to have her to himself, for the rest of his life.
She looked up. ‘I’m sorry, we’re close—’ She stopped mid-sentence. Her cheeks exploded into a blushing red, her eyes narrowed, her expression wary.
‘Nellie,’ he whispered.
She coughed lightly. ‘Mr Lockhart, this is unexpected.’ That had to be the understatement of the century. Her face looked completely surprised, but she was about to receive an even bigger surprise when she heard why he was here, standing in her shop.
‘I was just about to lock up for the day.’ She picked up a large key and clutched it as if her life depended on it.
‘I need to talk to you, Nellie.’ As eager as he was to say what he had come to say, he wanted to do this properly. He wanted his proposal to be something she would never forget and would one day tell their children and grandchildren about.
‘All right, but I just need to lock up first.’ With shaking hands, she tried to lock the door. He took the key from her. Their skin touched and Dominic had to fight himself to not just pull her towards him and kiss her there and then. But he could not do that. He had to do this right. He turned the key in the lock with a satisfying thunk. They were completely alone. They would not be disturbed. He now had time to propose to her in an unhurried manner.
She took the key from him and turned it over and over in her hand.
He smiled in reassurance. ‘I’m not sure if you’ve heard, but Lady Cecily and I are no longer engaged. In fact, she’s run off to America with her footman, the man she plans to marry.’
She nodded. ‘Yes, I’m sorry about that, Mr Lockhart. You must be very disappointed and your sisters must be upset that their futures have been affected.’
Dominic almost laughed. That no longer mattered. That was no longer important. ‘Disappointed? No, of course I’m not disappointed. You know what this means now, Nellie, don’t you?’
She shook her head, her expression still wary.
‘It means I can marry you.’ It was not how he had intended to propose, but in his excitement the words seem to tumble out before he could stop them.
Her hands shot to her mouth in a failed attempt to stop a gasp escaping and the key she had been clasping so tightly clattered to the floor. Her startled look of surprise made him smile even more. He took a step towards her. Now was the time to take her in his arms, to kiss her. Their first kiss as an engaged couple.
‘You can what?’ Her lovely voice was uncharacteristically high.
‘I can marry you, Nellie.’ He placed his hands on her arms, desperate to hold her close, to seal their engagement with a kiss. ‘I know it wasn’t what I wanted a few weeks ago, but everything has changed since I met you. You’ve changed me. A few weeks ago, I would have laughed at the idea of me marrying an ex-lady’s maid, a woman now in trade, but that is exactly what I want now.’ He laughed lightly, his heart so full of joy. ‘Lady Cecily isn’t the only one who can ignore what society expects.’
She was still shaking her head and he could see her doubts. She still needed reassurance that he meant every word he was saying.
He dropped her arms. Now was not the time for kisses. She needed an explanation. ‘I know I said it was important for my sisters to make good marriages and ideally for the two younger ones to be presented
