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“Sera,” he repeated, failing to take the hint and leave her to her work.

“Two minutes.”

She could finish her current sentence and jot down enough to remind her what she’d been thinking within that timeframe. Her hand kept going, her mind sifting through the equipment she’d need and any potential pitfalls. Once she was certain she’d written enough down to be able to return to it later, she set her quill in its holder and turned to her husband.

Trevor hovered beside her, one side of his face gilded by the late afternoon sun streaming through the library window. His curious gaze flicked to her papers, but he clearly had a purpose in being here because he didn’t ask what she was doing.

“It’s finished,” he said simply.

“What’s finished?” Suddenly, it occurred to her what he meant, and she shoved her chair back and leapt to her feet. “Wait, really?”

“Two days ahead of schedule. They knew how excited you were.”

She threw herself into his arms and peppered his smiling face with kisses. “I want to see it!”

For the past weeks, her new laboratory had been under construction in an old stillroom that had been unused for years. Months ago, Lord Wembley had mentioned that it might be suitable for repurposing, and she’d been thrilled when he’d agreed readily to the alterations and allowed Trevor to make the arrangements.

Laughing, Trevor kissed her back and then gently let her go. He offered her his hand, and she took it gleefully, swinging their joined hands between them. She loved that she never had to pretend with him. There was no reason to feign disinterest or frivolity. She could be herself, and he never seemed to think she was anything other than perfect.

He was deluded, of course, but it was sweet.

Hand in hand, they strolled along the corridor and down the stairs to the ground floor. Unlike on previous days, there was no clatter of tools or hum of voices as they approached the old stillroom.

The door was closed, and Trevor reached for the handle, but he paused before opening it. “If there’s anything you don’t like or that doesn’t suit, we can make changes.”

“I know.”

If anything, he’d proven too willing to indulge her whims. She had to make sure to do the same for him because she’d hate to take him for granted. She’d started ordering unique plants that she thought he might find interesting and surprising him with them when they arrived. The way his eyes lit up and a brilliant smile split his face warmed her heart every time.

With a deep breath, he pulled the door open. “I asked them to make sure everything was fit for purpose.”

An excited flutter beneath her rib cage, she stepped inside. Immediately, she clapped her hand to her mouth to stifle a gasp. The backs of her eyes burned, and she blinked rapidly.

She’d expected the room to be renovated but bare. Instead, there were dozens of jars and vials on shelves that lined two walls and a cabinet stocked with every piece of glassware she could dream of having.

An elegant system to capture and condense evaporated liquid had been set up on top of the old fireplace, and an L-shaped desk lined one window and jutted into the room. Positioned on the desk was yet more equipment. Funnels, a spirit lamp, and in a vase in the corner, a beautiful arrangement of flowers that she somehow knew Trevor had put together himself.

Through the window, the trees in the distance were burnt orange—a splash of the color she’d come to adore at Nunhaven. Every season brought new beauty. Spring was a riot of pinks and yellows. Summer was all greens and reds, and winter—well, she’d find that out soon enough.

“It’s perfect.” Her voice cracked on the second word. Dragging Trevor behind her, she crossed the room to sniff the flowers, then turned to him. “Better than I imagined.”

“I asked an acquaintance at Oxford for recommendations about what to stock. Hopefully there’s nothing important missing, but if there is, you can either put in the order yourself or let me know, and I’ll do it.”

She pressed her lips together so she wouldn’t cry. No one had ever done anything like this for her. The most she’d ever hoped for was tolerance, but Trevor went so far beyond mere tolerance that some days she couldn’t believe her own luck. Now, as much as she wanted to explore, she also wanted to show the incredible man who’d made this possible just how much she appreciated him.

She lowered herself to her knees, glad for the padding of her skirt between them and the hard floor.

Trevor’s throat bobbled. “Sera? What are you doing?”

“Experimenting.”

She’d been studying more of those illuminating erotic books, and now she had a lot of other methods of bringing her husband pleasure that she was eager to test. She reached for the waistband of his trousers.

“You don’t have to….”

She paused, her fingers resting on his belt. “But you don’t mind if I do, do you?”

Eyes wide, he shook his head. “N-no. Go ahead.”