“I hope so.”
“Would you promise I can keep the use of my house?” She asked right away, as if she already had a list in mind.
“As long as you do not bring lovers there. Or anywhere, of course.”
“Can I have at least half of my income from the land, to use as I choose?”
She pressed her advantage now, but he was in no condition to truly negotiate after last night. “I have no need of that income.”
“Can I continue with my circle of literary friends? Those bluestockings, as you once called them?”
“I would never deprive you of friends.” That might be too generous. This was Clara, after all. “As long as they are not revolutionaries or criminals.”
She raised her eyebrows. “Criminals?”
“I am just eliminating the impossible, darling.”
She decided to let it pass. “And no matter what else you should learn, do you promise that you are finished with this quest you brought back with you? Do you promise that you will never seek revenge?”
“I have already said so.”
She released his arms and sat straight. “Then I will marry you, Adam.” She laughed quietly. “Those words almost made me choke, but it seems I got them out.” She leaned down and kissed him. “I will marry you because I love you too much not to, it seems. So much that I can never be contented again without you.”
He wrapped his arms around her and held her to his body. They remained like that long enough that he decided she must stay. Again he felt for her fasteners.
Again she slapped him away. She stood. “You should write to your mother and tell her to come home, I think. I am sure that you will want her at the wedding. Now I really must go. I will tell the servant at the door to find me a hackney.”
Two thoughts crossed his mind after she left, while he drifted back to sleep. One was that writing this letter to his mother would be far easier than the last one, which he would never send now.
The other thought was that as soon as they were married, he intended to find out about Clara’s mysterious doings.
Chapter Twenty-Six
The Decadent Dukes sat in their usual chairs in the upstairs chamber at White’s. Adam had just told the others about his nuptial plans.
“We will announce it in a fortnight.”
Brentworth congratulated him graciously.
Langford did too, but with little enthusiasm. He gazed around the chamber. “I suppose this is over now or will be soon. The Decadent Dukes will be no more.”
“Why? I am decadent still, just with one woman.”
“It won’t be the same. There is nothing decadent about being bad with your wife. If we continue, we will have to change our name.” He pondered it. “The Dour Dukes. The Despondent Dukes . . .”
“In time I expect it will be the Domesticated Dukes,” Brentworth teased.
“Take that back. I cannot bear the thought of it.”
Brentworth laughed. “The Dutiful Dukes.”
Langford covered his ears with his hands. “I refuse to hear it.”
“You could continue alone and be the Debauching Duke.”
Langford brightened. “That isn’t so bad.”
Brentworth turned to Adam. “Have you met with her brother yet?”
