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She gasped. “You are not serious?”

“I have never been more serious in my life,” he stated, his voice breaking a little. “It would be just the two of us, taking our vows before God. No fuss. No wedding breakfast for a hundred people whom we don’t care about.”

Maddie was so shocked that she didn’t know what to say for a moment. “But it would cause a scandal,” she pointed out, eventually. “People would assume you are only marrying me because you had your wicked way with me!”

He gave a bark of laughter. “Ihadmy wicked way with you,” he returned in a husky voice. “And I do assure you that I intend to do so many more times. What does it matter what anyone thinks? We know the truth. That is all that matters.”

Maddie sat back, staring at him. “Both of our families have been blighted by scandal,” she said slowly. “We know what it is like. How could we do that to them all over again?”

“It would be an adventure.” He gazed at her earnestly. “An adventure just for us. I have lived under the shadow of scandal and let it rule my life. I was governed by fear. How liberating it would be to simply not care if we shock people. To start our lives on our own terms.”

Maddie gaped at him. She was still stunned by his outrageous suggestion. But alongside the shock, she was starting to feel a small thrill of excitement.

She had always longed to be an adventuress. She had always wanted to live her own life, to not be totally bound by Society’s strict shackles. That was why she had written the list. It had been her only way to express her innermost heart’s yearnings.

She had not really given much thought to the wedding—she had just been delirious with happiness that they were getting married at all. She had been willing to be passive while their mothers took over the planning. What did it matter, at the end of the day, except that they were man and wife?

But now… now, she realized that itdidmatter. It mattered a lot. For they were both restless rebels, at heart. That was one of the reasons they had been drawn to one another.

If they did this, they certainly would be starting their lives together on their own terms. They would be starting their lives as they wished to continue them.

What an amazing adventure it would be.

And their parents would get over it, eventually. It would be only a minor scandal, after all. They would still get the union they desired.

Maddie felt giddy. She laughed aloud in sheer joy. It felt simply wonderful to not be shackled by Society’s rules. Exactly as the list had always intended.

“All right,” she agreed, her heart racing with trepidation and excitement. “Let us do it.”

Daniel jumped up, whooping with laughter, grabbing her hands and pulling her up with him. They danced a lopsided jig around the room, breathless with laughter. When they eventually stopped to draw breath, they gazed into each other’s eyes.

“I cannot wait for the rest of our lives to start, Maddie,” he whispered. “I feel as if I have waited a lifetime for you already.”

It didn’t take long to prepare the carriage. Giggling, they left a note in the foyer for the Dowager Duchess and another one beside it, written in Maddie’s hand for her family.

When they climbed into the carriage under the shroud of darkness, Maddie felt breathless with anticipation. The coachman cracked the whip, and they were on their way to Gretna Green.

The fight was over now. Their lives spread before them like the unfurling of a magic carpet, ready to fly to the skies. A life lived on their own terms.

They turned to each other. Without a word, they fell hungrily into each other’s arms, kissing passionately. After all, it was a long trip to Scotland, and they had to pass the time in some way. The very best way of all.

The End?