“They will have to learn of it to forbid it.”
“You will not be able to keep this a secret.”
“I believe it will be one of those secrets that people know but do not admit they know. A husband who learns his wife is a member will not announce it to his friends, will he? He may forbid her to come here, and he may even succeed in that command, but he will not let all the other men know his wife did this.” She smoothed her fingertips over the covering on a table. “I suspect there will be several dozen husbands who will claim they have no knowledge of their wives’ memberships should anyone else learn of them.”
“They willallforbid it. These chambers will be empty in a month.”
She stepped close to him and looked into his eyes. A few sparks of belligerence showed in hers. “Would you forbid it? If you did, do you think I would accept that? We women are not without our weapons, Adam. Nor without persuasion.”
He recognized that look in her eyes.Nothing but trouble. “You are counting on sexual blackmail to help your club succeed. That is very wrong of you.”
“I am not counting on anything, except women finding a way to have something for themselves in this sorry world.” She took his hand. “Now, there is one more thing you should see.”
“There ismore?” Several outrageous notions flew through his mind of the other kinds of things men enjoyed but women did not. It would be just like Clara to decide to even the score completely.
She led him back to the library. “You did not comment on how so many shelves are filled now.”
He had vaguely noticed that. Now he paid attention. One tall case indeed was filled, only not with books. The publications in it were much narrower than that, and not bound in leather or cloth.
He went over and pulled one down. Then another. The bottom four shelves held many with identical covers, a pale blue. He pulled out several of them and noted the date.
The entire case had been filled with the journalParnassus, and the lower shelves held the new ones about to be made available in bookstores.
He should have guessed, he supposed. Once he learned that Lady Farnsworth wrote for the journal, and that Clara knew her well enough as to have her present with Brentworth at the revelations about her father and grandmother, he should have guessed. When Clara claimed she could control the information the journal would print about the dowager countess, he should have known for certain.
He blamed relief and love for making him blind. His thoughts had been on other things, and this journal was a means to an end and nothing more. Now he paged through one of the volumes more carefully, noticing the content and the intelligence of it all.
“Do you do this all yourself?” he asked. “It is a notable achievement, Clara. An impressive one. The last discovery surprised me. This one not so much. Had I read one I might have known, it carries your mark so clearly.”
She came to the case and picked up one of the copies. She stroked it lovingly. “I do not do it all by myself. That is the best part. Others are involved. We could not do it without the contributors, or even the bookstores that place it for sale.”
“We? Who else owns this?”
“Althea has been with me from the start of it. She is a partner now, and she will be the publisher going forward.” She waved a gesture around the library. “She will manage the rest of this too. I have asked her to live here, if she wants. I will have other duties now, and other responsibilities very soon.”
She smiled at him so beautifully that he could not mind any of it, even if he wanted to. She was proud of her journal and this club. Rightfully proud. He reached for her and embraced her. “Althea can live here, but she is not to use your chamber or your bed. That is ours. It is to remain just as it is, because that is where I first had you.”
“How sentimental of you. I am charmed that you want a memorial to that night.”
“And future nights. I may be the only man ever allowed in this house, but I insist on that one right. I will want to reminisce on occasion.”
She circled his neck with her arms and pressed closely. She raised her face for a kiss. He gave her a long one full of the soulful love he experienced when he held her now.
“You did not ask about my new responsibilities?” she murmured into his coat afterwards, while she rested her head on his chest. “The ones that will interfere with my managing all of this now.”
“I assumed you meant your role as my duchess.”
“It is more than that, Adam.” She looked up at him and her eyes glistened. “Have you not suspected this either? It has been some time since I refused you for the typical reason. A man and woman cannot share passion as we have without eventually----“
“Darling.” He lifted her in his arms, high, so her face was at the level of his. He searched for confirmation, and grew heady when he saw it.
She laughed. “I wanted to be sure before I told you.”
“When will the child be born?”
“Let us just say it is a good thing we married today. Had we waited for autumn the timing would have been too obvious.”
“To hell with timing. I did not think today could be more perfect but you have made it so. Damnation, Clara. I don’t think I will be able to keep this to myself. It will burst out at the breakfast.”
