“Children?” she repeated, closing her eyes because the mere act of speaking jostled her broken ribs. “I never thought I would have children.”
“We will have a dozen.”
Her eyes flew open. “A dozen children?” she said, mildly aghast. “We must discuss this, Jareth. That is a lot of children for a woman to bear.”
He leaned over, his mouth next to her ear. “Given how often I plan to bed you, I would say it is a low number.”
As predicted, her pale face flushed. He laughed, she laughed, and soon they were laughing together, only she couldn’t laugh too much because her ribs hurt so. He kissed her on the lips once, twice, laying his forehead against hers as he reveled in the reality that she was awake and talking. She sounded like herself. He knew she wasn’t on her way to a complete recovery yet, but the signs were positive. He would take what he could get, when he could get it.
For the moment, she was his and he was hers.
All was right in the world.
“You should also know that the entire town turned out to bring you gifts when they heard of your misfortune,” he said. “It seems that many, many people have been touched by Aphrodite’s Feast, and when they heard about your injury, they came to show you their support for a full recovery.”
Her expression washed with surprise. “Me?” she said. “But I have done nothing.”
Eyes twinkling, Jareth turned to Melaina, who still had the basket of kittens. “Untrue,” she said, coming around the side of the bed. “You have helped many people, Desi. Goodwife Aames brought you this because she knows you missed the cat you left behind at Ridlaw. Look at these beauties.”
She set the basket down carefully next to Desdra, lifting a sweet white kitten out of the basket and showing it to Desdra, who was immediately smitten. She then put the kitten down on Desdra’s chest so the woman could pet it a little, followed by another white kitten and then an orange-striped one. Desdra was thrilled with the little creatures, and Jareth backed away so Limenia and Anosia could come alongside the bed and admire them. He stood back, watching, as Desdra’s friends gingerly hugged her, so very glad that she was alive.
So was Jareth.
“Do you remember when you first came to Bristol and I had to talk you into at least inspecting your acquisition before denying it?”
Jareth looked over his right shoulder to see Hugh standing there, smiling at him. A very knowing smile that was quite annoying, but also triumphant in a sense. Triumphant in that Jareth saw the value of a place he’d originally thought to be simply a brothel.
Jareth couldn’t argue with him.
“You were right,” he said, watching one of the white kittens walk on Desdra’s neck and cheek as she giggled. “You were absolutely right. I’m very glad I listened to you.”
Hugh chuckled. “Always listen to your friends, Jareth,” he said. “You are almost always the smartest man in the room, but sometimes, we know better than you do.”
“You certainly did this time,” Jareth agreed. “What I saw today… people bringing tribute to give back to the place that had given them so much… I’ve never seen anything like it. It was truly remarkable.”
Hugh nodded. “That is what I was trying to tell you,” he said. “Aphrodite’s Feast isn’t a brothel. It’s so much more than that. The question now is if you are going to let it continue on with what it does best.”
“And what’s that?”
“Generating money, of course,” Hugh said as if Jareth were an idiot. “The gambling was halted when Lord Chester died. Are you going to resume it?”
Jareth shrugged. “I do not see why not,” he said. “It generates more money to be used for good.”
“My thoughts exactly,” Hugh said, putting a hand on Jareth’s good shoulder. “The community depends on the donations, the alms. Do you want my advice?”
“Probably not, but speak.”
Hugh snorted. “Talk to the Pope,” he said. “That priest who visits here disguised as someone else. He knows this community. I’ve heard rumors that he wants to start a foundling home, so that might be the next good thing this place does for the community.”
Jareth thought on that. “Desdra and I would have to oversee it,” he said. “I’ve heard horror stories about those places and I would not allow that with anything I put my name or money behind.”
“Good man,” Hugh said, giving his shoulder a pat. “I wouldn’t expect anything less from you. Chester was right to leave this to you. He knew it would be in good hands.”
Jareth simply smiled. He thought on his uncle, leaving him an empire that was so much more in reality than it was on paper. He watched Desdra with her friends, the women of The Feast, women who had come here to seek a way to survive. But they did more than survive—they thrived. Jareth was going to make sure they continued to do so.
That inheritance he didn’t want?
He wanted it now.
