“Odd. And his wins make you happy?”
“Yes.” He tried to keep his expression blank, but his lips were in rebellion. They had a beautiful babe. Did he have her hair, her beautiful toes?
Felton stared at his wife, wondering how beautiful she’d looked, heavy with his babe. What food did she crave? He’d have hunted all over London for her. Did her feet need a massage?
Reaching down, he picked up one of her legs and undid the lacings to her boot.
“What are you doing?”
“Nothing much.” He whipped off her boot and pressed his thumbs into the sole of her foot. “There. How is that?”
She closed up her sketchbook and put her head to the seat back.
Did she miss their child? “Cilia, we need to talk.”
Purring, she nodded. “Your touch, my lord.”
“Maybe there’s another way we could punish my cousin that doesn’t require you to kill. You’re a creator, a creator of art and life.”
She looked as if she wanted to sit up, but the lull of the massage kept her slouched on the seat. “You’re trying too hard, Felton. Not that I will complain. Your fingers are a treat.”
“You’re not a trained spy, or a retired one. Despite my tutelage, I think you’ll fail.”
Cecilia jerked away. “I can load a blunderbuss. That’s what you taught me.”
“That’s not enough, Cilia. Gladstone’s been trained to shoot since he was a boy. The duke taught us both. My cousin served a bit in the military. I don’t think you should try. We have so much to live for, us together.”
She folded her arms like she was cold. “What is it that you want me to do, Felton? Forgive Gladstone?”
“No. We can hate him forever.”
“I can, but maybe your love is again lacking. You won’t love me if I have blood on my hands?”
“Do you love me? I have blood on mine. I killed the enemy. I engaged in battles for my king, and people died. How can I hold you to a standard I cannot keep?”
“Felton, I want him dead. He should pay for everything.”
He lifted from his seat and knelt before her. “We are united. We have accepted who the other person is. I value you, all of you.”
“And I you, Felton.”
He sat beside her. “This’s why we must let him live. So we can be truly free.”
Tears ran down Cecilia’s face. He wiped them with his thumb. “Nothing will dissolve us, and when you’re ready, you will bring your friends. All of us, we can be one big family.”
“Us, Felton?”
It was like lightning flashed in his head. “Us. That’s what you wanted. That’s what you’d said before. I just didn’t understand. Yes, Cilia, us.”
“Even if one of us is a baby? You once told me how you love that your children were older.”
He pulled her to him and held her so tightly. “I said that because you felt pressured to be with child. I know you struggled with thinking about motherhood every month, with the maid’s checking for your courses. Rest assured, I want this baby.”
She flopped against him. Moomoo lolled as Cecilia cried.
Her tears wet through his shirt. She didn’t have to make the disclosure now. Cecilia saiduswould include the baby.
He kissed her and held her close.
