The Invisible Husband by Cari Hislop

gulped
down his fears and ignored his raging heart. “It isn’t faire for me
to expect you to accept this ridiculous situation, just because I
want you to.” Even with her face in deep shadows he could see she
was dismayed.

    “You’ve changed
your mind? Have I said something to upset you?”

    “No, of course
not! It isn’t faire to expect you to endure the weight of…marriage
with a man you’ve never met. I’m not a brute. If you desire an an…”
Adam groaned as his heart threatened to explode. “…if you
desire…”

    “An
annulment?”

    “If you desire
one…you may have it.”

    “But you don’t
want one?”

    “No.”

    “So you’d be
happy if I chose to remain your wife?”

    “Yes! I’m sure
you’ll need time to decide…”

    She appeared to
pause as the clock chimed a quarter past and then turned her eyes
back to his shadow. “I’ll stay.” Adam was struck speechless as his
heart jumped for joy and dragged him back to her chair as she
turned back to finish her dinner.

    Creeping up
behind her, he ran his hand through her hair. “You will? Why?”

    “Why not?”

    “You must have
a reason.”

    “You appear to
be a decent sort of demon. If I must be sold off like chattel it
might as well be to a decent madman. Who knows what I might feel in
a few years; I may even become fond of your heart. The poor
creature is certainly suffering neglect.”

    Clutching
handfuls of hair to his chest, Adam kissed the top of her head as
his heart purred with pleasure. “May my heart come to you
tonight?”

    “Not tonight,
I’m tired…” Adam grimaced as his heart theatrically drooped in
disappointment. “…besides, I think it’s only faire that I know what
my husband looks like before I allow him his conjugal rights. The
footman could slip into my bed in the dark and whisper sweet
nothings. How would I know he wasn’t you?”

    Adam groaned as
his forehead came to rest against the top of her head. “I can’t let
you see me. If you know what I look like before you love me, you
won’t ever let me come to your bed; you won’t ever love me.”

    “Adam, you have
a scar on your face, not three eyes and four noses.”

    “I’m not
paranoid out of vanity; I know how ladies react on seeing…”

    “I
disagree.”

    “You can’t
disagree with my personal experiences.”

    “Yes I can; how
do you know the ladies who rejected your face didn’t like how you
smelled? Did you always bathe before searching for company? Did you
wear too much cologne? Perhaps the ladies didn’t like your hair.
Perhaps they thought you had silly legs.”

    “There’s
nothing wrong with my legs or my hair.”

    “Do you have
your own teeth?”

    “Most of
them…I’m only thirty-seven!”

    “Perhaps they
thought your breath bad. Perhaps you’d just eaten onion soup. You
may have emitted a decidedly unpleasant smell. Perhaps they thought
you were wearing a hideous coat. Perhaps…”

    “Ladies don’t
share my bed out of charity.”

    “Perhaps they
thought you were parsimonious.”

    “I paid what
they asked!”

    “How do you
know they didn’t expect twice as much as you paid?” Adam clenched
his teeth as he looked down at the serene head of hair beneath him.
Was she trying to upset or comfort him? He was too irritated to
tell as her face turned to the side outlining her profile against
the firelight. “How do you know they weren’t feeling ill and were
desperate for any excuse for an evening alone? You can never begin
to know why someone decides to do something unless you’ve spent
time as a fly on their wall and inhaled their most private
thoughts. You’re my husband. If I think you the ugliest man in the
world I may insist you come to me in the dark, but I wouldn’t deny
you my bed; I find your touch quite pleasant.” Adam’s heart lurched
to its feet in celebration as he flushed with pleasure. She found
his touch quite pleasant? Merciful heavens, he could almost feel
her lying in his