CHAPTER SEVEN
"Oh, Miss Grace!" Emmeline exclaimed breathlessly. "May I try this perfume? Just a tiny drop, I promise I won't use too much!"
Grace laughed. "Fine, Emmeline, but just a little bit! I don't want your mother to get upset with me when she arrives."
"Oh, she won't mind at all!" Emmeline insisted, dabbing the sides of her throat daintily with the perfume dropper. "I doubt she'll even notice. She never lets me wear her perfume, so she won't be expecting it."
Grace couldn't help but smile as she surveyed the scene in front of her. Somehow, her suite had become the hub for the evening's party preparations, and her normally tidy living space had become a veritable disaster scene. Emmeline had brought multiple formal dresses with her for her stay at the mansion—"Well, around here, you never know when you'll walk down the stairs and run into President Roosevelt or Clark Gable or the King of England!"—and the dresses she had rejected for the evening's soiree were strewn haphazardly over the chairs, sofa, and desk. Annie had been skimming over the floor in her new patent leather shoes just a moment ago before running back to her room to put on her lockets, and Molly was happily seated at Grace's vanity table while Emmeline brushed and braided her hair.
The older girl reached down to grab for a tube of lipstick, and Grace swatted her hand away as she applied the final pins to her own hair. "Emmeline! I'll have to draw the line there, I'm not willing to risk Margaret's wrath over lipstick as well as perfume!"
Emmeline rolled her eyes. "I wear lipstick all the time at college. Mom just doesn't know it. Even though I'm nineteen, she still treats me like I'm a baby."
"You're nineteen?!" Molly gasped. "Gee, I can't imagine being that old. Grace, can I wear perfume too?"
"Not until you can imagine being a bit older, Molly dear," Grace said. "But you can choose a necklace to go with your dress, if you'd like."
While Molly was gleefully examining a carefully curated selection of necklaces Grace had pulled out of her jewelry organizer, Annie sprinted back into the room. Her eyes were shining with excitement and the sequins on her yellow dress glimmered merrily.
"Oh, Grace!" she exclaimed. "The guests are arriving and they look so glamorous! There's a woman wearing a fur the size of a wooly mammoth down there, and it's the middle of August!"
Grace nodded. "It should be quite an impressive crowd, Annie. Your father invited shareholders from both companies, bank presidents, stockbrokers, the mayor and governor, you name it. So you'll all have to be on your best behavior." She gave Emmeline a firm look. "And I'm not just talking about Annie and Molly."
She didn't miss the wink that Emmeline cast toward the younger girls, who both giggled.
"Where's your party dress, Grace?" Annie asked eagerly. "I can't wait to see it again! Put it on!"
Smiling, Grace pulled her dress for the evening out of her closet, where it was hanging steamed and ready to go. Emmeline immediately gasped.
"Oh, Miss Grace!" she breathed. "How superbly, supremely lovely! You'll look just splendid!"
"Wait 'til you see it on," Annie said knowingly. "Daddy won't be able to take his eyes off her!"
"Annie!" Grace exclaimed, her eyes widening as she ducked into the closet to step into the dress. Well, she would be lying if she didn't acknowledge that the younger girl had a point. She was certainly hoping the new dress would have that effect on Oliver. "Emmeline, I'd love your help to do up the buttons in the back."
As she stepped back out into view of the vanity, the girls all fell silent.
"Wow, Grace," Annie said finally. "You look so beautiful."
"Thank you, my dear," she replied demurely, examining her reflection in the mirror. The dress was a dark red, dancing between the color of a ruby and a rich glass of wine, and the smooth satin lent a shimmering sheen to the fabric as she moved. She carefully draped a string of pearls over her neck, the beads perfectly accentuating the v-neckline, and smoothed the fluttering split sleeves that grazed above her elbows. Yes, this would do perfectly.
"Well, girls," she said, stepping into a pair of heels and smiling gratefully at Emmeline as she finished buttoning the buttons that gathered the dress at the small of her back, "are we ready?"
