Page 129 of A Scandal for the Beastly Earl

"Especially those. They made you who you are."

"Scarred and difficult?"

"Strong and careful. There's a difference."

"Is there?"

"Always."

He kissed her, soft and grateful. "What did I do to deserve you?"

"You pulled me from a lake."

"You dived into that lake."

"Fell."

"Dived."

"This argument is our entire relationship."

"This argument is perfect."

"We're perfect."

"We're chaos."

"Perfect chaos."

"That's us."

They fell asleep holding each other, Thistle snoring at their feet, while somewhere in France, Cassandra waited with information that would either free Lucien from his guilt or destroy him entirely.

Either way, they'd face it together.

Because that's what family did.

Chapter 20

"If you continue looking like you are going to faint, I am afraid you're going to fall in, and I'm not jumping into the Channel to save you."

Julian's observation, delivered with his characteristic dry humor, made Arabella lift her head from the ship's railing just long enough to glare at him.

"I'm dying," she informed him with as much dignity as one could muster while pale-faced and miserable.

"You're not dying," Lucien said, rubbing her back in gentle circles. "You're experiencing pregnancy combined with channel crossing."

"Same thing," she groaned.

"Charming," Julian observed. "Though I suppose it's better than Thistle's contribution to the voyage."

They all looked toward the dog, who had somehow befriended the ship's cat and was now leading it in what appeared to be an organized raid on the galley.

"How does he make friends so quickly?" Lucien muttered.

"Criminal recognises criminal," Julian suggested. "That cat has definitely done this before."

"All cats have have done this before," Arabella managed between bouts of nausea. "It's part of their charm."