hair again.
Patience pulled away just enough that she could speak. “Don’t mess it up—I have to face my brother after this.”
He nodded and kissed her again, breathing in her scent. It was lavender and sunshine. Never in his wildest dreams had he considered that he might marry so well, and it had nothing to do with Patience’s rank. She had brought him joy and showed him he was more than enough. His eyes slid to the clock once more.
One minute. He closed his eyes and pulled her closer to him.
They were going to be late.
Chapter 24
“Should we light the fire in the music room?” Patience sat on the edge of Anthony’s desk, waiting for him to balance one last ledger. They had been married two weeks already, and he claimed he had never been so far behind on his work. But he always said it with a smile, so she didn’t worry about it much. “Mama might want to sing for Harry and Augusta when she gets here.”
Anthony nodded, but he didn’t look up from his paper. “I will tell the maid to do it once I finish this one”—he struck a line though one long number “last”—he jotted down a different one—“thing.” He slammed his pen down and stood. His hands were immediately at Patience’s waist, pulling her off the desk. He took one look at her, then buried his face in her hair.
“But I thought we could do it together.” Patience tilted her head to one side to give him better access to her neck. She bit her lip and made a soft noise in her throat. It only encouraged him.
“What about your dress?” he asked, his breath warm on her ear.
“I’ll wear an apron.”
“I don’t want your brother to think I can’t keep you respectable.” He moved to the other side of Patience’s neck.
She laughed and pulled away from him. “He wasn’t able to, so he can’t judge you for the same problem.”
“Still, your family will be here so soon . . .” he lowered his head back down to the side of her neck that had received the least amount of attention and traced kisses up her jawline.
“I like how your face looks when the flames first flare into life.”
He stopped trailing kisses, took a step back, and caught each of her shoulders in his hands. “Go get your apron.”
Patience jumped up, placed a kiss on his cheek, and then turned to fetch her apron. She didn’t even get a step away before she was pulled back by a hand about her wrist.
“Two weeks of marriage and already I am reduced to only receiving kisses on the cheek? At this rate, by next month we shall only be shaking hands.”
“You know that isn’t true,” she said.
“Prove it.”
Patience laughed and placed an even shorter kiss on his mouth, then jumped away.
“That hardly counts.”
But she was already halfway out of the room. “Come help me with the fire, and when your face is lit up and the fire is going, I will kiss you more thoroughly.”
Half an hour later, the fire heated the music room. Patience had delivered on her promise to Anthony. His usually sharp features still held the dazed glow of a man who had spent the last ten minutes being kissed by his wife. It was her favorite look on him. Her apron was gone, her face and hands cleaned from any soot. She was completely respectable and presentable. Anthony had nothing to worry about.
Then Nicholas and Mama were announced.
“What have you done to your hair?” Nicholas said as soon as Mr. Gilbert showed him into the music room.
Anthony and Patience exchanged a glance. She had been so concerned about the soot that she hadn’t thought to check the condition of her hair, and Anthony never minded a few loose curls here and there.
“Oh, Nicholas,” Mama said. “She isn’t your responsibility anymore. And if you would like to be invited to newlyweds’ homes in the future, you would do better off not to notice such things.”
The slight tinge of pink along Nicholas’s neck was almost worth his earlier reprimand.
Anthony gestured toward the four chairs set up for them. Mama moved to her seat first. “Harry and Augusta will be here shortly. They have prepared some songs for you.”
“How are their parents enjoying Kent?” Mama asked.
“They only left the children here yesterday, and we haven’t heard from them yet. But they looked very happy as they left,” Patience said, taking a seat with a smile.