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Leopold froze

"I shall walk her at two o’clock in theAll the way out to the little suardens…and back"

"Ah," he said, and for just one ainst his body Then he backed up and bowed When her ers

"Why, Duke," the duchess called gaily "May I see your betrothal gift? I confess I a"

"Certainly, Duchess," he said, bowing to her as well "Here it is"

Truly, his ht happily--until she turned her eyes in the direction of the duke’s pointing finger

At the little dog, squatting on the Aubusson rug

It was fortunate for the duchess’s heart that she didn’t happen to glance out of her bedchaht If she had added to the horror of seeing her beloved rug serving, once again, as an ihter dash stark naked out of the summerhouse, chased by her oh-so-proper fiancé (in a siht have been too much for her

But as it was, the household slumbered peacefully, while the two happiest people in it danced in the rain until Leo h to kiss her…and kiss her…and kiss her again

Epilogue

Seven years later

It was the Duchess of Villiers’s birthday

When Eleanor was growing up, her mother had, by all indications, no birthday When one e, birthdays are a necessary sacrifice When Leopold was growing up, for all he knew his , but she had certainly never invited her children to participate

Eleanor’s thirtieth birthday was of a different sort The South Parlor of the Duke of Villiers’s country house in Essex--as opposed to his houses in Norfolk, Wiltshire, and Devon, not to ant heap--was exploding with excite last ame of charades, an annual tradition since 1785

A knot of dogs was frolicking in another corner A naughty puppy na watched over by his ed on the curtains "Yap, Yap!" Muffin shook his head back and forth, pretending he couldn’t hear her "Woof," his father added, waking up, and Muffin let go of the curtain altogether His father went back to sleep while his h-pitched diatribe that covered everything fro Not that Muffin paid much attention

In a third corner, the duchess was sitting on a snug sofa, nursing a baby In her delightfully full, chaotic, and joyful seven years of e, no babies had joined the household until Theodore ca

Which explained why Phoebe (who used to be called Phyllinda) and Lucinda (who liked her na closely on either side of their enerally been far froe twelve, they could sense the slight chill wind that signaled the end of childhood This last month in particular they had hardly stirred frouht, found the their brother

"May I hold Theodore now?" Lucinda asked "Please? It looks like he’s finally done eating I never thought anyone could drink ! I don’t even like milk"

"It’s different for babies," Eleanor said, lifting roly-poly Theo over her shoulder He let out a satisfied burp