Much Ado About You. Eloisa James

we,’ Mayne broke in. ‘A drunkard, a lecher, and a merchant. The flowers of English society. At least we inherited our sins honestly … from our forefathers.’

      ‘My mother would not thank you for that reminder of my father’s birth,’ Lucius said wryly. ‘She decided long ago that my head for figures must have come from his side of the family.’

      ‘Your mother’s a fool,’ Mayne said, but without venom, turning up his glass for the last drops of brandy. ‘You’re the best of us, even if your father’s inheritance was his face and not a fortune. Ah, well, at least I’m reforming! First marriage, then children, and before you know it, I’ll take up my seat in Lords.’

      Rafe doubted that. But it was true that Tess could hardly hope for a better match in a worldly sense, which was precisely the sort of things guardians were supposed to pay attention to. ‘It can’t be a public wedding,’ he said. ‘She’s still in mourning.’

      ‘Strictly special licence,’ Mayne said. ‘My uncle’s a bishop, y’know. He can give us the licence and do the ceremony, right here. You have a chapel, don’t you?’

      ‘All right, but Tess has to agree. I’m not forcing her into a marriage that’s too hasty to feel comfortable.’

      Mayne gave him a faint smile. ‘That shouldn’t present a problem. God knows I’ve had enough experience making women love me. I’d give it two days at the most. A few compliments and some poetry should do it.’ He said it without boastfulness, simply accepting of his own place in the world and his own skills.