“Cull, you’re back early,” Pippa exclaimed. “We weren’t expecting you for luncheon.”
She was taking a brief hiatus from the Angels to prepare for their wedding. She spent a lot of time at the Nest, and Cull adored having her here. As did the larks. Ollie, who’d fully regained his memory to everyone’s relief, followed her around like a puppy.
“I wanted to see what my favorite ladies were up to.” He bowed to the women before settling next to Pippa, slinging an arm around her shoulders. “Also, I heardcoq au vinwas on the menu.”
In another miraculous feat, Pippa had convinced Mrs. Halberd to retire on a handsome pension. She’d hired a new cook whose talents rivaled that of the chef at the Griers’ club.
“Here I was thinking it was my charms that lured you from work,” Pippa said with a flirty grin. “Turns out, it was just your stomach.”
Cull murmured in her ear, “I thought I showed you my appetite for your charms this morning.”
Pippa turned bright pink. And well she should. He’d licked her awake and eaten his favorite meal for breakfast.
“Timothy, stop harassing the poor girl,” Fanny chided. “You don’t want her to change her mind before the wedding.”
“You’re making dear Pippa blush,” Mrs. Needles agreed.
Cull sighed as Pippa smothered a laugh. She and her soon-to-be “mamas-in-law” got on like a house on fire, and she found it endlessly entertaining when the matrons ganged up on him. He picked up her hand, enjoying the sparkle of his claim. He’d commissioned the ring from Rundell, Bridge, & Co., selecting a three-carat yellow diamond for the center stone and smaller white diamonds to surround it.
The sun and the stars: the light that Pippa brought into his life.
“Pippa is not going to change her mind,” he said confidently.
She beamed at him. “I cannot wait to be Mrs. Cullen.”
No woman in her right mind would relinquish a countess’s title to be his wife…except the perfect woman for him. Moreover, Pippa had shown him that he was perfect for her, too. She made him realize that he had more to offer than his protection and care (although both were hers until his last breath). With her, he felt worthy of love…just by being himself.
Pippa had broken his curse of solitude. He could not wait to officially claim her as his extraordinary Princess of Larks. As he leaned in to kiss her, a ruckus interrupted them.
“Cull,” Fair Molly yelled from the entrance. “There’s someone ’ere to see you!”
Frowning, Cull rose. He wasn’t expecting visitors.
“Excuse me,” he said to Pippa and the others. “I’ll be right back.”
As he headed to the door, he checked for his knife. The defeat of Squibb had dissuaded others from challenging the mudlarks, but better safe than sorry. Fair Molly opened the door…and Cull froze at the sight of the brunette standing on the front step.
She was still too thin, her nose dusted with freckles. She wore a servant’s simple frock. Beneath the brim of her bonnet, her brown eyes were wide and unsure in her lovely face.
“Maisie?” he said hoarsely.
“Hello, Tim,” his sister said.
She hadn’t responded to his letters. He thought he might never hear from her, despite Pippa’s encouragement to keep trying. Now that his sister was here, he didn’t know what to say. How to express all that flooded his heart.
So he opened his arms.
With a small sob, Maisie ran into them.
Epilogue
“Are we there yet?” Pippa asked.
She was blindfolded and wearing a flannel wrapper, her husband of ten hours leading her carefully up the stairs to the glasshouse for her “surprise.” As an Angel, she knew exactly how many steps were left—sixteen—but she liked playing along. When Cull had knocked on their bedchamber door, her lady’s maid had been putting the final touches on her wedding night ensemble. She had her own surprise for Cull.
“Almost there, impatient minx.”
Cull’s deep amused tones sent a tingle up Pippa’s spine. Their wedding had been a jubilant affair. The ceremony had taken place in the flower-festooned great room of the Nest, attended by their family and friends. The Angels had acted as Pippa’s bridesmaids; Grier, Long Mikey, and Ollie had stood with Cull. Maisie’s adorable young son had been the ringbearer.
