“I... I did not know,” she said softly.
Jason nodded, watching his coin spin upward. In his peripheral vision, he saw her drift in his direction. He held his breath.
“But have you,” she ventured softly, “told your family about... about your offer?”
Jason exhaled. He smiled to himself. If she raised the topic of “his offer,” surely she was conceding. She wanted him still. They were nearly there.
He propped his hip on the corner of the desk. “Which offer would that be?”
“You wouldn’t make me say it,” she said.
“I would make you say it. I made you come for me, didn’t I?”
“You’ve just claimed—” She stopped herself. She narrowed her eyes. “Answer the question.”
Her voice was sharp but she’d taken another step in his direction. His muscles twitched to reach her, but he remained calmly, coolly, on the edge of his desk.
“No,” he answered, enunciating his words flatly, “my mother and sisters do not know that we arebetrothed. You forbade me from telling anyone, remember?No one knows.You’ll have to endure that particular revelation in front of everyone—assuming you’ll still have me. But see? How much easier will it be now that you’ve enjoyed this lovely foray into a typical day at Syon Hall? Now that you’ve met my harmless mother and sisters, all of whom couldn’t care less who I marry? They believe you’ve come to take me in hand. Which you have. In one sense at least. That alone will win you approval.”
“You could have managed,” she tried, still a little confused. She took another step. Jason licked his lips.
“The hell I could’ve.”
“I thought you weren’t coming for me,” she whispered, her voice breaking again.
Jason’s teasing bravado fell away. He shoved off the desk. He met her where she stood. He dropped to his knees before her.
“I was always coming, S’bell. If you never made it here—and I was praying every day that you would—Iwould’ve come for you. I love you. I want you to be my duchess, if you will have me.”
Isobel’s face had gone the most charming shade of pink. Her mouth was half-open. Tears dropped down her cheeks. She had just extended her small, shaking hand when the door behind them made a loud, slow, creaking sound.
Jason closed his eyes.
“Oh lovely!” said his sister Veronica from the doorway, her voice light with genuine pleasure. “You’ve finally begun sorting the ledgers.Andthe tax bills. Well done—”
Jason swore.
A stray wad of paper lay on the floor beside him and he took it up and pivoted on one knee.
“Out, Ronnie,” he sang, pitching the ball of paper at the door. His sister made a yelp and hopped back, slamming the door.
The room fell silent. Jason took a deep breath. He closed his eyes. He turned back to Isobel.
“Sorry,” he said, gazing up at her. “Where was I?”
While he watched her, Isobel’s tearful, silent sobs made the most inelegant transformation to giggling. She shook her head and pressed her hands to her mouth, unable to stop the happy, excited sound. Her face was lit with delight. She leapt at him and he caught her up.
His mouth found hers in the first moment, kissing her with the passion and possession wrought of four weeks of waiting. Within moments, they were a clawing, pawing tangle of arms and lips, tongue and breath.
They were just about to tip sideways when a knock sounded at the door.
Jason ignored it but Isobel paused.
“Tell them to go away,” he mumbled.
In the direction of the door, he shouted, “Whoever you are, go—”
Isobel placed her hand over his mouth and craned up to stare at the door. The knock sounded again. Through the door, his sister Veronica could be heard calling to them.
