way that counted. What did he care about being ruined in ways that didn’t matter as long as he could have Niall in his life and in his bed for the rest of their days?
“I’ve mitigated the damage as much as I can with the rest of the staff, your grace,” Mrs. Crocker reported to him half an hour later, her face stony and her back stiff. “Mr. Dobson said very little about his departure, but he did advise the rest of the staff that their morals may be in jeopardy if they stay.”
Disappointment pressed down on Blake. “And did he tell you why he left?” he asked, dreading the answer.
“Yes, your grace.” Mrs. Crocker admitted with a reluctant sigh.
“And?” Blake glanced expectantly at her.
“I’ve known you since you were in short pants, your grace,” she said. She paused, her face pinching harder, and went on as though it pained her to say what she needed to. “I’ve never seen you happier than in the last week, since Mr. Cristofori’s arrival. And I don’t mean that flippantly. He brings you joy like nothing else. And honestly, it’s a lesser sin than what your brother is guilty of.”
Blake nodded, but couldn’t think of anything more to say.
“That being said, your grace, if you will allow me,” she went on just as Blake was about to dismiss her. He nodded to her. She took a deep breath and continued. “If you intend to continue to pursue your happiness, might I advise you to take up residence in the family’s London house for a while? As I understand it, such things are overlooked in London. But not here in the country.” She paused again, more compassion coming to her expression. “No one would be the wiser, your grace. If, indeed, Lady Selby is not returning, and in light of your brother’s sins, they would find it perfectly understandable that you wouldn’t want to stay here.”
“Do you know, Mrs. Crocker,” Blake said, rising from his desk. “I completely agree.”
It was somehow cheering to know his housekeeper had come to the same conclusions about where his future lay that he had. By the time he’d dismissed Mrs. Crocker and headed back upstairs to find Niall, he’d all but made up his mind that once he had the children back, the whole lot of them would waste no time in packing everything up and moving to London, just like the dream he’d shared with Niall the night before.
“You wouldn’t mind, would you?” he asked Niall after explaining his conversation with Mrs. Crocker. “If we moved there immediately, without full planning? Just up and left? We could….” He stopped, biting his lip and glancing to Niall as though he were about to step off a ledge. “You could move into Selby House with us.”
Niall’s brow shot up so fast Blake thought he’d pull a muscle in his face. A moment later, Niall’s expression settled. “Let’s concentrate on finding the medallion first,” he said. “We need that to get the children, and we need the children before we can think about the future.”
It wasn’t the answer Blake wanted. In fact, Niall’s answer raised a storm of worry within him. Perhaps Niall didn’t think what they had was forever after all. Perhaps it was all just a bit of fun for him. Ten years had changed him, so who was to say it hadn’t changed Niall as well? Niall had mentioned he’d had other lovers since university. Perhaps he intended to—
“Blake,” Niall spoke pointedly, snapping Blake out of his thoughts. “That wasn’t a no. That was a ‘let’s deal with what’s in front of us first’.” Niall stepped forward, slipping a hand around to the back of Blake’s neck, then leaned in to kiss him fast and hard. The buss settled Blake’s nerves and brought him back into himself, particularly when Niall leaned back and grinned at him. “Stop looking as though you’ve seen a ghost and tell me where you last saw the medallion.”
Blake smiled, warmth infusing him. How had he managed to survive for ten years without Niall to guide and steady him?
“To tell you the truth, I have no idea,” he shrugged. “Everything from graduation day is a blur in my memory.”
“You were wearing the blasted thing when we parted ways,” Niall said, starting out of his bedroom, where Blake had found him, and making his way down the hall to the stairs.
“Was I?” Blake followed him.
Niall paused at the top of the stairs and turned