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London, 1728
Eden smiled to herself. Percy had been right. It had been a mere nine months since their scandalous “midnight marriage” and the even more outrageous duel that had followed on its heels, yet their passage through the ballroom caused hardly a stir.
The Terror of the Ton had wed The Hellion of Holker Hall, a love match that had relegated him into the ranks of the married and therefore unexciting people. The gossip mill’s current favorite grist was a young lady named Miss Elizabeth Waite, a dark-haired beauty reputed to have a proclivity for trouble.
“Look, there are Lord and Lady Montgomery,” Eden murmured. The Montgomerys and she had become great friends, such that she’d been named their son’s godmother.
“The man looks entirely too smug,” said Percy. “Five pounds says she’s expecting again.”
“Oh, stop it,” she whispered, rapping his arm with her fan.
“You know he’ll be insufferable if I’m right.”
“You’re the insufferable one.” She was unable to keep from smiling. Ever since she’d told him of her missed menses, he’d been strutting about like he was ten feet tall.
His dark eyes sparkled. “Can I help it if I’m proud of my handiwork?”
“One would think you were to carry this babe for the next eight months.”
He pulled a face. “Men are far too delicate for such a task. Everyone knows women are the stronger sex.”
Heads turned as she burst into laughter. She didn’t care. Eden gazed up at her handsome husband. He looked almost younger than when they’d first met. The cares he’d taken on had not lessened since their marriage; indeed, they’d increased. But he had someone to share his burdens with now.
“I see you’re as disgustingly in love with each other as ever,” said Lady Montgomery as they approached. Her smile belied the dry words. “I suppose I ought to tell you the news before you hear it from the rumor mill.”
Eden declined to look at Percy, who pointedly cleared his throat. “What news?” she inquired politely.
Lord Montgomery spoke before his wife could answer. “Our little family is due for another expansion sometime before Christmas.”
“What a coincidence,” said Percy with a smug grin.
“Percy!” Eden hissed, again whacking his arm with her fan.
“Oh, but how wonderful!” exclaimed Lady Montgomery, coming forward to embrace her and kiss her cheek. “We can commiserate all Season while our husbands fuss and pamper us like queens.”
“That sounds like an excellent plan,” Eden said, casting Percy a cat-that-ate-the-cream smile. It was nothing compared to the self-satisfied look he wore. “Look at the pair of them, Sabrina. What are we to do with such men?”
Bending, Percy dropped a kiss on her upturned mouth, eliciting a gasp from a nearby scandalized matron. Moving to her ear, he whispered, “Love me as only you can.”
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