Epilogue

Afew days later, Lilian couldn't help but sigh as she leaned against the wall. Even though she wasn't expected to entertain the same way she had when she was unmarried, it was still exhausting, trying to keep up with the necessary social niceties, so when the opportunity presented itself, she slipped away, tucking herself away in a small, hidden corner.

That had been well over ten minutes ago now, but she still couldn't bring herself to come out.

That's why she was still hiding there when Frederic found her.

"What are you doing, hiding by yourself?" he asked.

She let out a small yelp at the sound of his voice. "Why did you sneak up on me like that?"

He raised an eyebrow, unable to stop the giant grin that grew on his face. "I was just walking. It isn't my fault if you're so jumpy. Honestly, it's amazing you haven't hit your head, with how often you jump."

"It only happens when you sneak up on me and make me jump! Keep it up, and I'm going to get a cowbell for you."

He couldn't help but smile at the way she pouted. "I would love to see you try."

"I will! As soon as we get home, I'm going to send someone to find one. By the time you wake up in the morning, it will be too late."

"As I said, I look forward to seeing you try."

She continued to pout.

After a minute, he decided to change the subject. "Aside from me scaring you, are you having fun?"

"I was for a while," she sighed.

"Me sneaking up on you couldn't have ruined your evening that much if you were already hiding out here when I found you."

"It didn't."

"Then what's going on?"

"I don't know. I never really liked these things before we met. I'd hoped they would be easier now that I am married, and in a way, it was."

"But you'd still rather just have spent the night at home?"

"I don't know that I would go that far. On the one hand, it was nice to see my family and my brother. I have always liked dressing up, and now that I can spend my evening with you and not trying to impress anyone, I even like the dancing."

"But?"

"But it is still a lot, and while I can't say I regret coming, I must say, I am more than ready to go home and fall into bed."

"Well, that's a real shame."

"Why? Are you having the time of your life now that we're back among the ton?"

"It's nothing like that. It's just because I made plans for us when we're done here, but if you're tired, then we can go straight home. No reason to overdo it, after all."

Lilian frowned. "What do you mean other plans? What did you want to do? Where were we going to go?"

"It doesn't matter. You're tired, and you deserve some rest. I'll call the carriage."

She grabbed his arm. "Wait, I might have the energy. I just need to know where we would be going."

"What difference does it make?"

She pouted.

He leaned in close, whispering in her ear. "Then let's stay here for another hour, then I will tell you what I have planned on the drive. Do you think you can do that?"

"Do we need to stay that much longer?"

"It is far easier than trying to find a polite excuse. Besides, some of the plans I have are time-sensitive. It wouldn't do for us to arrive too early now, would it?"

"I suppose not."

"So then, let's go see what your family is up to. I'm sure your brother needs our help by now."

"He's old enough that he should be able to handle himself by now."

"Yes, but your mother is a formidable woman. I'm sure she could make someone far stronger than him crumble. If we don't go soon, it may be too late. She may have married him off to some lady or other."

"She never did all this with me," Lilian grumbled, following him back to the party.

"Yes, but that is probably because you always seemed like you wanted to get married. He claims he never will."

"He only started doing that because she started pushing him to start looking for someone to settle down with."

"Regardless of why, we should still at least try to help him out while we're here."

Sure enough, when they found Matthew, Rachel had cornered him with a young woman beside her. He seemed to want nothing more than to become one with the wall.

"Mother," Lilian called out to her, "how has your evening been?"

"Lilian, dear! It has been wonderful. It isn't often we see the two of you out. This is the first ball you've been to in the better part of a month. I must ask, where have you been?"

"You know we aren't ones to get out much," Frederic said. "But that just makes nights like tonight more special."

"I suppose, but there's no real reason you couldn't come out more. We all miss you terribly."

"We come out every few weeks, and that feels like more than enough for us at the moment."

Lilian bit back a laugh when she saw that Matthew had already slipped away during the exchange. She glanced around, but he'd long since disappeared into the crowd.

Her mother, however, didn't seem to notice, so who was she to bring it up now? She did shoot Frederic a quick glance to make sure he had noticed as well.

He shot her a look. They stayed for another hour before Frederic had the carriage brought around.

Lilian narrowly resisted the urge to tap her feet with impatience as they waited. Finally, they climbed inside and started driving down the road.

As they went, Frederic reached under his seat, pulled out a bundle and tossed it at her with a grin. "Go on, then. Get changed. You can't go into the pub dressed like that! It's way too flashy for where we're going."