"You betcha!" Annie cheered, jumping up and practically catapulting out of the room. Molly and Emmeline followed her, bouncing with anticipation, before Annie whirled back. "Oh, Grace! I almost forgot!"
"Hm?" Grace asked absently, doing a last quick check of her makeup in the mirror.
"I ran into Daddy on the way back here from my room," Annie said. "He said he needs to talk to you about something real quick in the library. Can we go downstairs to the party and meet ya there?"
Grace nodded absently. "Oh. Yes, of course, dears. I'm sure whatever it is won't take long. Go ahead and we'll see down there in a minute."
The girls chattered excitedly as they approached the landing of the grand staircase, turning to descend the stairs while Grace strode away toward the second floor library. Once they were out of her line of sight, Emmeline cast a glance over her shoulder and turned on her heels.
"All right, hurry, let's go!"
"Oliver?" Grace called, knocking lightly at the door of the library as she stepped inside. "Are you in here?"
He was already waiting for her in the empty room, dressed smartly in the white tuxedo jacket he reserved for special occasions and reading absently out of a book. He looked up when he heard her voice and had just opened his mouth to speak before he froze in place.
She stared back at him in concern. "Oliver, what is it? Is something the matter?"
His gaze didn't waver for an instant, his dark eyes boring into hers and then moving appreciatively up and down her frame. She felt a blush rising as he studied her in the dress, unabashedly admiring her.
"Nothing," he managed to choke out. "It's just—you look—well, Grace, you look just …" He trailed off for a moment before completing his thought. "… stunning."
She smiled radiantly, feeling heat warm her cheeks as she stepped into the library and closed the distance between them. "Oh. Thank you."
He took her hands in his own, caressing them lightly with his thumbs while he continued to marvel at her.
"Annie was right when she said this dress would, er, how did she put it: 'bowl me over.'"
"Sometimes I'm amazed by her," Grace whispered with a laugh, her breath coming a bit shorter and faster as Oliver pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her to hold her close. "She knows a lot more than you'd expect, for growing up in an orphanage."
"Well, in this case, she was right," he whispered.
And then his lips were on hers, and all else was forgotten. She kissed him back eagerly, a sigh of pleasure escaping from her lips as he cupped her face in his hands, deepening the kiss and holding her tightly against him. This feeling, this desire, was something she never thought she would experience with him except in her dreams. For all her years of longing after him, being kissed by him still felt profoundly special.
The kiss was quickly becoming heated, too heated for the time and place. As so often seemed to be the case for them whenever they had a moment alone.
"Oliver," she breathed against his lips. She could barely speak as he kissed her again, threatening to derail her ability for linear thought entirely. "Oliver … as much as I hate to say this … you may have to save some of this attention for later. Most of your guests are already downstairs."
He groaned slightly, trailing his mouth from her lips down her neck. "What's the harm if we're a little late."
"Oliver!" she couldn't help but exclaim. Good heavens, he had truly changed so much. Or maybe he was just finally feeling comfortable enough, secure with her and confident of her love for him, to show and say what he really meant.
He sighed, the logical side of his mind finally stepping in and taking control as he pressed one final kiss to her lips.
"I know, I know." He looked deeply into her eyes, and the intensity she saw in his gaze sent a shiver through her. "What did you need to see me about?"
Her mind, still clouded with desire and very much distracted by the continued caress of his hands on her hips, took a moment to process what he had said.
"What?"
"Annie said you needed to see me in here about something before we went downstairs to the party."
Grace was silent, then furrowed her brow in confusion. "She did?"
"Yes."
"Annie said you needed to see me in here about something before we went downstairs to the party," Grace said.
Oliver cocked an eyebrow, a look of suspicion immediately fleeting over his face. "She did?"
"Yes."
"Suddenly I've got a bad feeling about this," he said with a frown. He stepped around her and crossed the room to the closed door behind her. He seized the door handle and pulled, but it stuck fast. He jostled it again, and it didn't budge. He stared at it, uncomprehending, for a moment before exclaiming, "The door is locked!"
