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Lord of All Pleasures (Extended Epilogue)

 

“How are you feeling, mi amore?” Giovanni asked, rubbing his thumb against Beatrice’s knuckles as he held her hand in the carriage.

“Mmm unpleasant.” Beatrice swallowed, her eyes tightly shut. “I’m afraid little Evelina is not finding the rocking carriage conducive to comfort.”

“Or our little boy,” Giovanni said, reaching down to tenderly rub his wife’s swollen belly. “I’m sorry you feel so unwell. I am sure we can make some lemon tea when we arrive.”

“Oh, spare me your traditional Italian remedies,” Beatrice groaned affectionately. “You’ve been offering me Nonna recipes non-stop since I told you we were expecting.”

“And how many of them have worked?” Giovanni chided, kissing her cheek gently, breathing in her scent. Pregnancy had changed her scent slightly, and he loved it. It was deeper, muskier, and reminded him of their most intimate moments. It was all he could do to still keep his hands off her. Without his realizing, his hand wandered from her stomach to tenderly cup her swollen breast.

“Oh, I see,” Beatrice murmured, chuckling lightly. “This is why you want me to feel better, is it? Do you have some amorous activities planned tonight, my dear marquess?”

“Well, that rather depends, my dear marchioness,” Giovanni kissed her deeply, loving the taste of her. “On how the mother of my precious child is feeling.”

“If it is as bad as I feel now, then I am afraid you shall be out of luck,” Beatrice groaned, pressing her forehead against his, her warm, sweet breath on his mouth.

“I am sorry, mi amore.” He kissed her nose mournfully. “If I could take some of your burden, I truly would.”

“It’s all right.” Beatrice opened her eyes to smile at Giovanni. “If the only trouble I have when being with child is a little carriage sickness, then I shall count myself blessed. At least it’s not swollen feet.”

“Oh really?” Giovanni feigned looking down at her feet appraisingly. He knew she had an absurd horror of her feet growing in size. “It seems like your feet might be bigger than yesterday.”

“Stop it!” Beatrice laughed, pushing him playfully. Giovanni loved to see her smile and wondered if their child would have her lips. Would their child laugh like she did? He hoped so. “You are a terrible tease, Lord Bath.”

“Lady Bath, it is only because you are such a joy to tease,” Giovanni laughed. “Oh, here we are.”

The carriage was pulling up outside the beautiful Grafton House in Gloucestershire. It was grander and finer than their new house near Fallenbrook, which had become known as Castel Amante to honor his Italian heritage. It had been a long journey from home to Grafton House, but Beatrice had been determined to make it before the baby came. After that, Thaddeus had promised to come and stay at Fallenbrook for a while, so he could be close to his first grandchild. Anna was excited, as she had borne a little girl, Ophelia, only three months ago. Everyone was waiting eagerly to welcome Bea and Gio’s child into the world, and for the first time in his life, Giovanni felt truly overwhelmed and surrounded by love.

“What is the name of your cousin who is visiting?” Beatrice asked beside him.

“Oh, it is Marco” Giovanni frowned, shaking his head. “I have only met him a few times yet. Alegria is his family name, Signor Alegria.”

“And he is family on your mother’s side?” Beatrice reached up to gently touch the necklace at her throat. It had belonged to Giovanni’s mother, and he had given it to her on their wedding day. Whenever he saw it around her neck it made him smile.

“Yes, that’s what I’ve been told,” Giovanni smiled, thinking of the many stories he had exchanged with his cousin at Silas’s club in London when Thaddeus had introduced them. Since coming back into Giovanni’s life, Thaddeus was doing his best to find more of Giovanni’s family. He had been reaching out to Giovanni’s Italian relatives and making connections. When he had discovered Giovanni’s cousin staying in London, he had immediately invited him to make their acquaintance. Giovanni had forgotten how much he missed the company of Italian men. Spending time with his cousin had felt like refreshment, something he’d been missing all his life.

“I am looking forward to introducing you,” Giovanni smiled, thinking of how much Beatrice’s sharp wit would flourish in the company of his intelligent and humorous cousin. “I think you shall like him.”

