Page 165 of Dukes Are Forever
"Are you ready?" Malloryn asked, finally turning to her.
No.
It had been easy to commit to this before she'd realized she had a target painted on her back. Easy to jest about the crown jewels when thousands of people weren't out there calling the queen's name. Someone had to realize she was a fraud. Someone would notice.
Or worse, they'd put a bullet in her head.
"Breathe," Malloryn warned her, cupping a gentle hand against her cheek. "The parade route is patrolled by so many Nighthawks, nobody's going to get near enough to take a shot."
"This corset is too tight."
Of course,said his eyes. "It's the steel inserts. I won't let anyone hurt you."
She didn't care who saw them then. All of the servants around them knew of the ruse, and Gemma wouldn't care. Adele grabbed a fistful of his shirt and hauled him down for a kiss.
A kiss to catch her balance.
A kiss to ground her.
One last chance to touch him before she had to perform.
Malloryn drew back, breathing hard. He rested his forehead against hers. "You're going to ruin my reputation. If anyone sees us, they'll think I'm having an affair with the queen."
"I'm fairly certain Sir Gideon Scott might have something to say about that."
He looked at her sharply. "Scott?"
"You haven't seen the way he looks at her? And she at him? They're besotted with each other, though neither dares make the first move."
It was clear he hadn't.
"Oh, Malloryn." Adele slid her hands inside his coat, resting her forehead against his chest, where she could hear his heart beating. "How can you be so all-knowing, and yet so blind to what's happening right beneath your nose?"
"The queen?"
"I thought that was why you sent her off to his estate with him." All those little plots, and he'd missed the most delicious one. "A masterful stroke, I thought."
"Suffice it to say," he grumbled, "but I don't always see what's right beneath my nose. Especially when it comes to people wearing their hearts on their sleeves. Scott and the queen? Who would have guessed?" He frowned. "I've been pushing her to consider a European prince."
"Do you think she'll accept one of their proposals?"
"Considering she practically snarled at me when I suggested it, my hopes remain low." Malloryn stepped back, a considering look on his face.
Adele recognized it. "You have your 'meddling' face on. I shouldn't have told you."
"Scott might make an ideal consort. He's the head of the Humans First party, a councilor, and decidedly conservative in his decisions."
"You mean, he listens to you?"
Malloryn flashed her a smile. "Sometimes. More importantly, he talks her around when she's being irrational. The humans of London would rejoice, though this will cause problems among the Echelon. A human queen and a human consort? Even those blue bloods who've accepted the new way of doing things will grumble about it."
Adele fixed his collar. "It's nice to see you plotting the future of the realm again. But perhaps this can wait until we kill Lord Balfour and hang his remaining Rising Sons."
"I never knew you were so bloodthirsty."
"Dead enemies don't cause future problems."
"You practically read my mind sometimes." Malloryn captured her hand and lifted it to his lips. "Do you know, if we survive this, I think we're going to make a formidable pair."