She lit up. "And where are we going?"

"I think you know, by this point."

"Is it our usual place?"

"Would you be happy with anywhere else?"

"I would be happy with anywhere you wanted to go, my dear."

He leaned forward, pressing a kiss to her lips. "And I feel the same, but that doesn't mean you don't have a favorite place you'd prefer to go."

She flushed, looking away. "Perhaps, but I mean it. Any night we spend together is magical."

"I know. Now, hurry up and get changed before we get there!"

"All right, all right, I'm working on it."

The pair quickly changed into their common clothes. Lilian couldn't help but notice that he'd actually grabbed her favorite dress. It was a simple pale blue cotton piece with small pink roses along the hem of the skirt.

Just as she was finishing up, they pulled to a stop a few miles down the street from where they were planning to go.

Frederic climbed out before offering her his hand. "Shall we get going, Your Grace?"

She eagerly took his hand, stepping out onto the streets. The sun had already long since set, casting the city in a dreamy glow.

He didn't let go of her hand as they made their way down the streets. Lilian found herself relaxing and fully slipping back into her skin as they took in the tranquil night.

They made their way to their usual pub and slipped inside.

The second they were inside, it felt like a weight was lifted from Lilian's shoulders. She beamed, making her way to the counter.

"Dan, Lilly," Billy greeted. "How good to see you both again! How have you been?"

"We've been well. How are the wife and kids?"

"They're both wonderful! It's good to see you both again. What can I get for you?"

The pair ordered some beers and claimed their usual seat.

"The musician is going to be back again tonight," Frederic said.

Lilian's eyes lit up. "Really? That's great to hear! Are we going to stay long enough to see him?"

"I don't know. Do you have the energy? You said you were tired?"

"Frederic," she groaned.

He laughed. "Yes." He took her hand. "Of course, we're going to stay."

She grinned. "Good. I'm glad. We don't get out often enough anymore."

"It's been three days since the last time we went out."

"Well, it feels like it's been a lot longer."

"I assure you, it hasn't."

"But it feels like it has." Lilian smiled. "And that's what matters."

"Is that what matters? I thought reality was what mattered."

"Perhaps it does to you, but not to me."

The pair were almost three drinks in before the musician finally made it in.

"Here he is," Frederic groaned. "I can't believe he ran this behind. I sent someone ahead to confirm when he was supposed to start, so we could be here on time."

"At least we were early and not late."

"That is true. Still, it does mean we're going to be out much later than I'd originally planned."

"Is that a problem? I don't think we have any plans tomorrow. We should be able to sleep in a bit if we need the rest."

"I suppose you're right, but I do need to try and get some work done tomorrow."

"You can take one day off."

"That would be true if it were only one day, but this is the third time this month you've pushed me into taking a morning off."

"And I don't regret it. Before me, you never took a single day off. If you take a morning a week off, nothing is going to fall apart. Besides, your mother is on my side."

"Isn't she always? I must say, I never expected the two of you to team up on me so much."

"Well, we wouldn't do it if you didn't give us a reason and make it so easy."

Then the musician started playing.

"I think you look for reasons."

"If you don't ask me to dance soon, I think I'm going to find another."

He huffed out a laugh. "My charming, lovely, beautiful wife, will you do me the honor of joining me for a dance?"

Lilian hummed, pretending to think about it for a moment. "I don't know. You don't seem like you really want to dance with me. Maybe I should ask one of our other friends. They might be better company, at this point."

"If that's what you want, then you are welcome to ask one of them, but I would quite like to dance with you if you are willing to give me the honor."

She sighed. "All right, I will forgive you this once."

She took his hand, and he led her to the dance floor, where a few couples were already gathering.

As they went through the familiar steps, Frederic couldn't help but smile at the way she sang along. She wasn't loud, anyone more than a few feet away wouldn't have been able to hear, and she wasn't very good. It clearly wasn't any kind of hidden talent, but the joy in her voice filled every part of him.

He wished he could lose himself in the glee that seemed to emanate from her in waves. He was lucky enough to be close enough that they could crash against his feet.

Still, if he had his way, he would wade into her sea and build a home beneath the waves.

For now, though, he would simply have to content himself with being the one closest to her. It was hard to believe that everything, this life they built together only happened because she got lost and wandered into the wrong place at the wrong time on a night out. Now, he couldn't imagine his life any other way.

The End?