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He squeezed her hand again. “Then I must think of something to lift your mood. Dessert perhaps? They made a chocolate gateau, especially for you. Mrs. Green told me it is your favorite.”

Georgiana gave a wet laugh. “Well,that, and thepuits d’amour.”

“You caught me,” Robert said. “That was the second part of our dessert.”

“That is very kind.”

“It is my pleasure.” He lifted her hand, kissed it, and looked deep into her eyes.

She held her breath, suspended in a moment of wonder as she watched him take her hand and press his warm, soft lips upon her knuckles as his piercing eyes stared into her soul.

I need to exhale.

He rose from his seat, walked to the sideboard, sliced two pieces of cake, and brought them to the table.

“Shall I call for coffee?” he asked.

“Yes,” she replied, mesmerized by his graceful movements.

He reached for the bell and shook it. A footman appeared, and Robert placed his order for Irish coffee. Within moments, the footman returned with a kettle and teacups, placed them on the table, and immediately withdrew.

Georgiana hardly spared him a glance. She was too busy reveling in Robert’s undivided attention while savoring the burst of chocolate in her mouth.

“This was a very thoughtful thing to do, Robert. I want to thank you.”

“No. Do not thank me. Allow me to thankyou.”

“For what?”

“For agreeing to be my wife. Pardoning me after I abandoned you here in the city while I continued with my life. For taking such loving care of this home and the people in it. You are remarkable.”

Georgiana blushed. “It is nothing,” she murmured.

“It is everything to me,” Robert said.

After dessert, they retreated to the music room for adigestif.Georgiana looked around the room curiously, as though she had never seen it before.

“So many musical instruments. Does your grandmother play?”

“Oh, everyone in my family did,” Robert replied.

She cocked an eyebrow at him. “Do you?”

He laughed. “Yes, of course I do.”

“What do you play?”

Robert stood up and moved over to the harpsichord. He struck a few keys and found that they were in tune. Smiling, he sat down on the bench, pulled it closer to the keys, and began to play a tune.

“Oh!” she exclaimed with delight as she rose and stood beside him. “I know this song.”

“Sing it with me.”

It was an old Celtic lullaby his grandmother used to sing to him. He had not encountered many Englishmen who knew it.

Georgiana began to sing, her voice pure and sweet and he joined her, providing a melodic counterpoint to her soprano.

Eventually, he stopped playing and got to his feet. Taking her in his arms, he gently guided her around the floor in a waltz.