Scoundrel With A Noble Heart (sequel of Disgraceful)

Chapter 108

The wheels of the hackney cab hadn't even stopped turning when Marguerite flung herself out onto the sidewalk. The coachman's yell to be careful barely registered in her frantic mind as she burst onto the bustling harbor scene. The salty tang of the sea wafted into her nostrils, the air vibrated with a cacophony of sounds: the rhythmic creaking of wooden ships, the bellowing calls of dockworkers, and the screech of gulls wheeling overhead. Ahead of her, a dense throng of travelers clogged the way, forming a seemingly impassable human wall. Beyond them, towering masts of departing vessels scraped the hazy sky, their sails billowing in the wind. Her heart pounded painfully against her ribs as she scanned the chaos. How would she ever find Jacob in this sea of humans? But then, as if guided by an unseen radar, her frantic gaze was drawn to an undistinguished three-masted ship among the others. There, amidst the throng of sailors, passengers, and dockworkers, she spotted Jacob's unmistakable frame standing out on the crowded steps leading up to the vessel.

A wave of stale sweat and musty fabric assaulted her nostrils as she plunged into the crowd. She pushed down a rising tide of nausea and pressed on. "Excuse me, please make way," She struggled to weave her way forward, only to be pushed further back by the jostling crowd, her plea lost in the noisy din. Desperation clawed at her throat, a knot of panic tightening in her stomach, constricting her breath. Jacob was too far above, while she was trapped at the bottom, swallowed by the dense mass of people. A moment later, Jacob reached the top of the steps, the gangplank already halfway pulled in, his figure swallowed momentarily by the throng pressing around him.

A surge of raw panic shot through her, unleashing a strength she never knew she possessed. Pushing against the unrelenting walls of bodies, she screamed at the top of her lungs,
"Jake!!!"

Marguerite, whose soft voice typically faded unheard in daily life, now found an unexpected power within it. Miraculously, her desperate plea rose above the harbor's cacophony, a single, clear note that pierced the din. A hush fell over the gathered crowd, all heads turned towards her, a sea of faces momentarily frozen in surprise. Normally, Marguerite would have shrunk under such scrutiny, but in that moment, her eyes, her entire being, were centered solely on just one man. Jacob's head snapped around, his surprised gaze pierced through the human wave, locking onto hers. For a breathless moment, time seemed to stand still, then his voice, though not nearly as loud as hers, pierced the hushed air,
"Maggie?"

Relief, sweet and potent, flooded her. Again she shouted,
"Jake, please wait!!!"

With renewed determination, Marguerite shoved her way through the bewildered crowd. Bodies parted grudgingly, allowing her a narrow path toward him. Jacob, mirroring her urgency, battled his way down against the tide of passengers coming from the opposite direction. Marguerite's heart pounded a frantic rhythm against her ribs with each step, each push, bringing her closer to him.

By the time they finally met in the middle of the bustling quayside, a sizable crowd had gathered around them, their faces a mix of curiosity and amusement. Hundreds of eyes were bored into them, yet Marguerite and Jacob seemed oblivious. The world had shrunk to just the two of them, their focus had narrowed to a single point - each other.

Marguerite's gaze locked on Jacob, a tumult of emotions swirled within their depths - Relief, laced with a touch of disbelief, mingled with a surge of joy.

"Maggie, what are you doing here?" His stunned voice sliced into her haze, a sound sweeter than any melody. Now that his scent, his presence filled her senses once more, it struck her in a flash of deep realization what she almost lost.
And to think that she could live the rest of her life without him? How could she have been so foolish?

"Today is supposed to be my wedding day," she stammered, her voice ragged.

A flicker of surprise flitted across Jacob's face, quickly replaced by a deeper confusion that mirrored Marguerite's own swirling emotions. "But you said it is the end of the month,"