“But…” He frowned at her. “… we have never shared a bed before.”
“Well, it was bound to happen one of these days,” Rosalie said briskly. “We are married, after all. Even on nights when we have horrible fights.”
He seemed to consider this then, at last, he stood up. Once he was on his feet, he stretched, raising his arms high above his bed.
When he lowered them, he smiled slightly at her. “I was a bit stiff,” he admitted.
Together, they walked back down the corridor. They weren’t speaking, but for once, the silence between them didn’t feel tense; it almost felt companionable.
Once they were back in the room, the Duke took a nightshirt from the set of drawers in the corner and then went behind the screen to change. Rosalie perched on the edge of the bed and tried to summon all her courage as she listened to the rustle of fabric against his skin.
“Will you tell me what was in the letter?” she asked at last before her courage could desert her.
Behind the screen, she heard the Duke pause, but then he resumed his undressing.
“I suppose it’s better to just tell you,” he said after a moment. There was another long pause. “Actually, judging by the way you go about finding out information, it might be safer at this point.”
“You don’t have to worry about that,” she said, watching his shadow move behind the screen. If she was correct, he was now wearing nothing at all. She saw the shadow lean over the basin, and she heard him splashing water on his face. “I am stronger than I look. You might think my head is always in the clouds, or some book, but I grew up with Jebediah Crampton as my father. It made me tough—tougher than I wanted to be.”
Another silence then, “Is that why you read so much? Because it’s the one place you don’t have to be tough? You can just be a happy, tender-hearted romantic?”
She smiled but didn’t answer his question. “What was in the letter?” she repeated. “I’m not trying to be nosey, but if it’s about Lord Redfield, then it could affect me.”
The Duke sighed but not in an exasperated way. More like he was releasing a heavy burden. “The letter was in code, so I’m not entirely sure of everything it’s saying,” he began. “It was sent to me by one of my contacts in Scotland Yard. They write that there has been an influx in opium dealing in Lord Redfield’s estate. You know, of course, that the Lord Redfield that kidnapped your sister is dead?”
“Yes of course. He was killed in prison.”
“Well, his son has inherited his estate. I don’t know much about this new Lord Redfield, but if this letter is any indication, he is just as villainous as his father. I am concerned about increasing opium activity, especially because his land borders mine. I don’t want to see a rise of criminal activity in my duchy, nor do Iwant my tenants to become hooked on that vile substance. It’s important that whatever is happening be stopped at once and the new Lord Redfield be taken down if he is indeed behind it.”
“Is there any chance he isn’t behind it?” she asked, swinging her feet against the bed.
“I suppose it’s possible a gang is using his land without his knowledge.” The shadow had begun to dress itself, and she watched as it pulled the nightshirt over its head. “But considering the criminality of the late Lord Redfield, I imagine his son is similarly inclined. And it wouldn’t be easy for a gang to get away with this without Lord Redfield’s knowledge. And if he knew and wasn’t doing anything, well then, that’s almost as bad as profiting from it.”
“Yes, I agree,” Rosalie said.
The Duke pulled aside the screen and appeared in front of her again. He was now the most informally dressed she had ever seen him, in just undergarments and a nightshirt, and some of the hair around his face was still wet from the washbasin. She swallowed, her heart cantering.
“So, you came here in order to try and stop Lord Redfield?” she asked, unsticking her throat.
“That’s right.”
She tilted her head to one side and gave him a lopsided smile. “You could have just told me. I wouldn’t have been offended if you wanted to stop a drug smuggler instead of going on honeymoon with me.”
“Well… after everything you’ve been through, I thought that stopping another criminal would be the last thing you wanted.”
“Please,” Rosalie laughed. “Don’t you know by now that I want my life to be like a novel? And this is exactly that! As horrified as I was when Violet was kidnapped, there was a small part of me that was jealous.”
The Duke’s eyebrows went up. “Are you in earnest?”
“Yes.” She shook her head. “I know it sounds insane, and I knew at the time that I wasn’tactuallyjealous, but I just have always craved adventure—for something exciting to happen to me. And while I’m not glad that there’s opium being smuggled into the estate, I’d also rather know about it and help you than be kept in the dark.”
The Duke hesitated. “But it could be dangerous.”
Now it was her turn to snort. “Haven’t you seen by now how brave the Crampton sisters are? I can handle myself.”
“That’s true,” he said, inclining his head. He came to the bed and turned back the covers then sat down on it. She turned around, and they looked at each other for a moment.
“So, do you have a plan?” she asked.
