A Scoundrel's Surrender (23 page)

Authors: Jenna Petersen

She dropped down and her mouth met his. He crushed his arms around her as they drowned in each other. For the first time, perhaps in all the time they had known each other, he didn't feel the undercurrent of mistrust and doubt in her touch. He felt only her love. And the warmth of the future they would share.

And as he dragged her against his body, Caleb knew that this was all he needed, all he wanted, all he could hope for the rest of his life.

Epilogue

Two Years Later

T
he Billingham Bastards were a most exclusive and secret club. They consisted of three brothers who never acknowledged their blood ties in public, but whose friendship was widely known. Some people shook their heads at their unlikely closeness, for the three men couldn't be more different. The Duke of Billingham was known as a fair and generous man who fought with passion for the rights of others.

The Duke of Waverly was still remembered as arrogant, but upon closer inspection many said he was a devoted husband, loving father to his two young boys, and a much improved man.

And Caleb Talbot was wild. Even now he and his wife would often shock an entire ballroom by exchanging a kiss after a dance. Or they had before Mrs. Talbot's confinement.

But none of this meant anything to the Billingham Bastards as they gathered in Caleb and Marah's comfortable parlor. Also in attendance were Justin and Victoria and their eighteen-month-old daughter, Portia, who toddled off and studied Rhys and Anne's son Ian with much interest.

“Careful,” Marah laughed as the two children examined each other. “It might be a love match.”

The room laughed as the nurse entered carrying a newborn baby. The women all sighed as the child was placed into her mother's arms, and Marah shivered with pure delight at the feel of her daughter's soft skin and the smell of her hair.

“This is Alice,” she said to the room as she kissed her baby's forehead.

“She is beautiful.” Lillian smiled and her hand came to cover her own swollen belly. In a few months she would add to this family, and Marah couldn't be happier.

After all, the family had endured a great deal lately. After the death of Simon's mother, he had let the others in on the secret of their hidden brother, the only true Billingham heir. They had met with the childlike man in his hideaway on Simon and Lillian's estate. All of them were serious about protecting him and dedicated to ensuring his happiness for the rest of his life.

But now was the time for happy thoughts. Marah smiled as Anne reached for Alice, snuggling her close as she cooed over her niece in low and soothing tones. Caleb's arm came around her and she felt the warmth of his fingers at the small of her back, reassuring and comforting as ever.

“Are you happy?” she whispered as she watched the baby be passed from one loving family member to the next.

Caleb nodded. “Indeed I am. You know, the more time we are together, the more we grow to know this extended family, the more I have come to realize just how foolish I was to run from it all.”

She turned to him. “Yes?”

He smiled. “It isn't blood that makes family.”

“No,” she agreed as she kissed him gently. “It's love.”

About the Author

Two of J
ENNA
P
ETERSEN
's childhood dreams were to be a
ballerina and a baseball player. Those didn't work out, but she's pleased to be
following another childhood dream, writing books for a living. And what better
than romance, where dreams come true on every page? Jenna lives in central
Illinois with her high school sweetheart husband and two taskmaster cats. She
loves to hear from readers. Her website is
www.jennapetersen.com
.

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Romances by Jenna Petersen

A Scoundrel's Surrender

The Unclaimed Duchess

What the Duke Desires

Her Notorious Viscount

Lessons from a Courtesan

Seduction Is Forever

Desire Never Dies

From London with Love

Scandalous

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are
products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and are not
to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations,
or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

A SCOUNDREL'S SURRENDER.
Copyright Â© 2011 by Jesse Petersen. All rights
reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment
of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable
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may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or
stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in
any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or
hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins
e-books.

EPub Edition AUGUST 2011 ISBN:
9780062092472

FIRST EDITION

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

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