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Taking a deep breath, Sebastian put his hand over hers, his warm palm cupping the back of hers, and he sighed. Closed his eyes. Nodded.

“As you wish.”

48

One week later

Sebastian

It was the night of Mei and Sebastian’s engagement ball, and his mother was nowhere in sight. Just as she had not been for the past week.

Not after the engagement announcement ran in the Gazette.

Not after the banns were read at the pulpit of St. George’s on Sunday.

Not after their return to Society at the Countess of Talbot’s ball two nights prior.

There had been nary a whisper or sighting of his mother. In fact, Sebastian and Tiffany had been fielding questions from their friends and acquaintances about where their mother was. No one had heard from her since the day she’d disappeared.

Which only furthered their suspicion that she must be with her lover. Someone who had managed to keep their relationship a secret and who was now keeping her whereabouts just as mysterious.

That, or possibly she had fled the country.

There had been no whisper about Heywood or Breth or the attack on Mei. Everyone thought that Sebastian and Mei were settling privately into Bolton House, with Mei’s grandmother as her chaperone until the wedding day. No one questioned the arrangement—they presumed the duke would not want his bride to be in anything less than a home suitable for a duchess.

There had been plenty of whispers about their match, many of them wondering exactly how it had come about, but no one was brazen enough to say anything to Sebastian’s or Mei’s faces. Their friends were handling the gossip, and Sebastian was happy to let them. Mei had gritted her teeth over it, but she had also given up control of that side of things—besides which, she was knee-deep in wedding preparations under the guidance of the other duchesses.

Tonight, they whirled around the ballroom in each other’s arms for their engagement waltz, with all their gathered family, friends, and acquaintances. The guest list had been long. Lady Astrid had insisted they would want to make as big a splash as possible to ensure everyone understood that Sebastian was celebrating his bride and not trying to hide her away because of their difference in stations. He’d immediately been on board after that, though Mei had had to be talked around to it.

With the other ladies all supporting Astrid’s stance, she’d eventually come around, even if she was uncomfortable with the fuss. Her grandmother had, surprisingly, been supportive of however she wanted the ceremony to be. The marriage was the important aspect to her, not how it occurred.

“Is it as bad as you thought it would be?” Sebastian murmured, leaning down to press his cheek against the top of her head as he spun her around the dance floor.

“Worse,” Mei replied cheekily, making him laugh. She tilted her head back to meet his gaze. The swelling on her face was gone. There was a bit of lingering yellow and green discoloration left from her bruises, but that had been covered with some sort of feminine magic by Lady Astrid and Rose. There was nothing but love and desire in her eyes. “But you are worth it.”

“You are worth everything. We can still make a run of it to Gretna Green if you would rather.” Sebastian meant every word. He would whisk her away tonight if that was what she wanted.

Mei shook her head, her smile playing happily across her lips.

“No. We are right where we are supposed to be.”

Mei

The last of the guests were long gone when Jocelyn helped Mei out of her gown and into her nightclothes. The lady’s-maid-in-training was now her lady’s maid for truth. The maid grinned at Mei before slipping out the door. Mei could not help but shake her head at how events had turned out. She had not thought to ever need a lady’s maid in truth, but if she had to have one, she was glad it was Jocelyn.

Not more than five minutes after Jocelyn left, there was a brief knock on the door, and it opened before Mei could reply. Not that she was going to. She was already moving toward the door, knowing who was on the other side of it, coming to spend the night in her bed.

The way he’d come to spend the night in her bed since that very first night, when all he did was curl up around her and hold her tight. Protecting her from the nightmares. Protecting her with his body. Mei had been worried she wouldn’t be able to sleep in a strange place after being attacked, but being in Sebastian’s arms all night had made all the difference.

And now she was in his arms again, their lips finding each other’s and clinging. Mei relaxed against him, sliding her hands around the back of his neck.

When his head lifted, he smiled down at her, his gaze roving over her face. He stopped briefly where she knew the last evidence of her bruises lingered, but she could not feel them anymore. It was worse for him, being able to see them. Mei knew herself to be fully recovered… and she wanted something from him tonight.

Something specific.

Something he had never brought up before, but she was hoping he did not object to.

Going up on her tiptoes, Mei whispered her request in his ear.