Sweet. She slid out of bed and went to shower, rubbing body oil into her skin. It smelt of honeysuckle and roses. She was insanely happy. How could she have lost her trust in him? And hadn’t she always known that, despite appearances to the contrary, he had huge potential, could achieve anything? How hard he must have had to work to create such wealth.
Something would have to be done about that.
Ten minutes later, both clad in towelling robes, they were sitting at a small round table eating the smoked salmon, hard boiled eggs and crusty rolls Jethro had foraged for. Between sips of champagne, Allie said, ‘You don’t need to earn any more, do you? Or are you a workaholic?’
‘Used to be.’ His eyes gleamed at her. ‘There didn’t seem to be anything else. Now there is.’ He raised his flute to her, his golden eyes glittering, the line of his mouth sensual. ‘I’ve decided to sell off the majority of my holdings, delegate more where the ones I’ll hold onto are concerned. The cottage would be the ideal place to bring up our children and I’d like to concentrate more on conservation. We’ll keep the Mayfair house on, for when we feel like being in London. It will be handy for showing the children the sights—the Tower, Hampton Court, all that stuff. Of course—’ he grinned at her ‘—selling up will make us even more disgustingly wealthy, but I guess we can handle that. What do you say?’
‘I say we can handle anything, as long as we love each other,’ she replied huskily, her eyes drenched with devotion as she watched him rise to his feet.
He took her hands and pulled her up. ‘Do you think you could live with a broad gold band and a diamond bigger and better than anything in the Crown Jewels to replace that cheap brass thing?’ he asked softly. ‘I hated having to put that on your finger when I wanted to cover you with precious gems.’
‘Being covered with jewels sounds a touch uncomfortable,’ she dimpled at him. ‘But I get your drift.’ Her fingers strayed to the narrow band of base metal. ‘Call me sentimental, but I wouldn’t exchange my wedding ring for all the gold in the Bank of England. However…’ She smiled at him, misty-eyed. ‘A diamond to go with it would be acceptable—if it makes you happy!’
Jethro swallowed the lump of sheer happiness that had lodged in his throat, and his voice was raw with passion as he told her, ‘I’ll never stop loving you. I love you more with every breath I take. And now…’ He untied the belt of her robe. ‘I believe it’s my turn to be hungry.’