Page 35 of Duke of Myste (Braving the Elements #3)

“And mine can?” Jane raised an eyebrow, recognizing the opening move that might become the first real test of the understanding they had reached by the moonlit lake mere nights ago.

“Not damaged, precisely,” Richard stated carefully. “But perhaps… scrutinized more closely than either of us might prefer.”

Jane leaned forward slightly, her voice taking on the persuasive tone that had proven effective during their recent lessons. “What if the scrutiny matters less than the experience? What if, for one evening, we choose adventure over propriety?”

Richard’s expression shifted almost imperceptibly, and she caught a glimpse of something akin to longing before it quickly disappeared. “You truly wish to go.”

“I do,” Jane admitted. “When will we ever have the opportunity to see such wonders?”

For a moment, Richard looked as if he might voice the immediate refusal she had anticipated. But then his expression softened, and when he spoke again, his tone carried a warmth that made her pulse quicken.

“Very well,” he said quietly. “We shall go to Vauxhall Gardens.”

Jane blinked, certain she had misheard. “We shall?”

“Did you expect me to refuse?” Richard asked, though his slight smile suggested he knew exactly how surprised she was.

“I rather thought you might, yes.” Jane studied his face, searching for signs of reluctance or reservation. “You agreed remarkably quickly.”

“Perhaps I am learning to trust your judgment,” Richard offered. “Or perhaps I have realized that some experiences are worth a bit of social risk.”

“Or perhaps,” Jane said with growing confidence, “you are discovering that life with a wife who challenges convention might be more interesting than life with a wife who simply follows orders.”

Richard’s smile widened. “That is certainly possible.”

Jane felt a flutter of triumph at having won what she had expected to be a difficult battle. “I had prepared quite an elaborate argument. I even considered using my weekly demand.”

“Did you?” Richard’s eyes danced with amusement. “How fascinating. I am dying to hear this.”

“Oh, there were appeals to your sense of adventure, reminders of your promise to trust my judgment, and possibly even some strategic pouting.”

Richard laughed—a rich, genuine sound that never failed to make her heart swell with happiness. “Strategic pouting? I am devastated to have missed such a performance.”

“You agreed too quickly,” Jane accused, though her tone was more pleased than critical. “I was rather looking forward to the challenge of persuasion.”

Richard’s expression grew thoughtful. “You know,” he said, his voice taking on a contemplative quality. “I have been considering proposing a modification to our arrangement.”

“What sort of modification?” Jane asked, intrigued.

“Well,” Richard began, “it occurs to me that our current system is rather one-sided. You may make demands of me, but I have no similar recourse. Perhaps… perhaps we might establish a reciprocal arrangement.”

Jane’s eyebrows rose with interest. “You wish to make demands of me, Your Grace?”

“Not demands, precisely,” Richard clarified, a slight smile playing at the corners of his mouth. “Requests. Things that might bring me happiness, just as I hope to bring you happiness by honoring your demands.”

The suggestion sent a flutter of anticipation through her. “What sort of requests might a duke make of his duchess?”

Richard was quiet for a moment, his gaze growing distant as if he were carefully considering his words. “Perhaps,” he said finally, “I might request you accompany me on estate visits, not as a duty but because your presence makes even the most tedious business negotiations more bearable.”

Jane felt her heart skip a beat at the sincerity in his voice. “That hardly seems like a burdensome request.”

“No?” Richard’s smile widened slightly. “Then perhaps I might request something more challenging. That you trust me enough to share your fears as well as your joys. That you allow me to comfort you when you’re distressed, just as you’ve begun to comfort me.

That you see our marriage not as a series of negotiations and demands, but as a partnership where both parties contribute to the other’s happiness. ”

The emotion in his voice made her breath hitch. This was more than a modification to their arrangement—it was a fundamental shift in how they related to each other, from formal accommodation to genuine intimacy.

“I think,” she said softly, “that sounds like a far superior arrangement to our current one.”

“Then we are agreed,” Richard murmured, leaning across the desk to seal their new understanding with a gentle, unhurried kiss.

When he finally released her, Jane felt dizzy in the most absurdly grounding way.

“I am still not convinced by how readily you agreed to my request to visit Vauxhall Gardens,” she said with a teasing smile.

“I knew you would ask,” Richard explained simply. “Harriet has been dropping hints about Vauxhall for days, and I could see the longing in your eyes every time she mentioned adventure or excitement. It seemed foolish to put you through the exercise of a formal request when I had already agreed.”

The admission made Jane’s heart flip in a way that had nothing to do with victory and everything to do with the growing realization that her husband paid far more attention to her desires than she had imagined.

