Page 54 of A Scandal for the Beastly Earl

"Our dog. And no, he doesn't."

"He's going to be there every night now, isn't he?"

"Probably."

"Wonderful. The Beast of Blackthorn, tamed by a woman and her criminal dog."

"There are worse fates."

"Name one."

"Being alone in this massive house with only your brooding for company."

"That's a fair point."

"I'm full of fair points," she said and she hit him with a pillow, which led to him retaliating, and then led to a brief but enthusiastic pillow fight that ended with them tangled together again, laughing and breathless.

"This is not how I expected marriage to be," Lucien admitted.

"Disappointed?"

"The opposite." He kissed her, slow and sweet. "Though I could do without the dog as audience."

Thistle, as if understanding, turned his back to them and began snoring pointedly.

"See? He's discreet."

"He's a threat."

"Our threat."

"Everything is 'ours' with you, isn't it?"

"That's generally how marriage works, yes."

"I wouldn't know. This is my first one."

"Mine too, in case you'd forgotten."

"How could I forget? You wore your mother's dress and looked like you might faint."

"You looked like you were attending an execution."

"I thought I was."

"And now?"

"Now I think I was attending a resurrection."

The words were so unexpected, so quietly profound, that Arabella felt tears prick her eyes.

"Lucien..."

"Don't cry. If you cry, I'll panic, and if I panic, the dog will probably attack me."

"He wouldn't attack you."

"He might. He's very protective of you."