Epilogue

EPILOGUE

Eleven months later…

“Happy birthday, Nathaniel,” said Calliope, looking at him with so much love.

They stood in front of Roxburgh Place. It was his thirtieth birthday, and his heart was squeezing with joy and love—and not because he’d finally received his rightful inheritance and his sisters their proper dowries. Nor because he was now the richest man in the whole of England.

But because the two people who constituted the greatest happiness of his entire life stood by his side: his gorgeous, brilliant wife holding their two-month-old son, Ethan. The little bundle, its sweet face peeking out from folds of white lace swaddle, gurgled with tiny, cute sounds. Those big blue eyes looked at Nathaniel, making his heart lurch and sending currents of joy through him.

“Thank you,” he replied, watching how the slight breeze played with Calliope’s auburn hair. “What a difference this year has made. Not because of my inheritance. But because you’re my wife. And because you gave me Ethan.”

Calliope beamed at him. “This day one year ago you caught me at your office.”

“And that was just the beginning,” he murmured.

“Please, give me my nephew,” said Hazel, who reached out to Ethan, her appearance almost regal and absolutely stunning with her gown of the latest fashion and her hair done in a perfect chignon by her personal maid. “Or you’ll suffocate him in your embrace. I know you two.”

Calliope chuckled and gave Hazel the little bundle, Hazel’s eyes warming up and melting as she cooed over the tiny face.

“I’m next!” said Violet, who held Miss Furrington on a red velvet pillow in her arms. “As soon as I deposit Miss Furrington on her favorite chair.”

“It’s been moved to Roxburgh, right?” asked Poppy, who could barely keep hold of the leashes of three very agitated dogs. “Miss Furrington got used to it during the last ten months in Grandhampton Court.”

“It’s moved, darling,” said Calliope. “Everyone’s baggage has arrived. We can finally see our home in all its glory!”

After Nathaniel and Calliope had made up last August, he’d stopped caring so much about whose money they were spending, his or hers. He just wanted to give the best home possible to Calliope and his sisters, and so he’d agreed to do a proper floor-to-ceiling renovation of Roxburgh, which had taken almost a year. Calliope, the girls, and he had moved to Grandhampton Court during the process, to give Calliope plenty of fresh air and quiet to cope with her pregnancy, and for Violet to recover in peace. Grandmama had moved in with them to help Calliope and to continue guiding them in the art of manners and navigating the social life of the ton. The girls adored Grandmama.

“Right,” said Nathaniel, “let us go, then.”

They passed through the grand wrought iron gate, which opened onto a carriage driveway that, with its sweeping grandeur, could easily accommodate multiple carriages in a manner befitting royalty. The tall brick walls enveloping the estate were freshly plastered and washed, standing as steadfast guardians of the property.

Fresh gravel crunched pleasantly under his feet as he walked, having been raked to perfection. No weed dared to mar its surface. Surrounding the estate, what had once been an overgrown forest had been transformed into a manicured garden. The house itself, previously an eyesore, was now the pride of the street. The stonework of its classic architecture was now meticulously restored, each stone seemingly imbued with the dignity and grace befitting a home of its stature.

Freshly painted in an elegant shade of white, the window frames seemed to glow in the daylight. Every glass pane was flawlessly transparent and intact. The roof over the three-story building had been immaculately repaired.

The twin stone lions that flanked the grand staircase leading to the double doors had been carefully restored—one brandishing a newly carved tooth, the other sporting a skillfully reconstructed ear. Both the double doors and their regal knocker had received layers of fresh paint. The knocker itself was securely affixed, ready to announce the arrival of esteemed guests. And above the door, the restored Kelford coat of arms served as an enduring symbol of the family’s legacy.

They climbed the stairs towards the double doors. Mrs. Nicholson and female servants stood along the right side of the hallway. The male servants lined up on the left, a row of ten footmen with Joshua as the underbutler. At the head of the line of footmen stood Foster, the butler whom Nathaniel had known his whole life and who had served in Kelford Manor all these years. The old man’s face lit up with pride and a hint of joy under the obligatory mask of a loyal servant.

“My lord,” he said. “My lady. You are very welcome.”

He gave a bow and opened the grand double doors before them.

Nathaniel’s heart drummed hard in his chest as he and Calliope stepped into the entrance hall.