“You have been planning to say yes all along?”

“I have been planning to find a way to say yes,” Richard corrected. “The distinction may seem small, but it has required considerable mental adjustment on my part.”

Jane rose from her chair and moved around the desk, drawn by the vulnerability beneath his carefully composed words. When she reached him, she placed her hands on his shoulders, feeling the tension that betrayed how much this concession had cost him.

“What sort of adjustment?” she asked softly.

Richard’s hands settled on her waist, pulling her closer until she stood between his knees. “The sort that involves accepting that my wife’s happiness matters more than my reputation. That some risks are worth taking if they bring joy to someone I—” He paused, seeming to struggle.

“Someone you what?” Jane prompted gently.

“Someone I have come to care for deeply,” Richard finished quietly, the admission emerging with characteristic care.

Jane’s heart fluttered at his words, sensing there was more he wanted to say but perhaps wasn’t quite ready to voice. “Richard, I?—”

“I should have said it before,” he continued, his thumb tracing delicate patterns on her waist. “Should have found the courage weeks ago to tell you how much you mean to me. You’ve changed everything I thought I knew about marriage and happiness and what it truly means to live, Jane.”

Jane felt warmth spread through her chest at his heartfelt words. “You mean a great deal to me, too,” she whispered. “More than I ever expected when we got married.”

Richard’s answering smile was brilliant enough to light up the entire room. “Then perhaps Vauxhall Gardens will provide the perfect opportunity to practice this new philosophy of ours.”

“What philosophy is that?”

“That love matters more than propriety,” Richard said, pulling her down for a kiss that tasted of promise and possibility. “And that some adventures are worth any amount of scandal.”

As Jane melted into his embrace, she thought perhaps Harriet had been right about seizing opportunities for wonder and excitement. After all, falling in love with her husband was proving to be the greatest adventure yet.

Outside the windows, a gentle spring rain began to fall, washing the estate clean and promising new growth in the days to come.

But inside the warm circle of Richard’s arms, Jane felt nothing but gratitude for the courage to risk her heart and the extraordinary man who had proven worthy of such trust.

“Jane,” Richard murmured against her hair, his voice carrying a note of reluctance. “I’m afraid we’ll need to return to London soon. There are parliamentary matters requiring my attention, and I’ve delayed them as long as possible.”

Jane tilted her head to look at him. “When?”

“By the end of the week, if you’re agreeable. I know our time here has been…” he paused, searcing for the right words.

“Perfect.” Jane finished softly. “But London is where our life together truly lies, is it not?”

Richard’s smile was tender. “Indeed it is.”

Their intimate moment was interrupted by a soft whine from Pippin, who had apparently grown bored with his position by the fireplace and was now demanding attention.

Richard sighed with theatrical resignation as the spaniel padded over to them with his usual enthusiasm.

“He has developed quite the attachment to these evening visits,” Richard noted, watching as Pippin curled up on the Persian rug with obvious satisfaction.

“Mrs. Crawford told me that he spends considerable time outside my study door each evening, as though waiting for an invitation to join in whatever activities might be taking place within.”

“Perhaps he simply recognizes quality when he sees it,” Jane suggested, scratching behind the hound’s silky ears. “Or perhaps he understands that the master of the house requires companionship during his contemplative hours.”

“I do not require companionship,” Richard protested, though his voice lacked conviction as he watched Pippin’s contented face. “I merely tolerate his presence because removing him would cause more disruption than allowing him to remain.”

“Of course,” Jane agreed solemnly, though her eyes danced with mirth. “How very practical of you to tolerate such devoted affection simply to avoid inconvenience.”

Richard shot her a look that suggested he was perfectly aware of her mocking tone, but before he could respond, Pippin rose from his comfortable position and trotted over to his chair, placing his front paws on Richard’s knee with an expression of hopeful expectation.

“Shameless creature,” Richard muttered, though he couldn’t quite suppress the smile that tugged at his lips as he obligingly scratched the spaniel’s ears. “He has learned to manipulate both feminine and masculine sensibilities with remarkable efficiency.”

“I believe he is simply ensuring that both his humans are properly and thoroughly attended to,” Jane observed fondly. “A most thoughtful approach to household management.”

She smiled to herself as her husband’s fingers found a particularly sensitive spot on Pippin’s neck and his left leg started rabbit-kicking. They laughed as Richard withdrew his hand, earning an energetic yap from the spaniel before he settled back in his spot on the Persian rug.

Vauxhall Gardens would be spectacular, Jane was certain, but it could hardly compare to the wonder of discovering how love, when freely given and joyfully received, could transform even the most practical arrangement into something quite magical.