Page 106 of A Problem Princess

“Just as you believed.” She slid her mouth across his cheek to his ear and murmured, “You were right about him all along.”

He nodded, unable to find his voice. The certain knowledge of his father’s innocence didn’t ease the pain of losing him. Nothing could ever do that. But he could at least find peace with the past now and truly honor his father’s legacy.

He collected himself and stepped out of her arms. He picked up the birth announcement.

“A new princess,” he said, his voice husky with emotion.

“We’ll send the palace a gift right away,” she decided. Then she paused. “Is it wrong of me to hope she’ll have a brother or that her uncle Clarence has issue so she doesn’t have to inherit the crown?”

“Not at all. But I don’t think you need to worry. It’s very unlikely that little Alexandrina Victoria will become queen.” He carefully placed the Home Office documents into his desk drawer. There would be time later to look through them and come to terms with all of it. “What matters, though, is that the English monarchy is secured through another generation.”

“A new baby…” A smile tugged at her lips. “Babies are such wonderful things. Such miracles of love, don’t you think?”

She took his hand and placed it on her lower belly.

Clayton’s heart stopped, and he froze. He stared at his hand on her belly, speechless.

She nervously repeated, “Don’t you think…Papa?”

“Are you…you mean…” He could barely form the words. He blurted out, “We’re having a baby?”

A beaming smile spread across her face. “Yes.” Her eyes glistened. “I was going to tell you tonight, but the announcement from the palace seemed—”

He let out a shout, grabbed her into his arms, and lifted her off the floor to twirl her in a circle with all the love and happiness inside him.

He placed her on the desk and leaned in to bring his mouth so close to hers that her soft breath tickled across his lips. He needed her to understand exactly how much he meant it when he murmured, “I love you, Princess.”

She laughed, wrapped her arms around his neck, and saucily repeated back to him his words from that fateful day in Westminster, the day that led them here. “You’d better.”

With a grin, he lowered his head and kissed her.