Ava smiled. The satisfaction gleaned from putting Portia in her place still sparkled in her eyes. “What about your careless footwork?”
“Will you not make allowances for your husband?”
“I would do anything for you.”
The comment warmed his heart.
He drew her onto the floor, his pulse racing as he took her in his arms. As they whirled about in perpetual circles, he gazed at her intently, his whole body alive with powerful pulses of love. The depth of her emotion swam in her eyes, too.
“I cannot help but wonder how this glorious thing happened,” she said as he pulled her a little closer than deemed appropriate. “Mere weeks ago I had only heard your name, and now I love you more than I ever thought possible.”
“In that regard, I must disagree with Epictetus.”
She gasped, and her bewitching eyes widened. “You disagree with a great philosopher?”
“Did he not say that no great thing is created suddenly?”
She considered the question. “He did, but then we must assume he did not meet the love of his life on a duelling field.”
“Or wrestle with a monkey to protect her from a rogue.”
Ava chuckled. “Perhaps Epictetus never experienced a passion so consuming it forced him to behave recklessly.”
The comment brought the memory of their lovemaking in a carriage flooding back. “You seem to like it when I’m reckless,” Valentine said, moistening his lips.
“Yes,” she sighed, “though it is hard to be reckless when married.”
“On the contrary, I am about to show every gossip in this room how much I love you. I am going to kiss you, Ava.”
She blinked. “What? Here on the dance floor?”
“Yes,” he said, pulling her so close their bodies touched, “on the dance floor of all places.”
THE END