Epilogue

Thistle and Crown Tavern, Gretna Green

H e was married.

Married.

Him.

Field Savage, Earl of Saville.

And he was married to the woman of the dreams he never knew he had. How does a man's luck become suddenly so supremely magnificent? The barman set four pints of ale on the bar before him, and Field nodded his thanks, pushing a few coins at the man. The deep oak-furnished tavern was lively with the hum of conversation and the clinking of tankards, the air thick with the mingling scents of freshly baked bread and hearty stews.

Normally, the latter would be enough to arouse his appetite.

But Field wasn't hungry for stew.

The only reason he hadn't dragged his wife straight to their lodgings upstairs and ravaged her was that she and Selena wished to enjoy a few pints of ale, claiming they were in need of some fun after being cooped up in a carriage for far too long. He could think of so many other things that would be more fun, but what's a man to do when his wife wants to have a beer or two in celebration? He and Warrick could do nothing but surrender to their request.

Field smiled. When last had he been this happy?

He grasped two tankards per hand and was about to return to their table when someone patted his shoulder. "Need some help, brother?"

Field glanced at Selena and arched a brow. "I believe I can manage."

Her face split into a wide grin. "You also managed to win a woman's heart with that surly temper of yours."

He scowled at her.

"See." Her grin widened another notch. "A miracle."

"Did you come here to help me or insult me?"

She chuckled. "A bit of both."

"Save it for another day, my wife is waiting for me."

A hand on his arm stopped him. "Wait, Field." Her gaze suddenly turned serious. "Thank you."

Field paused, eyeing her with suspicion. Selena thanking him meant only one thing. "What do you want? Go ask Warrick. You're his... wife now."

Her eyes narrowed. "You wanted to say problem, didn't you? I'm his problem now?"

"I would never call you a problem," Field said nonchalantly. "How can you even accuse your beloved brother of this?"

She snorted, but a small wistful smile returned to her lips, almost. "How indeed. In any case, what I want to say is that as we're both moving into the next stage of our lives, I've been thinking more than a bit about past stages. I know you shielded me from our father when we were young, and I've never properly thanked you for that."

Field stilled, his heart dropping to his boots. This was the one topic he had determined never to talk about with her, the one burden he never wanted her to share. Or at least it always had been. But he'd spoken of it with Theo, and it hadn't driven her away, hadn't made her pity him. Perhaps, it might be all right to bend that resolve. Just a little.

He set the tankards back on the bar slowly, and turned to Selena. "You know about what, exactly?"

Her eyes softened. "I don't mean to bring it up to make you uncomfortable, Field. Only I wanted to tell you that I know the man was not the best, and you had it hard as his heir. I also know you tried your best to protect both me and Mama from his temper, though it came at a cost to yourself."

He nodded, not saying anything for a while. "Mother leaving—"

She cut him off with a wave of her hand, the other reaching for one of the beers to take a sip. "Don't even mention it. I have always been at peace with the matter." She smiled at him. "Because I had you. But if you had tried to send me away at any time, I'd have clung to your neck for dear life."

"Well." Field cleared his throat, attempting to dislodge the emotion that threatened to choke him. "I would never have sent you away. No need to get all sentimental about it."

She punched his arm. "Who is getting sentimental?" She cleared her throat, too. "In any event, the past is in the past. And above all, we are all happy now. That is all that counts."

Field honestly didn't know how to respond to Selena's admissions. Over the years, there had been times that he'd lost all words in fits of utter vexation, but he had never been this speechless at anything before. He didn't rightly know what to do with this tightness in his chest. But she was right. The past was in the past. They were happy now. Truly. And they deserved to be.

He grabbed a tankard and downed the ale in one go.

"Are you all right?" Selena asked uncertainly and then narrowed her gaze once more. "I haven't broken you, have I?"

Field scoffed, wiping his mouth with the back of his sleeve. "It will take a bit more than that. In any event, you do not need to thank me. You are my most favorite sister."

"I'm your only one."

The corners of his lips inched upward. "Exactly."

"What are the two of you doing here drinking alone?" a soft, but firm voice interjected, and Field turned to find Theodosia sauntering up to them, Warrick following on her heels. "Have you forgotten about your partners?"

Field grinned at his wife.

His wife.

"I could never forget you," Field murmured, pulling her into his arms. "You are rather unforgettable."

She beamed at him.

Warrick placed an arm around Selena's shoulders, his gaze flicking between Field and Selena, but he didn't say a word. He just smiled. But that smile said more than the lengthiest of conversations.

Field suddenly chuckled, then burst into low laughter. Happiness seeped into his bones.

This was his family.

He would protect them with his life and love them every day of it.

The End