She felt incredible in his arms, not least of all because she was acting like she actually wanted to be there. Marie wasn't holding herself stiffly away from him, or resisting his lead. No, she'd melted into his touch like she belonged against him, and she was following with a wonderful sort of spontaneity, and wasn't this precisely what he'd always wanted in a wife? Someone who could go with him, lean into him, and just delight in the moment?
It made for a radical departure from what Jeannie had been like in the end. Always ready to argue, with worry lines carving themselves deep between her brows and a put-upon look that never fully left her eyes. To Jeannie, he had been a disappointment, a man who could neither restore the circus he'd built to its former glory nor bear to let it go. To Jeannie, he'd been weak, and unable to do what needed to be done.
Funny: nobody seemed to be saying that about him now that she was dead.
And with Marie laughing near his ear and their feet beating a fast, circling rhythm against the inn's wooden floor, the idea that anything might ever be beyond his capabilities seemed absurd to Jack. Why, he was the master of the greatest show in Europe! Or he would be soon enough, anyway. He had a beautiful bride, a team of men and women he could count upon, and this whole wonderful town at his disposal. Life was good! Hell, life was just about perfect.
"For me?" he repeated. His smile went a little wider, openly amused, as they galloped about the room. "Listen! If you think dancing can scare me, you must not have met my wife."
He spun her out, keeping her close even in that. "She's a hellion, you know." Spun her back in. His eyes sparkled, adoring and unable to stay away from her. "The fiercest woman in Manhattan, people said."
Nobody had ever said anything even vaguely of the sort to him, but so what? The truth didn't matter half as much as her amusement did.
Jack lowered his head so that he could murmur directly into her ear and be heard over the music. Her hair brushed softly against his cheek. "That's why I had to have her."
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It made for a radical departure from what Jeannie had been like in the end. Always ready to argue, with worry lines carving themselves deep between her brows and a put-upon look that never fully left her eyes. To Jeannie, he had been a disappointment, a man who could neither restore the circus he'd built to its former glory nor bear to let it go. To Jeannie, he'd been weak, and unable to do what needed to be done.
Funny: nobody seemed to be saying that about him now that she was dead.
And with Marie laughing near his ear and their feet beating a fast, circling rhythm against the inn's wooden floor, the idea that anything might ever be beyond his capabilities seemed absurd to Jack. Why, he was the master of the greatest show in Europe! Or he would be soon enough, anyway. He had a beautiful bride, a team of men and women he could count upon, and this whole wonderful town at his disposal. Life was good! Hell, life was just about perfect.
"For me?" he repeated. His smile went a little wider, openly amused, as they galloped about the room. "Listen! If you think dancing can scare me, you must not have met my wife."
He spun her out, keeping her close even in that. "She's a hellion, you know." Spun her back in. His eyes sparkled, adoring and unable to stay away from her. "The fiercest woman in Manhattan, people said."
Nobody had ever said anything even vaguely of the sort to him, but so what? The truth didn't matter half as much as her amusement did.
Jack lowered his head so that he could murmur directly into her ear and be heard over the music. Her hair brushed softly against his cheek. "That's why I had to have her."
For her spirit. Right. Not for her father's cash.