Page 113 of The Study of Seduction
But it could. “Niall?” Clarissa said, turning for the door. “Niall!”
She broke away from Edwin and ran to hug her brother. The man Edwin had remembered as being tall and gangly had filled out into quite a stalwart fellow. His hair was darker than Clarissa’s—more like sun-streaked bronze—but his expression was hard. Clearly his sojourn on the Continent had changed him.
Behind him stood Warren, who watched the siblings with a smile.
“What on earth are you doing here?” Clarissa asked. “Did you sneak into England?” She shook him. “You cannot be here—you’re a fugitive. They could hang you!”
“Doubtful,” Warren said as he glanced beyond Niall to Edwin. “After all the trouble Fulkham and I took to get him back legally, it wouldn’t make sense for the government to turn around and hang him. And I would be most annoyed.”
“So would I,” Niall said dryly. “I don’t fancy having a rope for a cravat.”
She whirled on Edwin. “Did you know about this?”
“Are you mad?” Warren put in. “Edwin would have told you at once. Which is why we didn’t tellhim. We weren’t sure if it would work out, and we didn’t want you to get your hopes up.”
Edwin stepped next to her to slide his arm about her waist, feeling oddly protective. “So exactly how did you get it to work out?” he asked the two others.
“As it happens,” his brother-in-law said, “Durand was already becoming a problem for both the French and the English—making rash diplomatic decisions, squirreling away documents that were supposed to be destroyed, breaking agreements that had long been held. The attempt to blackmail you was the last straw. So Fulkham convinced his superiors that without my involvement, the man would never have been routed, and his attempts to ‘unveil’ a peer as a spy would have ended in disaster.”
“In other words,” Warren put in, “Niall got a royal pardon. And it didn’t hurt that after Prinny’s death, our new king was eager to issue a few royal pardons as part of his ascension to the throne. One of those went to Niall.”
“Without having to reveal any of your past, dear girl,” Niall added.
With a sniff, she patted her belly. “Clearly, I amnota ‘girl.’”
Niall laughed. “No, clearly not.” He sobered as his gaze met Edwin’s. “And if your new husband doesn’t take care of you, I shall challengehimto a duel.”
“Don’t worry,” Edwin said solemnly. “I would go to the ends of the earth for her.”
The serious statement brought the other two men up short. Then Niall glanced at Warren. “I can’t believe it, but you were right. Heisin love.”
Clarissa slid her arm about Edwin’s waist. “Of course he is. I have that effect on men.”
The flippantly spoken words lightened the mood, as his wife had no doubt intended.
With a genial smile, Niall said, “I do hope we got here in time for dinner. I’m famished.”
“Yes, dinner will be served shortly.” Clarissa turned to her cousin. “Warren, are you staying?”
He shook his head. “I must return to London. Something has come up. But you and Niall enjoy your reunion. I’ll see you in a few weeks at the party at Keane’s.”
“All right.” She kissed her cousin, then turned to Niall. “Go on to the dining room. I need a quick word with my husband.”
Niall looked a bit taken aback by her bossiness, but then, he hadn’t seen her in seven years. He didn’t know the Clarissa whom Edwin knew and adored. The Clarissa who’d changed his life. Who’d made him whole.
Who’d proved that he did believe in love, after all.
Niall departed for the dining room, leaving the couple alone together.
Clarissa turned to Edwin with a sultry smile. “So, to return to our earlier conversation, would you like to know what roomI’veimagined making love in?”
That got his attention instantly. “Damned right I would.”
“Perhaps we should make it a wager.” She dragged one finger down his chest, making his blood heat. “If you guess the correct room, you get a reward.”
He swallowed hard. Amazing how she could still rouse him with one word, one look. One sensual insinuation. “A reward, eh? What sort of reward?”
Her minxish smile increased the pounding of his heart. “Oh, I don’t know. You can kiss my arm, I suppose.” With a knowing glance, she touched the inside of her elbow. “Right here.”
“I have a better idea. If I guess the room, then I get to make love to you in it. After your brother has returned home tonight.”
“Hmm.” Her eyes gleamed. “That sounds like an excellent reward. But what do I get if youdon’tguess correctly?”
“The same thing you get if I do—my heart, my body, my soul.”
“In that case, I can’t lose,” she said, her love for him shining in her face.
“Neither can I.” He drew her into his arms. “And that, my love, is the best kind of wager.”