"What?!"
Neither of them heard three voices clamoring over each other on the balcony of the adjoining sitting room, hidden from view behind an ivy-covered trellis.
"Are they outside yet?"
"I don't think so. They haven't noticed the balcony door is unlocked."
"I can't see!"
"Molly, be quiet!"
Inside the library, Oliver cast a glance toward the sliding glass door. "What about the balcony?"
Grace was standing closer to it, and she stepped over and pulled the handle. "It's open."
"Good," he grumbled, stalking over and stepping past her out onto the balcony. "What the devil are they trying to pull on us, and tonight of all nights? At least from out here, someone should be able to hear us call down and come up to open the—"
But he stopped short, cutting off the rest of his sentence abruptly.
"What is it?" Grace asked, stepping out onto the balcony in the warm night air behind him. And then she saw too.
Dozens of candles were strung up in glass jars all along the railing of the balcony and set atop silver candleholders on the wrought iron table, flickering brightly and casting a warm glow in the evening dusk. The table was covered with a satin white tablecloth, and a bottle of champagne was chilling in a silver pail next to a pair of glass champagne flutes. A soft melody flowed out of the library gramophone, which had been wheeled outside and placed on the table next to the champagne.
"What is all this?" Oliver asked in amazement.
Grace looked at the record album neatly and conspicuously propped in front of the gramophone. "Champagne, candles, and … Classical Music for Weddings?"
"Classical Music for Weddings," Oliver repeated, dumbfounded. Then his face reddened. "Why, those—little—tricksters!" He turned on his heel and stormed back into the library. "I'm going to call downstairs. Where are Punjab and the Asp?! Why am I even paying them if—"
Grace looked over her shoulder just in time to see him pick up the telephone on his desk and realize that the cord connecting the mouthpiece to the rotary dial was missing.
"Good Lord!" he exclaimed. "They even disconnected the telephone!"
As the absurdity of their situation finally sank in, Grace couldn't help the laugh that burst out of her. Never let it be said that Annie and Molly were not well-intentioned in their meddling, and no doubt Emmeline's influence had played the vital role in crafting the whole scheme!
Oliver glared at her as he stepped back out onto the balcony, looking none too pleased.
"I can't believe this," he said angrily. "We're locked up here with dozens of executives, investors, and bank presidents downstairs, the children are playing practical jokes on us, and you're laughing!"
"To be perfectly honest," Grace said, unable to contain the smile on her lips, "I wish I had thought of it myself."
"Oh, really?" he demanded in exasperation.
"After all," she said softly, "this is probably the most time I'll have alone with you for weeks."
The earnestness of her reply seemed to take Oliver by surprise. He was silent for a long moment, simply glowering. Then, slowly, gradually, she saw the tension in his bearing start to relax. A hint of a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
"Well …" He took a step toward her. "I have to admit it is sweet. In a devious, underhanded, manipulative sort of way."
She smiled too, her eyes meeting his as he clasped her hands tightly in his own.
"And …" He exhaled sharply. "I can't deny that they have a point."
Her breath caught in her throat, and suddenly she could barely breathe.
"What do you mean?" she whispered.
Oliver was staring deeply into her eyes, silently gazing at her as if he were committing her entirely to his memory. He hesitated, and then spoke.
"I hope you know how much you mean to me, Grace," he said softly, reaching up to caress her cheeks. "From the moment you brought Annie into our lives, it was as if you woke me up from this dark fog I had been living in for far too long." He shook his head ruefully. "I spent so many years chasing all the wrong things—the money, the power, the prestige. And in a very real way, it's thanks to you that I finally realized how little any of that really matters."
His voice caught, and he clasped her hands in his own.
"Grace, I love you more than I ever thought I would be lucky enough to love anyone. And I am grateful beyond all words for the family you have helped me build. But that family isn't complete without you."
He withdrew something from the inner pocket of his jacket with an unsteady hand, and she let out a soft gasp when she realized what it was: a ring box.