The once barren navy blue walls now showcased Penelope’s paintings, handpicked by Calliope, alongside sweeping landscapes brought over from Kelford Manor. Nathaniel stood in front of one of them. “Papa bought this one in Delft,” he told Calliope and the girls, feeling tears prickling his eyes. “He took me with him. I was eight, and it was my first sea voyage. I fell in love with the sea then, and it was one of the reasons I enlisted with the navy when I had to find an occupation.”

“I love hearing that about Papa,” whispered Hazel, and she gently rocked the baby while looking at the painting with soft eyes.

Calliope nodded. “They’re beautiful.”

Violet leaned forward and read the name. “Evening in the Meadows by Aelbert Cuyp. I read about him. He’s well known for his river scenes in the golden hour.”

“I can’t wait to have the whole family here!” exclaimed Poppy, running through the hallway with her arms outstretched. “Penelope would go mad from delight seeing all this art.”

At this loud outcry, the dogs ran after her, the cat jumped off the pillow and ran after them, and Violet followed the crowd.

Nathaniel chuckled. They may be sixteen, but they were still his little sisters.

“Girls!” hissed Hazel as Ethan started to stir. “Shh, darling,” she shooshed and walked with him, rocking him, to the sitting room.

Nathaniel and Calliope smiled at each other. He looked at the painting from Delft again, taking her hand. “Papa negotiated so well then,” he said. “That trip was perhaps the single time when I didn’t feel like he was constantly disappointed in me. Like he taught me things.”

He felt Calliope’s warm eyes on him. “Do you still resent him?”

He chuckled and smiled at her. “Strangely, no. None of the events in our past have changed, and yet, a year ago, I despised him, resented him for torturing me and my sisters. Today…I have forgiven him. Perhaps the requirements in the will were a gift that he gave me, even though it was hard to see. Because it led me to you. And gave us our little man.” He gently cupped her cheek. “And I became a better man for that. So, no, Papa, wherever you are, I hold no more resentment. Just forgiveness. And love.”

Calliope grinned at him. “I’m proud of you.”

Nathaniel grinned back and thought of little Ethan playing in this house now that it was so beautifully restored. And maybe he would even have brothers and sisters to play with. He remembered running through this space as a six-year-old, his mama chasing after him as he slid across the marble floor with his shoes, carried by the force of his run.

The floor was, once again, resplendent, the once-faint pattern now vivid and freshly polished. The intricate designs seemed to come alive as they caught the light from above.

The sweeping staircase had been fully restored, every balustrade fitted perfectly in place, the wood gleaming with fresh polish. And flanking the staircase, the ornately carved niches were no longer empty. Some of the statues and vases had also been sent from Kelford. One or two were Papa’s particular pride as he had gone to Greece himself hearing there had been an excavation and wanting to make sure he got them. Perhaps, Nathaniel thought, it was not Papa’s pride as much as his care to leave such treasure to his son and for generations to come after him.

Others were picked by Calliope, vases showing flowers, and the Greek statues of beautiful and soft-formed women with full lips and curls around their heads and fabrics flowing in the wind around their curves. They were sensual and feminine and yet strong and so like her.

Hanging from the middle of the ceiling in the hall, a chandelier of crystal and gold was Calliope’s particular pride. It dazzled, casting radiant prisms of light across the room. Wall sconces, fitted with new glass covers, brightened the hallway with a warm, inviting glow.

They continued their tour. The sitting room, the drawing room, the dining room, the ballroom, the library, every room grand and beautiful, ornate with gilt, bustling with artwork, intricately carved furniture, and soft carpets. Everything was in perfect order and waiting for the family to arrive and fill it with lively chaos. Calliope’s touch was in every room, with her whimsical and yet harmonious choices, but so was his touch and reminders of his ancestors as she had asked him and the girls what they would like to have in every room. It was fresh and yet timeless, modern and yet rooted in their common history.

When they climbed the stairs and proceeded to the room that would be theirs, Calliope gasped in awe. Sunlight bathed the room, filtered through vast windows, painting everything in a soft, radiant light. Long yellow curtains framed the windows, pooling at the bottom in a display of quiet elegance. Paneling stretched high up the walls, carved in gorgeous designs and painted turquoise.

