Turning towards the butler, he asked, “Is my brother home?”
“Yes, milord,” Pratt replied. “He is in his study with Lord Evan.”
“Excellent.”
Oliver headed towards the study, knowing this was going to be a most difficult conversation. But he was ready. He finally knew what he wanted.
He stepped into the study and saw Baldwin and Corbyn sitting on opposite settees, conversing politely.
“I thought you had an agency to run?” Oliver joked as he closed the door.
Corbyn chuckled. “I do, but it would appear one of my top agents went on a holiday.”
“Welcome home, Brother,” Baldwin said, raising his glass. “We have missed you.”
“You have?”
Baldwin smirked. “I had to convince Jane, on multiple occasions, not to go retrieve Emmeline from Lockhart Manor.”
“Why was that?”
“She was adamant that Emmeline would never return to Hawthorne House because you botched it.”
Oliver walked over to the drink cart and picked up the decanter. “I see that our dear sister has great faith in me.”
“Did your wife return with you?” Corbyn asked.
“She did,” he confirmed as he poured himself a drink.
“That is wonderful news,” Corbyn praised.
Oliver put the decanter down and picked up his glass. “We had quite the adventure while we were at Lockhart Manor.”
“You did?” Baldwin asked.
“It turns out that Lord Taylor was involved with a band of smugglers, and he was using the beach near Lockhart Manor to receive the goods,” Oliver revealed.
Corbyn leaned forward in his seat. “How did you discover that fact?”
“Initially, we saw the smugglers come ashore, but it was confirmed when Lord Taylor confessed it to us.”
“He just confessed it to you?” Baldwin asked in disbelief.
“He thought he had the upper hand because he was pointing a pistol at us, but I had the situation under control,” Oliver said nonchalantly before taking a sip from his glass.
Baldwin chuckled. “I’m sure you did.”
“The vicar was in on it, as well,” Oliver shared. “Although, he posed little threat to us since he couldn’t even hold his pistol steady.”
Corbyn lifted his brow. “The vicar?”
Oliver nodded. “He confessed to the constable that he was tired of living on a paltry salary, and Lord Taylor offered him a great sum of money for his assistance.”
Leaning forward, Baldwin placed his empty glass on the table in front of him. “Is that what took you so long to return to Town?”
“Not exactly,” Oliver replied. “Emmeline and I decided to change the terms of our agreement, and we are going to have a true marriage.”
Baldwin smiled. “That is no surprise, Brother.”
“It isn’t?”
With a shake of his head, Baldwin said, “It was evident that you were enamored with your wife from the very beginning. It was only a matter of time until you came to the same conclusion.”
“It took me nearly losing Emmeline before I came to my senses,” Oliver admitted.
Corbyn interjected, “Does this mean you are passing on the assignment to the peninsula?”
Oliver pressed his lips together, delaying his response. Finally, he spoke. “It does,” he replied. “I don’t think I could leave Emmeline for an extended period of time.”
“I assumed as much.”
“But I would still like to continue working as an agent,” Oliver said.
Corbyn rose and tugged down on his ivory waistcoat. “I am pleased to hear that. There is an abundance of civil unrest right now amongst the people.”
“You should know that I told Emmeline the truth about who I am,” Oliver revealed.
“Do you think that was wise?”
Oliver nodded. “I do,” he replied. “I knew I couldn’t have a true marriage without revealing my whole self to her.”
“Then I shall respect your decision,” Corbyn said.
“Thank you.”
Corbyn started walking over to the door as he remarked, “It is time I get back to work.”
“You could always stay for dinner,” Baldwin suggested.
“Thank you for the offer, but I need to meet with my informant.” Corbyn stopped at the door and met his gaze. “I will send over a new assignment for you shortly.”
“I appreciate that,” Oliver replied.
Corbyn tipped his head as he opened the door.
After Corbyn departed from the room, Baldwin offered Oliver a smug smile. “I never thought I would see the day that you would turn down a dangerous assignment to the peninsula. An assignment that you have been pleading for.”
“My priorities have shifted,” he admitted.
“Is that so?”
“Frankly, I couldn’t imagine being apart from Emmeline for that long.”
“Love can make a man act irrationally.”
Coming to sit across from his brother, Oliver replied, “Or it can give a man clarity in his life. To focus on what is truly important.”
“You have become sentimental, Brother,” Baldwin joked.
Oliver took a sip of his drink before lowering it to his lap. “I suppose I have.”
Baldwin gave him a pointed look. “I do encourage you not to get lackadaisical. That can get you killed.”
“You need not fear on that account,” Oliver said. “Now that I have secured Emmeline’s love, I feel as if there is nothing that I cannot do.”
“Just be careful,” Baldwin urged.
“I will,” Oliver replied. “After all, I have never had so much to live for before.”
With her hands clasped in her lap, Emmeline stared out the window of the coach as she thought of all the ways that her upcoming meeting with her aunt could end in disaster.
“Are you nervous, my dear?” Oliver asked in an amused voice.
She shifted her gaze towards her husband. “Perhaps we should forego calling on my aunt today.”
“Is that what you would like to do?”
Emmeline shook her head. “No,” she replied. “I suppose I am simply worried about her reaction to seeing me.”
“It will be all right.”
“How can you say that?” she asked. “I killed my uncle.”
“You are a hero.”
“I don’t feel that way.”
Oliver reached for her hand. “You saved my life.”
Emmeline’s shoulders relaxed slightly as she stared into her husband’s eyes. “Only after you saved me.”
“Regardless, we saved each other,” Oliver said.
“That we did.”
“But as far as everyone is concerned,” Oliver started, “it was I that killed your uncle.”
She gave him a baffled look. “How is
