I narrowed my eyes. “And?”
She shrugged. “Don’t you want to go to your club and spend time with your friends?”
I didn’t like the way she was falling into her old habit of trying to hide her real feelings. I preferred it when she told me exactly what she was thinking.
I crossed my arms. “I think I’d rather spend time with you.”
She smiled. “Truly?”
I shook my head. “Fairfax has things well in hand. He and the others have been looking into what can be done about the Tuttlefords since we escaped together. There is no point in interjecting myself right now since it would only slow down their progress if I insisted they explain all the threads of their investigation. Besides—” I plucked her off her seat and deposited her on my lap. “I think I would much rather spend time with you. It has been far too long since we’ve made love.”
She laughed. “It has only been one day.”
“Yes, far too long.” I nuzzled the side of her throat, and she giggled—a sound that lightened my mood considerably.
The townhouse wasn’t far from King’s, so soon we were slowing to a halt and I was escorting my new wife into the house. The staff had been told to expect her since I’d written my valet with news of our marriage. But they hadn’t known we were arriving today.
My butler was startled when he saw me. “My lord, we weren’t expecting you quite so soon.”
“Tomlinson, this is my wife, Lady Diana Clifton.”
Diana inclined her head graciously while Tomlinson bowed. “I will gather the staff so introductions can be made.”
I shook my head. “Not now. But Smithers will be following with her trunk. He shouldn’t be too far behind us.”
“Of course, my lord.”
“Thank you. We’ll see you at dinner.”
“But we haven’t had anything since breakfast,” Diana said.
“Send a tray up,” I said before sweeping her into my arms and taking her upstairs.
“You are terrible.” Diana kissed a line from my jaw to my ear.
“I am a newly married man. It is to be expected. There will be time to meet the staff later.”
“Of course, husband. Whatever you want.”
My heart soared. Everything was going to be fine. The others would reach out to me when they had news of how we were going to proceed. If that didn’t happen today, I’d drop by King’s tomorrow to see what was happening. But for now, I had a wife to pleasure.
I’d had to bring her the worst news of her life yesterday and had watched her break into a million tiny pieces. In that moment, nothing was more important than putting her back together.
The next time she broke apart, it would be from ecstasy.
When we reached our bedroom, I lowered her onto her feet and twisted to lock the door behind us. Anyone arriving with a tray of food didn’t need to walk in on what was about to happen. I turned back to see Diana standing with her back to me. With a sly glance over her shoulder, she said, “Can you help me disrobe, husband?”
Who was I to ignore her plight?
Far too soon, Diana was dragging me out of bed for dinner. “We’ve been up here for hours. It’s time to meet the staff.”
I grumbled, but she was correct. As we helped each other dress again, I made a mental note to ask my valet if we had someone on staff who could serve as Diana’s lady’s maid.
When we reached the main floor, Tomlinson led us to where the staff were lined up at the back of the house. He introduced them to Diana, who made a point of acknowledging each person, telling them how delighted she was to meet them. The sentiment was clearly reciprocated. The housekeeper in particular gushed over Diana and declared that she hadn’t thought this day would ever come.
“To be frank, neither did I,” I said, and everyone laughed. “How long until dinner?”
“It will be ready in half an hour,” Tomlinson said. “If Lady Clifton has any preferences for how the household is to be run, we will, of course, make any necessary arrangements to ensure she is satisfied.”
