Chapter Twenty-Four
Madeleine and Benedict spent almost the entirety of the next three days together in the Bridgerton House. He refused to leave her side in fear that something would happen if he did. He could not get it out of his head that the last time he had left her side, somebody had hurt her. He would not let that happen again.
She found it rather adorable that he was being so protective over her, albeit a tad overbearing. Her ankle was much better but he still would not let her fetch her own snacks or water, or pretty much do anything alone. She knew it was because of how much he cared, though. That much was obvious. She only wished he would stop blaming himself for what had happened while the two were apart.
Late one evening, they sat in the drawing room together, the only light coming from the glow of the moon. He was in the middle of a painting which he couldn't seem to finish, because every few seconds he would become distracted by her. She looked absolutely beautiful, nuzzled into the settee with her book, the cool glow of the moonlight dancing on her face. Every so often she would smile slightly at what she was reading, or narrow her brows in concentration. He could not tear his eyes away from her. His thoughts were interrupted by a gentle knock on the door, followed by Colin peeking his head in.
Benedict looked up quickly and Colin nodded his head at him before winking and leaving the room. Benedict smirked slightly, setting down his paints.
"What was that all about?" Madeleine laughed softly, weirded out by Colin's strange behavior. Benedict walked over to her and offered her his hand, the smirk still present on his face.
"Benedict, what are you up to?" Her eyebrows narrowed in suspicion, taking his hand nonetheless. He pulled her up to stand and moved behind her, fussing with something she could not see.
"You will see in a moment," He whispered, his breath warm near her ear. Suddenly a piece of fabric covered her eyes and she started to reach up to remove it before he grabbed her hands to stop her. He laughed and kissed her cheek, standing in front of her now that he had blindfolded her with his cravat.
"Do you trust me, my love?" His voice was dangerously low, which told Madeleine that he was definitely up to something.
"Well, I have no choice, do I? Seeing as I cannot see!" She attempted to swat at him but missed, making him laugh.
"Hm, you are adorable." He poked her nose and smirked, kissing her hand before guiding her out of the room.
"Benedict, are we going? You're beginning to frighten me!" She laughed, holding her free arm out blindly to keep from running into anything. He chuckled and wrapped his right arm around her waist to guide her, shushing her softly. She rolled her eyes, though he could not see her eyes.
"I do not like surprises, you know that. This better not be anything weird." He laughed loudly at this and squeezed her waist.
"Will you just be quiet and trust me, for once?" He urged, continuing to guide her to god knows where.
"I do trust you.. usually." He nudged her side at the last bit, making her giggle. "It's hard to trust anybody when they've taken away one of my most important senses!"
"And you say the dramatic one." He smirked, stopping suddenly in his path. She bit her lip nervously, waiting for his next move. He let go of her, leaving her standing blindly. She heard the creak of a door opening before a breeze of warm air hit her skin. His soft footsteps returned to her and she jumped ever so slightly as she felt him take her gently by the shoulders. He guided her forward a few feet before stopping again, his footsteps receding away.
"Okay, you can take off the blindfold now." Madeleine's hands eagerly flew to the back of her head, fumbling with the knot. She pulled it off and gasped at the sight in front of her.
They were in the garden of the Bridgerton house, but she almost did not recognize it. The garden was lit with a warm glow from lanterns that were hung on brown twine strung in lines from the trees to the house. There were tall candelabras standing all around, surrounded by countless assortments of beautiful white lilies and lavender flowers. Two men stood in the corner of the yard with a violin and a harp, a beautiful symphony filling the air. It was like she had walked into the middle of an utter fairytale. And in the middle of it all, was Benedict. Her Benedict.
Her lips parted as she felt tears threatening to fall, overwhelmed by the absolute enchantment of it all.
"Benedict, I-" She stumbled over her words, unable to comprehend what was happening.
"I know how much you love to talk, my love, but it is my turn to speak now." A teasing glint danced in his eyes and she giggled at this, nodding.
"Madeleine, in the past few weeks, you have been through more heartbreak than some people go through in an entire lifetime. You have faced it with unrepenting courage and strength, never allowing the pain to take away the light that shines in your eyes. You are the strongest woman I know, and often the most ridiculously stubborn." Madeleine giggled softly at this, wiping at a tear that had fallen down her cheeks. He smiled softly at her and stepped closer, taking her hands in his.
"But you are also the most compassionate and kind person that I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. And . I love all of you, I love you in a way that I never knew possible outside of stories. I love your heart, I love your soul, I love you. I love the way you scrunch your nose when I tease you. I love how impatient you are when you do not know something, how you badger me with incessant questions to get answers. I love the way your hair looks in the morning when you wake up, all tousled and unkempt. I love how competitive you are when we play games with my family, and how you will waste no time in betraying me in order to win. I love the sound of your voice, and I especially love the sound of my name rolling off of your tongue like it is the only name you have ever said and will ever say." Her tears were falling freely now, she had long given up on attempting to wipe them. He smirked softly and gently wiped them for her, pressing a long kiss to her forehead.
"When I met you, and as we spent over twenty years as the closest of friends, I had no idea that I had met the person I was going to spend the rest of my life with. I did not know that I already loved you, and that I had loved you for all of my life. In you, my life, my very being, becomes whole. The darkest of days become bright. The saddest of symphonies turn into the most cheerful orchestras. You are the very air that I breathe, the one that my soul has yearned for in this life and every life before it. You have my entire heart in your hands, Madeleine. You always have. You have healed pieces of me that I did not know were broken. You have brought out a happiness in me that I thought only existed in fairytales. You have showed me how to love, how to love. A kind of love that leaves me feeling lost yet finally at home, that makes me sleepless yet exhilarated, and that renders me speechless yet overwhelmed with emotions. A love that burns so intense it feels like a ravaging forest fire around my heart. A love that brings me ever so closer to the magnificence of life, that gives me a sense of purpose and makes me feel more like myself with every passing moment. A kind of love that I never knew I needed, I found in you. And I never want to let it go." He took her hands back into his, slowly lowering himself to one knee before her. She parted her lips to speak, but he beat her to it.
"I know what you are going to say, my dear. You are going to ask why I am on one knee before you when you have already agreed to marry me. It is because I am an utter fool, that is why. I am a fool who is crazy in love with the woman standing before me and I need her to know just how much. You did not receive a true proposal, and I could not live with myself if I did not show you how much I truly love you. I want everything that you are. I want your past, your present, and your future. I want your bad days and your good ones. I want your anger, your hurt, and your pain. I want your love, your joy, and your hope. I want all of you, for all of eternity. Madeleine Arabella Sinclair, will you do me the honor of marrying me and making me the luckiest man to ever walk this earth?" He opened a small velvet box to reveal an intricately beautiful diamond ring. Madeleine was absolutely beside herself with emotions, tears streaming freely down her cheeks as she nodded quickly.
"Yes! Yes, of course yes!" She choked out through her tears, unable to wipe the beaming smile from her face. He grinned brightly and as he stood up, she nearly threw herself into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. He laughed and hugged her back just as tight, lifting her off of her feet and swinging her around. He set her back down, pressing a passionate kiss to her lips.
"I love you so much, Benedict. So terribly much." She whispered against his lips, making him smile, his eyes full of love. He took her hand gently and placed the ring on her finger, bringing her hand to his lips and kissing it.
"I love you too, Madeleine. Always and forever."