Epilogue

"I would like to propose a toast to Eleanor, Duchess of Smythington in celebration of her first concert at London Hall." Flynn stood at the front of the dining room, a glass in his hand.

I was in heaven after giving the concert and hearing the admiration of my fellow students. It was one of my greatest accomplishments, my family being the first. The one person noticeably absent from the gathering was Olivia. As she had predicted, she met and married an Australian man and did the unthinkable by moving to his cattle station, where she learned how to wrangle a cow. I enjoyed every letter I got from her and missed her greatly.

Rex lifted his own glass. "Here. Here."

Nigel and Anne followed suit, the couple exuberantly happy in the year since their wedding. Anne rested her hand on her rounded belly. My grandchild would be on the way in six months. I was ecstatic. Harry was doing well, and Atticus had been courting a young lady I wasn't sure about, but not because of her, but because of myself. I was still the doting mother who wanted to ensure my children were well cared for.

Flynn's daughters had joined the festivities for the small family gathering. They were looking rather sleepy due to the late hour.

I was still on a cloud and couldn't wait to celebrate with my two special men. In the year since our arrangement began, we had managed to make it work. It became a little bit tricky with Nigel and Anne back. They had moved into Larsson House but because of their newlywed status, chose to keep to themselves. Flynn, Rex, and I had developed a routine. Fortunately, our homes were close together, and our arrangement was flexible. The Stratham was still our favorite place to rendezvous.

Balancing the family was important, but my own needs were equally as vital. I had learned a hard lesson when my marriage to Rex began to fade into mere friendship. I never wanted to go back there again. With dedication and commitment, we managed to carve out time from our busy days to be together. Even now, my body hummed with need.

I stood and scanned my family, my heart full of love for them. "Thank you all for coming and supporting me. I can't explain the feelings that went through me. I can tell you it was very joyous."

Atticus stood and reached for my hand, his handsome face so reminiscent of his father's when I first met him that it made me smile. "I'm glad to see you happy, Mother."

"Thank you." I looked over and saw the girls yawning again. Karen's enthusiasm had faded after the lateness of the evening. While she was still young, she was on the cusp of womanhood. Harry was unsurprisingly engaged with Beatrix, and the two of them had their heads together for most of the evening. She was a dear girl who understood Harry and didn't judge him harshly. I was forever grateful she was friends with him, and I hoped that friendship would continue throughout their lives.

I looked back at Flynn, glad he had approached me about a ménage, and we had come to an agreement. The two men standing so close together, friends, lovers, husbands, and fathers, they were forever bonded in this lifetime by the invisible strings of love. I was a fortunate woman to be part of their lives.

"The hour is late, so I propose the children find their bed," Rex said.

He motioned to the servants, and they opened the door to the hallway from the dining room. Everybody got up and shuffled out. Rex held up a staying hand to me. Flynn also stood quietly by, a familiar quirk to his lips that promised me great delights. The room was completely clear, and the door closed before Rex turned to me.

"I thought we could have our own celebration," Rex said. He held out his hand, and I took it. Flynn brought up the rear. We exited through the servants' entrance, crossed the hallway, and entered the music room. I would never look at the piano the same as the night when he had placed me on it and made love to me.

"I thought we could come to your favorite room and perhaps repeat some things that happened here before," Rex said with a mischievous grin.

Flynn nodded, beginning to remove his coat. "Indeed, after Rex told me what happened, I am most anxious to see if we can replicate your throaty moans."

My husband cupped my jaw and began to kiss me with slow, lingering kisses that incited my passion. Flynn unfastened my dress. Anticipation held me enthralled. The material loosened, and I stepped from the hampering fabric. My heart and my soul were filled with happiness. I was no longer the woman who allowed everything else to come before me. I tried to find a balance between my family and my own needs, and my husband helped me along with that. As far as what Rex had sacrificed, he cut back on his time at Parliament and made sure to be home every night so that we could spend a few hours together, reconnecting with our days, and reconnecting with ourselves.

As Flynn kissed the back of my neck, I could not help but thank him for what he had done for our family. Through him, Rex and I lost the restrictions we had put on ourselves and allowed ourselves to be what we were: a man and a woman in love with each other. Family was important and my children would always come first. That didn't mean I had to sacrifice myself in the process.

Through my music, I wove the story of my life, a tune of ups and downs, of highs and lows. When I played, I played with my heart, my soul, my mind. Music and my family were everything to me. Life for me would forever be a symphony.

Thank you for reading Loved by a Duke! Please check out my other books in the series.