"I've been carrying this around with me for a few weeks now, waiting for the right moment to give it to you," he said quietly, looking down at it in his hand before clasping the top of the box and opening it.
For a long moment, all she could do was stare in stunned silence at the ring nestled in the box. The glittering round diamond, surrounded by smaller diamonds set into a shining gold plate, was so perfect, so vibrant, that she could see the lights of the flickering candles reflected in its many facets.
"Grace," he whispered, a tremor ever so slightly shaking his voice, "will you marry me?"
Her eyes met his, gray staring into dark brown in absolute wonder. Before she could even begin to formulate a response, an excited shout broke the night air around them.
"Say yes!"
Startled, both of their heads turned toward the direction of the call, where they saw Annie's eager figure jumping up and down on the adjoining balcony.
"Say yes, Grace!"
Two pairs of hands immediately shot up from behind the trellis, grabbed the girl's dress firmly, and pulled her back out of sight with a yelp and a thud.
Grace couldn't help but laugh as an irrepressible swell of joy rose to fill her entire body. She looked back at Oliver, who was still glaring in the direction of the other balcony, and rested her hand against his cheek.
"Yes."
His wide-eyed gaze immediately snapped back to look at her, as if unsure he had heard her correctly. "Yes?"
"Yes," she repeated, smiling brilliantly as tears shone in her eyes. "I would love to marry you, Oliver."
"They're getting married," they heard Emmeline's voice say incredulously.
"They're getting married!" Annie erupted, cheering at the top of her lungs.
And suddenly from the sitting room there was commotion all around as a great number of the household staff peered through the windows and ran for the door, clamoring over each other in desperate excitement.
"Did she accept?" Mrs. Greer's voice demanded.
"Did it work?" the Asp called.
"See for yourself," Annie grinned, motioning toward the other balcony where, oblivious to the commotion and lost entirely in their own world, Oliver was slipping the engagement ring onto Grace's hand, pulling her close, and kissing her deeply.
And then the library door burst open, unlocked at last, and with whooping and excited shrieking three girls dashed through the balcony door toward the couple whose profound joy was etched so plainly and unabashedly across their faces.
"You're gonna be our mother, Grace!" Annie was shouting, tears streaming out of her eyes as she and Molly both hurled themselves into Grace's waiting arms. "Our very own, real mother! And we're gonna be a family for always!" Molly, overcome with emotion, simply pressed her face against Grace's waist and clung to her tightly, sobbing wordlessly.
"Would you like that, my dears?" Grace asked, almost hesitantly, as she wiped tears out of her own eyes.
Annie simply looked up at her and Oliver, beaming brightly. "More than anything in the whole world."
"Congratulations, Uncle Oliver!" Emmeline said joyfully as she embraced Oliver, who still looked quite dazed. "I knew you just needed a bit of encouragement!"
"Yoo-hoo, anyone out there?"
The five of them turned just in time to see several familiar faces, dressed to the nines for the party and illuminated by the library lights, peering around the balcony doorframe.
"We didn't see any of you downstairs and then heard we heard shouting and—!" Rebecca Farrell stopped short, staring in surprise at the scene in front of her: Annie and Molly grinning wildly from ear to ear and clutching at Oliver and Grace, Emmeline dancing in place with excitement, and Grace, still wrapped in Oliver's embrace and very much wearing a sparkling diamond ring on her left hand.
"Oh, my!" she cried as Walter and Douglas Farrell, and behind them Oliver's cousin Margaret and her husband Henry, peered around at them. "Grace—Oliver—are you—?"
"Yes," Grace barely managed to say. Her eyes moved past her brother and sister-in-law, looking for Douglas. "Dad, we're …" She wiped fresh tears away and looked into Oliver's eyes, smiling broadly. "We're engaged."
Everyone gathered on the balcony stood silent, waiting for Douglas's reaction. For a moment he simply stared, gazing at his daughter and the man she loved. Then he stepped forward, clasped his daughter's hands, and squeezed them tightly.
