Page 79 of Holiday at Pemberley

“But we cannot leave Blackbeard unguarded.” My son’s forehead crinkled.

“You may be assured he will remain on board your ship, Admiral. Now, hurry and go.” I waved my hand to rush them along, and they hied from the room. I knelt beside Graham. “Pray, allow me to untie you.”

“Your kind offer is appreciated, Elizabeth, but I must decline.”

“What do you mean? Do you not want to be freed? At least allow me to remove your blindfold.”

“No…um…in accordance with our agreed-upon rules, if I free myself unaided, I earn the privilege of picking our next game, and you may be certain my choice will lack the threat of imprisonment. At the moment, I am leaning towards jackstraws.”

“Well, if you are certain…”

“Yes, I am determined to unbind myself without any sort of aid. You cannot imagine how rewarding it has been to abandon my supernatural powers during my visits. I could use them and be free in a flash, but where would the satisfaction be in that?”

“Yes, I see what you mean.”

He grimaced. “However, I cannot understand why Darcy saw fit to teach Jane this infernal knot—it is maddeningly difficult to unravel.”

“Ah.” I sat back on my heels and tucked my chin. “I am the culprit. My uncle Gardiner taught this and several other complicated knots to my sister Jane and me when we were children.”

“Oh? Well, I wish you had devoted the time to a painting lesson instead. But fear not, I shall be a free man well before dinner time. Of course, you may be assured I shall have worked up an enormous appetite by then.”

“Very well, I am forewarned.”

He halted his movements, and his head shifted towards me. “May I tell you a secret?”

“Yes, you may.”

“To my surprise, I have never been more amused than in the hours I have spent with your children.”

What a sweet thing to say. “That is a beautiful sentiment.” A thickness in my throat hindered my response. My sight lingered on the grey hairs peeking out from his blindfold near his temple. At my suggestion, he had allowed his body to display the expected signs of aging over the years. “Shall I retrieve your captors now?”

“Yes, by all means.”

Upon declining Jane’s kind offer to remain and be her first lieutenant, I left the trio at their game and proceeded to the study. I knocked upon the door and entered, closing and locking it behind me. Fitzwilliam stood and walked around his desk to meet me. I slipped my arms around him and seized his mouth in a passionate kiss. Electricity thrummed between us, and my body moulded against his.

He broke our contact to cradle my face in his palm, panting. “To what do I owe this delightful greeting?”

“As a governess, Graham’s methods are singular, but he has our two darling imps well occupied, so I thought we ought to find our own entertainment.” My eyebrow arched.

“Well, my compliments to Graham.” He lifted me in his arms and carried me to the sofa.

And for the next blissful hour, nothing and no one existed save the two of us.