“Georg?”
“Hmm?”
“Can’t you just postpone this stupid war?”
“By all means. Let us cancel it altogether. Do you think sending Napoleon a missive will suffice? If I send it by special courier, he should receive it by tomorrow morning.”
She pondered it as though taking his words seriously. With a sigh, she shook her head. “It might not be enough.”
“I fear you are right. Perhaps we will just send in our secret weapon.”
“What is that?”
He turned to his side and propped his head on his hand as he regarded her lovingly. “You. He will take one glance at you and surrender. No one stands a chance against you, after all.”
Evie snorted. “It is worth a try. I am certain I could devise more creative ways to send that terrible man to where he belongs.”
“Hm.” He pressed a kiss on her head. “It is tempting, but I prefer to keep you all to myself.”
Evie wove her fingers through his. “You won’t get hurt though, will you? I don’t want a husband with holes shot through him.” She looked at him with deeply troubled eyes. “I have had nightmares, you know. In Vienna. I would wake up at night, all alone in that big house. And I dreamt of the war, and that you—that you—” Tears filled her eyes.
He drew her to him and held her tight. “I have every intention of coming back to you, Evie. In one piece.”
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
“Evie?”
“Hm?”
“This isn’t easy for me to say.”
“What?”
He cleared his throat. Then, after a few false starts, he mumbled something into her hair.
A beautiful smile lit up Evie’s face. “What did you say? I could not make out a single word. Say it again, louder.”
“Making me say it twice, aren’t you?”
“Yes. Three, four, five times and a hundred times more. My ears aren’t the best, you know, maybe I am growing old. So you must repeat it again, and loudly, and slowly, so I can clearly hear.”
“I do love you, Evie,” he finally said gruffly.
Evie stared at him for a long time. “I thought you did not believe in love.”
“It took me a while to admit it to myself.” He cleared his throat.
“Since when? Wolfsthal Castle? The Embassy ball? Or…ooh…can it be?”
“I admit it. That very moment you exited that carriage at the inn.”
She squealed. “Love at first sight! How absolutely splendid! Back then, you would have made the earth revolve the other way rather than admit it was possible.”
“Another thing I was dreadfully wrong about, evidently.”
“Yes,” Evie said, snuggling into him, blissfully happy. “Dreadfully wrong.”
