Brooks eyed him speculatively. “What are you saying, man? You think to actually sell it to me?”
“I do. I can only hope it isn’t too late and she will accept me.” Without waiting for a response, he pushed past Brooks and ran out of the club. He sprinted to the mews, didn’t bother with his carriage, and saddled a horse. A sense of urgency drove him. He had to reach her before she left the house, their home. He made it faster than he’d ever traveled the distance before and sprinted up the front steps. He opened the door only to find Grace standing in the vestibule.
“Grace. I was coming to find you.” A sense of relief swept through him that she hadn’t yet departed.
“Ian, I—”
“No, love, let me speak. Brooks told me you were leaving.” At the sight of her trunks packed and ready, his unease increased.
“I was, but—”
“I’ve been a selfish fool, and you were right to be angry with me. I deceived you into marrying me, and I lied to you about selling the Raven Club. I beg your forgiveness.” She opened her mouth to speak, but he stepped close and pressed a finger to her lips. “I’m selling the Raven Club to Brooks. I don’t need the place. I need you. I love you. Please don’t leave.”
She looked stunned, then the corners of her sweet lips turned up in an enchanting smile. “Don’t you dare sell your share to Brooks.”
“I thought that’s what you wanted.”
“I was wrong. I see that now. Brooks told me everything.”
“Are you upset to learn the truth?” For the first time, he realized she may not be happy about his parental roots.
“It doesn’t matter to me if the earl wasn’t your father, and it shouldn’t to you. But that has nothing to do with the Raven Club. You will not sell it. We will run it together and continue to use the profits for good and to employ those who need it most.”
“Are you certain?” he asked.
She eyed him. “I am.”
“Then I have only one condition,” he said. “I want to turn away those who are like your father—gamblers who are drawn to their drink and their tables and have no regard for their recklessness.”
Her lips parted. “Oh, Ian. Thank you.”
“We don’t need their money, and I’ve no desire to contribute to their dissolution. I love you. I need you more than I’ve ever needed any club. Please tell me I’m not too late and you will not leave me.”
“I do love you, Ian.”
He pulled her into his arms. “Truly?”
“Oh, yes.”
“How long?”
She melted against him. “Since our first lessons.” She kissed the corners of his lips.
Ian gazed at her in wonder, and he gloried in the shared moment. “I feared you would never come to love a casino owner.”
She smoothed the crease between his brows. “I came to know the man.”
“You are my life, not the Raven.” His voice was hoarse with emotion.
“What of your family? Your sisters?” she asked.
“For the first time, I have hope. With you by my side, we can be a true family. All of us. Brooks. My mother. Adam. I swear to do my best to help your father. And my sisters already love you.”
“I love them, too. But beware. Your sister Ellie wants to visit the Raven.”
“God help me.” He lifted her off her feet and kissed her fully until she was breathless.
“Oh, yes.” Joy bubbled in her laugh and shone in her eyes. “A true family.”
Epilogue
Six months later
“The Raven Club was busy last night.”
Ian smiled as he glanced at his wife across the drawing room. She sat in a chair with a ledger in her lap.
“What charities will you use the profits for, my love?” Ian asked.
He marveled at how much his life had changed over the past months. After he’d taken Grace on a honeymoon to his estate in Kent, they’d moved his sisters into his London home. Ellie and Oliva had been thrilled to have a new sister, and the three had become fast friends. Once his mother, the dowager duchess, had seen her children settled, she’d happily left London to live with her sister in Bath.
As for the Raven Club, even though they’d turned away reckless gamblers, business was thriving. The baron struggled to stay away from drink and the tables, but he was making an effort. Ian had been helping him.
Ian’s gaze returned to his beautiful wife as she approached carrying a glass of wine. Grace looked lovely in a blue silk gown that heightened her dark curls and blue eyes.
“I’ve decided what to do with our latest profits,” she said.
He tore his gaze away from the swell of her breasts above the tight bodice to look in her eyes. “Oh?”
“Ellie will soon make her debut. She needs gowns and jewels.”
He grinned. He knew her better, but he decided to play along. Her smooth skin glistened beneath the candlelight of the chandeliers. He longed to touch her, to kiss the satiny curve of her neck.
