Page 78 of The Debutante's Brooding Protector

Estella's hand found his. "That's good."

"Philippa is cautiously optimistic," he said.

"And Lydia?"

He kissed the top of her head. "She's asked if Charlotte might visit again. Apparently young Andrew is quite taken with her."

Estella laughed. "And Charlotte is quite taken with him. She told me last week that she's going to teach him to read. I didn't have the heart to tell her that most children aren't reading at three."

Sebastian’s laugh was low and warm. "If anyone can do it, it’s Charlotte."

Estella placed her hand over Sebastian's on her belly.

"Do you think Andrew would have liked this?" she asked quietly.

Sebastian was quiet for a moment. His chin rested on the top of her head, and his arms were warm around her, and when he spoke, his voice was rough but steady. "I think he would have been insufferable about it. He'd have told me he'd known all along. He'd have called me an idiot for taking so long."

Estella laughed. "Probably."

Charlotte’s voice was high and happy behind them, and the sun gave the scene a warm glow. It was, Estella thought, exactly the sort of thing Andrew would have wanted for them. For all of them.

A new start. Built on the ashes and bright with all the love they shared.

She turned in Sebastian's arms and looked up at him. The scar. The dark eyes. The severe expression that softened whenever he looked at her.

"I love you, you know," she said.

He kissed her forehead. Then her nose. Then her mouth, softly, with a tenderness that still undid her after a year of marriage and would, she suspected, undo her for the next fifty.

"Every minute," he said. "Every day."