The fireplace featured a new marble mantel intricately carved with patterns of flowers. Atop the mantel sat a vase filled with yellow irises, alongside porcelain figurines.

Against one wall stood Nathaniel’s heirloom bed, the old wood newly varnished and polished, swathed in opulent linens of yellow satin. A yellow draping hung over the bed. The inviting bed was big enough to get lost in, and Nathaniel couldn’t wait to christen it with his wife.

Opposite the bed, a wooden cot stood, its craftsmanship equally exquisite. Calliope had ordered it from an old London master months before the baby was due.

Everywhere he turned, he saw home. Calliope had transformed the broken house into a beautiful oasis. She had transformed his unruly sisters into young ladies.

She had transformed his mere existence into a life worth living.

“Nathaniel,” she exclaimed as she walked in. “This is everything I wished it to be!”

“You have done splendidly, love.” He grinned. “I couldn’t have imagined a better home for us. I have a surprise for you.”

On the little round table by the fireplace, and flanked by two beautifully carved chairs, lay a square box, wrapped in yellow silk with a white ribbon tied around it. Good. Mrs. Nicholson had made sure his present for Calliope was here, as instructed.

He picked it up and went to her.

“This is for you,” he said.

She raised a brow, taking it. “A gift?”

He nodded, unable to wipe the grin off his face. She weighed it in her hands and shook it slightly. “I’m quite sure it’s a book,” she said, and he watched with his breath held as she untied the ribbon and unwrapped the silk around it.

“You’ll have to see.”

She opened the wooden box and gasped. Cushioned on the blue silk was a golden name plate.

“Calliope Fitzgerald. Private Inquiries.”

He hadn’t included her title because he suspected announcing that it was a duchess doing private inquiries may not be beneficial for business.

Her eyes sparkled as she looked at it. Then she met his gaze, and his heart completely melted at her teary but happy expression.

“Thank you, Nathaniel,” she whispered, smiling broadly but wiping away a tear.

Then he kissed her, slowly and deeply, his hunger for his wife seething through his blood like fire. He pulled her to him, forgetting everything… She had been allowed to lie with him two weeks prior, when Ethan was six weeks old, and Nathaniel had been careful with her, even though she had assured him she was fine and there was no need to treat her like a fragile flower. Still.

He was always going to put her first.

“Calliope! Nathaniel!” came Violet’s voice from behind the door, and he leaned back with a groan. “Come see the library!”

Nathaniel sighed deeply and shook his head with a chuckle.

“We’re coming!” called Calliope, her face lifting in the most beautiful smile.

“I look forward to this chapter of our lives,” he said to Calliope. “Living in this beautiful home with you, my son, and my sisters. Taking care of my estates. The tenants. Doing some good with the fortune that I received.”

“Me, too,” she said and laid her head against his shoulder. He kissed her head, inhaling her dear scent.

“Are you absolutely certain you wish to wait with your agency?” he asked. “You can start it anytime you want.”

“I know,” she said and grinned. “And it brings me so much joy that you support me like that. I think it’s knowing I have the freedom and the choice—the option to be a mother and a wife and then start working on my dream—that makes me so confident I want to spend this time with you and Ethan.”

The sense of peace he felt now was trust, he knew. The trust that came with knowing the woman he loved was an extraordinary woman who was born to do extraordinary things. Trust in her. Trust in life. Trust in his little family.

“You came into my life,” he said, “and turned everything upside down. Then you put everything in order again. A new order. You made me and everything around me better.”

He was a new person thanks to her. He would never have believed he’d have the courage and the strength to become a loving husband or a father.

“And so did you,” she said. “Thank God.”

He chuckled. “You know, love,” he said. “For the first time in my life, I know I’m right where I’m supposed to be. With the exact person I’m supposed to be with.” He gave her a deep, sweet kiss that made him ache to test out their new mattress right now. “And, thanks to you, I’m exactly who I was always meant to be.”

* * *

Thank you for reading PROJECT DUKE. If you enjoyed Nathaniel and Calliope’s story, make sure to get your exclusive bonus epilogue here:

https://mariahstone.com/project-bonus/

Find out what happens with Spencer in book 4 of the DUKES AND SECRETS series, BETTING AGAINST THE SCOUNDREL.

Read BETTING AGAINST THE SCOUNDREL now >