“Jewels and gowns. I shall stop by Rundell and Bridge to pick up a few baubles, and you shall visit the new French dressmaker on Bond Street,” he said.
Her blue eyes lit with fire. “Devil! You know me better than that. The orphanage requires attention. The children need new dresses and shoes.”
He pulled her to him and kissed her. “It’s not just the orphans that needs attention. My wife has many demands.”
She met his kiss and her fingers rose to grasp his shoulders. Her urgent response fueled his desire, and he moaned in encouragement.
Footsteps sounded on the wood floor. “Ian!”
Ian groaned as he pulled away a second before Ellie and Oliva appeared in the drawing room doorway.
“Grace said you’d take us on a tour of the Raven Club,” Ellie said.
Ian stiffened.
Grace touched his arm. “They have a right and have been patient for weeks. Until you satisfy their curiosity, they will not cease.”
Ian rubbed his chin. “Fine. You may both see the casino floor through my office window.”
Both of his sisters squealed in delight and came forward to hug him. Ellie whispered something in Grace’s ear, but Ian couldn’t make it out.
But he did recognize the mischievous gleam in his sisters’ eyes before they departed. “What did Ellie say?”
“She has a fondness for watching pugilists. You should let her see a boxing match,” Grace said.
Ian ran a hand through his hair. “I cannot stop it, can I?”
“I’m afraid Ellie’s curiosity must be satisfied. Your sister is quite adventurous. Unless you keep her under lock and key, which I know you would never do, then it’s best if we allow her to attend.”
“What am I to do?”
“We. We will help her, of course.”
“Yes, we.” It was a novelty. A first in his life and one that he now cherished. With Grace by his side, he would survive his sister’s curiosity.
She came close to stroke his cheek, then brushed her lips against his. Ian pulled her into arms. “Your dress is driving me to distraction. I can’t wait until tonight to remove it.”
She pulled back to give him a saucy look and slid a slender hand down his chest. “Why wait?”
The invitation was irresistible. His heart thudded in his chest as his mouth swooped down to capture hers. She melted against him and they kissed hungrily, giving and taking in return. He couldn’t imagine his life without her. He’d foolishly believed the Raven Club had filled a void in his soul. He didn’t regret the past. Without it, he never would have met Grace and learned the value of true love.
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Acknowledgments
There are so many people I’d like to thank!
I’m eternally grateful to my family, John, Laura, and Gabrielle for their support and encouragement.
My in-laws, Jeannie and Fran, for watching the kids so I can travel to writing conferences.
Thank you to my longtime friend and grammar queen, MaryLiz Clark.
I’m especially grateful to all my friends from NJ Romance Writers. You know who you all are.
Thank you to my wonderful agent, Stephany Evans. Her work and advice are invaluable to me.
Thank you also to my great editor, Alycia Tornetta, for helping to polish the book and make it shine, and for everyone at Entangled Publishing for their hard work. I’m grateful!
Last, thank you to my readers. Without you, there would be no books!
About the Author
Best-selling author Tina Gabrielle is an attorney and former mechanical engineer whose love of reading for pleasure helped her get through years of academia. She often picked up a romance and let her fantasies of knights in shining armor and lords and ladies carry her away. She is the author of adventurous Regency historical romances for Entangled Publishing and Kensington Books.
Publisher’s Weekly calls her Regency Barrister’s series, “Well-matched lovers…witty comradely repartee.” Tina’s books have been Barnes & Noble top picks, and her first book, Lady of Scandal, was nominated as best first historical by Romantic Times Book Reviews. Tina lives in New Jersey and is married to her own hero and is blessed with two daughters. She loves to hear from readers. Visit her website to learn about upcoming releases, join her newsletter, and enter free monthly contests at www.tinagabrielle.com.
You can also find Tina at:
Twitter: @TinaGabrielle
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Also by Tina Gabrielle…
A Spy Unmasked
At the Spy’s Pleasure
An Artful Seduction
Real Earls Break the Rules
The Duke Meets His Match
Lady of Scandal
A Perfect Scandal
In the Barrister’s Chambers
In the Barrister’s Bed
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