Chapter 59

"Vincent what are you doing?" Catherine asked, certain that it couldn't be what it looked like.

But he once again surprised her by replying, "I hope that I am getting this right Catherine. I did read everything I could find on the matter." He paused then and took a deep breath, then stunned her into speechlessness. "Catherine, will you do me the very great honor of pledging to spend the rest of our lives together as my wife?"

Her mouth hung open, tears started to slide down her cheeks, as she sat there unable to form a single word.

Vincent didn't know if there was some kind of traditional waiting period for the answer to the question, but he was pretty sure that it shouldn't have caused tears. Tuning into the Bond, he was relieved that along with the sense of shock he was getting from her, there was also a feeling of radiant joy. Tilting his head to one side in an inquiring posture he had to wonder why she wasn't answering.

Catherine could see that he was waiting for her to say something, but she was too choked up to get anything out. So with several emphatic nods of her head, she threw herself off the couch and into his arms.

She felt the chuckle that shook his entire body as he asked, "I hope this is your version of yes Catherine?"

Finally her throat cleared and she gasped out, "Yes Vincent! A thousand times yes!"

"One is more than enough Catherine as long as you mean it," he replied.

"Oh I do! So this was why the fancy dinner and candles?"

"Yes, and in part it also has to do with why I ran out of here last night."

"It does?" she was clearly baffled as to how the two things were connected.

"Yes Catherine. I am aware that many people do not wait for any commitment at all to make love, and while I was raised to understand that it should wait for marriage, I thought that if we were engaged, that might be a compromise that we could both live with."

Once again he had blown her away! She had no more expected something like this from Vincent than she had tonight's proposal. "Vincent, do you mean that you want us to make love tonight?"

"Only if you wish to also Catherine! I would never presume to try and persuade you to do something you did not wish to do. We can just as easily wait until we are married if you wish it!"

With a gentle smile at his rushed babble, she said, "Vincent, I think you know very well that I do want to make love to you. But I do understand your upbringing and don't want you to go against it just because of me."

"Catherine, I love you more than life itself and do want to spend tonight learning how to be a good husband to you."

"There is more to being a good husband or wife than just what happens in bed Vincent. We will have the rest of our lives to learn those things about each other. Ideally making love is about both parties pleasing each other and thereby being pleased themselves as a result."

"That sounds very…" he grinned wide enough to show his canines before continuing, "pleasing, Catherine."

They giggled together over his play on words and then a thought hit her, "Vincent how soon do you think we could be married? I'd like to do it before I start showing..."

"As soon as you would like Catherine. I am sure the Great Hall could be cleaned and William given enough warning for the food, could be ready if he had a weeks notice?" he offered.

"Well I have my mother's wedding dress that I would love to wear and I would like Jenny to be my maid of honor. Oh Vincent!" she stopped as something occurred to her.

"What is it Catherine?"

"I have always dreamed of my father walking me down the aisle! How can that be when he doesn't know about any of this!" The tears in her eyes this time were not ones of joy.

Vincent's heart broke to see the sadness in his beloved's face. He had to find a way to give her her dream. "I will talk to Father, Catherine. Surely this is the correct time for an exception to be made."

To be continued….