"Congratulations, my dear," he choked out, a catch in his own voice as he embraced her.
Amid the flurry of congratulations, hugs, and tears that followed, Annie and Molly stood watching in amazement.
"Molly, do ya know what this means?" Annie asked, taking Molly's hand in her own. "We're gonna have a mommy and daddy both, and not just a mommy and daddy but also uncles and aunts and …"
She fell silent as Douglas knelt down in front of the two of them, looking them both in the eyes with a twinkling smile.
"And a grandpa," he said emotionally, holding out his arms as the two girls rushed into his embrace, laughing and crying once more.
The party itself almost felt like an inconvenience to the little family gathered on the balcony that warm summer evening, who wanted nothing more than to celebrate in each other's company rather than mingle with a mansion full of very important persons. But alas, the party was already in full swing by the time rumors began to circulate that something monumental had happened on the balcony upstairs.
And so, in between the toasts, the speeches, and the necessary polite conversations, the four of them also found themselves to be the recipients of an endless flood of congratulations and well-wishes. Annie and Molly were on cloud nine, tumbling around the halls and rooms of the mansion surrounded by a gaggle of happy children—not only their soon-to-be cousins from the Farrell family, but also Pepper, Kate, Duffy, July, and Tessie, whose adoptive families and siblings had all been invited to the evening's event—while periodically peeling away to run over to wherever their future parents were for more hugs.
And no matter what some of New York and Chicago's well-heeled citizens may have thought privately about the forthcoming marriage of Oliver Warbucks to Grace Farrell—and undoubtedly, many of them had definite opinions about the idea—none who saw the kisses, smiles, and looks exchanged by the happy couple that night could doubt that the marriage was motivated by anything other than a deep love.
Late that night after the guests had gone and the mansion halls were finally quiet, and the girls were put to bed and wrapped in dreams of what the future would bring for their new family, Grace found herself standing on the threshold of Oliver's private suite of rooms. Punjab, who normally stood watch in this very spot until one of the night guards took over in the early morning hours, was nowhere to be seen.
Oliver held out his hand to her. She stepped toward him and he pulled her close, wrapping his arms around her. His forehead touched hers, and she felt all the breath rush out of her as her heart pounded heavily in her chest.
"Grace," he whispered, the sound of her name on his lips sending chills down her spine.
"Oliver," she breathed, and she felt him tremble slightly beneath her fingers.
He tipped her chin up to meet her lips with his own. Her arms wrapped around his neck as his hands cupped her face, angling her up so he could deepen the kiss. His mouth on hers felt magnetic, and his hands tangling in her hair made her dizzy with desire.
She barely managed to regain enough of her senses to gently nudge him into the room before she reached back and, almost tentatively, pulled the door shut behind her. When she turned back to him, she could see the desire and hesitation in his eyes.
"Grace, we don't … we don't have to do this," Oliver said quietly, taking her hands in his own again and rubbing her palms with his thumbs. "We can wait. That would—well, that would certainly be the, er, prudent thing to do."
Of all the things Grace wanted to do in that moment, being prudent was not one of them.
"Oliver," she whispered, her voice breaking as emotion threatened to overwhelm her. "I've waited for you for years. I don't want to wait any longer."
All hesitation gone with those words, Oliver leaned in and pressed his lips to hers again. Grace clutched at him, wrapping her arms around him and kissing him deeply, not wanting him to pull away even for a second. She had spent so long envisioning this exact moment, and she was nowhere near strong enough to tell him to stop. His mouth traced down her cheek, then her neck, found her collarbone before tracing its way to her shoulders. They both froze slightly as she felt his hands push the sleeves of her dress off her shoulders with painstaking slowness. And then, with a slight assist from Grace to tackle the buttons in the small of her back, the dress was gone, spilled onto the floor like a glass of red wine.
It wasn't long before any sense of time, any sense of place, any sense of anything outside of each other melted away. There was only the two of them, as they so often were: together.