Page 151 of A Baby to Seal the Duke’s Fate

“No,” he said, looking back at her. “Not exactly paperwork.”

They reached the middle of the chapel, and he stopped and turned to face her fully. Honora knew immediately that something had changed between them. He was properly nervous, and it looked wrong on a man like him.

This was a man who could stare down his own imposing mother without flinching. He had reported an earl’s daughter into the magistrate for a terrible crime and had ridden across two counties after a kidnapping without once seeming unconfident in himself. But right then, he looked as unsure of himself as Cecily often did when she was wobbling as she tried to stand.

“Are you all right?” she asked, the butterflies returning rapidly.

“That depends on what happens next,” he said, suddenly completely serious.

Honora’s heart began to race. She thought about what he had said the previous night and looked around again at where they were. Was he about to do what she thought he was about to do?

He took her hand, and her fingers curled around his without any hesitation at all.

“I have been thinking about what comes next,” he said.

“You said that before,” Honora said, smiling faintly.

“I know.” He looked down at their joined hands, then back up at her. “This chapel has been part of my family for a very long time. My grandparents are buried in the churchyard behind it. So is my father.” He paused. “And as I told you, soon Cecily will belong here formally, in the register, in ink, where no one can argue with it ever again.”

“You have a habit of repeating yourself lately,” she said, though her voice was trembling and breathy.

Leopold held her gaze with the most intense look in his eyes.

“Only when it is important,” Leopold said, taking a breath before he continued. “What I am trying to say is that I want you to belong here, too. I want you to marry me.”

Her breath caught sharply in her chest. She tried desperately to speak, though nothing came out at all.

“We need you,” he went on. “We have needed you since the day you arrived, and everyone in that house knows it, including my mother, who would very much rather not admit it. The house itself needs you as well. It was a colder place before you came into it, and I did not truly notice that until you were gone from it for four days.” He paused, and she saw tears in his eyes. “And I need you.”

Her own eyes filled with tears, and the only sound she could give him was a sob. He caressed her fingers again, giving her a moment to catch her breath before he continued.

“I have needed you since the night of Cecelia’s fever,” he said, smiling faintly. “You fell asleep against the crib, and I sat on that nursery floor beside you with the child between us, and I understood exactly what I was looking at. I spent the next several weeks trying to unsee it. That did not work in the slightest.”

“And what were you looking at?” Honora asked, laughing softly through her tears.

“My family,” he said.

Her lips trembled at that answer.

“Will you marry me?” he asked again, stepping closer.

Honora opened her mouth to answer. It was something she had wanted for weeks and had begun to allow herself to look forward to when he first kissed her. The answer came easily to her mind, but it was slow to reach her lips. Once, she had believed that she would make a terrible wife for him. But right then, she knew they were perfect for each other.

“Yes,” she said.

Her voice broke halfway through the single word, splitting it into something barely audible.

Leopold’s expression softened, and she realized he had not heard her. But he waited without pressing her.

“Yes,” she said again, after taking a steadying breath.

That time, the word came out clearly.

He pulled her into his arms at once. Honora pressed her face against his coat, and he held her tightly while she sobbed and simply let herself stand there in his embrace.

The chapel stayed quiet around them. Pale colored light lay across the stone floor and reached as far as the hem of her skirt.

“I thought I would never have this,” Honora finally whispered.