Read The Marriage Machine Online
Authors: Patricia Simpson
Tags: #Literature & Fiction, #Romance, #Marriage, #Fantasy, #Historical, #london, #Dystopian, #1880
The Marriage Machine (12 page)
Madame Lipstick waved and patted Mark on his shoulder. “Just shaken up a little, dear,” she called back.
Darling? Dear?
Thomas
was married to Madame Lipstick?
What did it mean? It couldn’t mean…did that mean that she—Elspeth Shutterhouse—was the wife of Thomas’ younger but startlingly similar brother?
Elspeth was more than shaken. She was stunned. She could feel the color draining from her face and her knees giving way in utter shock.
“Ace mechanic going down!” Mark exclaimed, laughing, as he dashed toward her.
When Elspeth came to, she found she had collapsed in a snow bank and that Mark was kneeling at her side and in the process of picking her up.
“Do you have a habit of this?” he asked.
“What do you mean?”
“Fainting.”
“I’ve never fainted in my life until I met you.” She struggled to get up on her own, but he pulled her securely into his arms. He looked down at her, his eyes serious.
“Are you sure you’re all right, Shutterhouse?”
“I’m fine!” she shot back. Then she realized she would never be right, and she would never stop fainting and worrying until she knew the truth. She pushed against his chest. “Just tell me one thing, Ramsay. Are we married? I mean, to each other?”
“Technically.”
“But you don’t want to be?” Her fingers retracted into curls as her heart flopped in her chest.
“I never said that.”
“What
did
you say?”
He rose to his feet and set hers upon the ground, but still held her close. “I said I do.”
“And what did I say?” she asked, not remembering a single moment of the ceremony.
“Technically nothing. That’s when you fainted.” He began to dust off the snow from the back of her coat.
She loved the way he looked after her—had always looked after her, come to think of it.
“So we never made it official?” she asked, her heart racing.
He straightened and cocked a brow. “In what way?”
“With a kiss.”
“I intended to wait for that, until you were fully conscious. And maybe even willing in the bargain.”
“I’m
more
than willing, Mark.” She placed her hands on the sides of his warm face and drew him down. She had waited for what seemed like forever to feel his firm mouth close upon hers. He kissed her as tenderly and then more fully than she ever dreamed a kiss could be, gathering her up in his arms and pressing her into the fire of his chest. His kiss spoke of love and appreciation, but she had to know for certain how he felt. She needed to hear him say it.
“So you
do
want to be married to me?” she murmured against his mouth.
“From the moment I met you.”
“Really?”
“You were unlike any woman I had ever met. Plus, I’d never seen a woman in a uniform before.” He winked at her.
She pulled back and stared at him.
“You are awfully sexy in that mechanic outfit, Shutterhouse.” He kissed her again and looked down at her. His expression grew serious. “But I have to know. Did you want to marry me? All I’ve heard from you is that marriage is the end of the world.”
“I could be persuaded to alter that opinion.”
“Could you, now?” He grinned, no longer taking pains to conceal his joy.
“Yes.” She beamed. Her heart was glowing with so much love for him, she thought it might burn right through her chest. “You’re the one person who might be able to change my mind.”
“Then I’m a lucky fellow.”
“I can’t believe how lucky we
both
were.”
He pulled back a bit. “What do you mean?”
“To have wound up together. What were the odds of that?”
Mark threw back his head and laughed. “It had nothing to do with luck.”
The truth dawned on her. “You switched the cards!” she gasped.
He raised one brow. “Did I?”
“You switched cards with your brother so I would end up with you!”
“I had to, El. I couldn’t have you married off to anyone but me. I love you.”
Her heart swelled in her chest as she realized the risks Mark Ramsay had taken for love. For the love of
her
. Elspeth Shutterhouse.
Behind them a car door slammed.
“What’s the damned hold-up back there?” a crusty voice exclaimed.
“Ignore the old geezer,” Mark growled in her ear. “And just kiss me, Shutterhouse.”
“My thoughts exactly,” she replied.
“Like I said before,” he pulled her even closer. “Great minds think alike.”
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Books by Patricia Simpson
Whisper of Midnight
The Legacy
Raven in Amber
Lord of Forever
The Haunting of Brier Rose
The Night Orchid
Lord of the Nile (Purrfect Love Anthology)
The Lost Goddess
Mystic Moon
Just Before Midnight
Jade
The Dark Lord
The Dark Horse
The Last Oracle
Spellbound
The Marriage Machine (novella)
Note: This is a work of fiction. All the characters and events portrayed in this book are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
The Marriage Machine
Copyright 2011 Patricia Simpson
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this novella, or portions thereof, in any form.
ISBN 0-9823442-9-5
EAN 978-0-9823442-9-3
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