“I am sure I shall.” Beatrice smiled, squeezing his hand. “Our family is becoming quite large, mi amore. Soon we shall need a family tree to track it!”

Giovanni laughed, feeling himself flourish with happiness. What a wonder it was to have a family so large to love and be a part of. It was something he had only dreamed of as a child, and now he had it. Sometimes he couldn’t believe it, but the evidence was beside him. His precious wife, swollen with his child—the proof that his family would keep growing and flourishing.

“Here you are!”

The carriage door was flung open, interrupting Giovanni’s thoughts. Thaddeus held the door open, eagerly offering his hand to Beatrice to help her down. Giovanni smiled indulgently and let him do so. Thaddeus loved Beatrice dearly, and Giovanni enjoyed it immensely.

Behind Thaddeus stood Giovanni’s cousin, dark-haired and dark-eyed like Giovanni, smiling playfully. He raised his hand in welcome and Giovanni waved back, eager to introduce him to Beatrice.

“You look so well, my dear!” Thaddeus exclaimed, holding Beatrice’s hands and stepping back to admire her. “I hope that little girl you are carrying is safe and well.”

“Oh, she is,” Beatrice rubbed her belly possessively.

“Good. Let me introduce you to Giovanni’s cousin, Marco Alegria,” Thaddeus said, gesturing for Marco to step forward. “Marco Alegria, may I present the Marchioness of Bath?”

“Delighted, marchioness,” Marco said, sweeping into a low and elegant bow. Giovanni shook his head at his cousin, holding back his laughter. Marco was as much a Casanova as he had been in his youth. Always eager to impress.

“The pleasure is mine, Signor Alegria,” Beatrice smiled at Marco pleasantly. “Piacere di Conoscerla, Signore,“ Beatrice added in flawless Italian, greeting him in the traditional way.

“Oh!” Marco’s dark eyebrows flew upwards, and he stared at his cousin in amazement. “You speak beautiful Italian, my lady.”

“Well, I have an excellent tutor,” Beatrice smiled, linking her arm through Giovanni’s and smiling up at him affectionately.

“You were her tutor, were you?” Marco shook his head. “That explains how you managed to get such a beautiful woman to marry you, cousin!”

“Oh hush,” Giovanni joked and pushed Marco’s shoulder, relishing the easy banter with this man who shared his mother’s blood. “Let us go inside. We have some news to share with you both.”

“Oh?” Thaddeus asked. “News of Silas and Anna? How are they?”

In the time that Giovanni had been married, he had relished the speed with which his birth father had thrown himself wholeheartedly into his life. If Giovanni had any reservations at the start of their relationship about the sincerity of Thaddeus’s love, they were quickly dispersed. Thaddeus took joy in every aspect of their relationship, everything from the dinners the two of them had at White’s in London to the family rides and walks they invited him to at Fallenbrook and Castel Amante. Giovanni had no doubts about the decision he and Beatrice had taken regarding their children and was happy to be able to tell Thaddeus about it now.

“They are well.” Giovanni smiled at Thaddeus. “But that’s not the news. The news is about the baby. We have made some decisions with regards to his or her naming.”

“Oh?” Thaddeus gestured for them to walk up the stairs of the house, offering Beatrice his arm. Marco and Giovanni smiled indulgently at one another. It was clear how much Thaddeus enjoyed caring for Beatrice, and the two men enjoyed letting him do it.

“Yes,” Beatrice told him, smiling. “If she is a girl, then we shall call her Evelina.”

“Oh, that’s beautiful,” Thaddeus gasped, his smile lit with joy. “She would be so proud, I know she would.”

“It is a beautiful name.” Marco clapped Giovanni on the shoulder, smiling warmly. “Your madre will be honored.”

“It is,” Giovanni nodded. “And we’ve decided that if our child is a boy…we shall call him Thaddeus.”

Thaddeus stopped in his tracks, staring at them both. Marco grinned behind him, giving Giovanni a satisfied nod. They both knew how much this would mean to the man.

“Truly?”

Beatrice and Giovanni nodded. Beatrice reached out to hold Giovanni’s hand, squeezing it reassuringly.

“Yes,” Giovanni swallowed. “I know you might think that this will be confusing for the child, that we should call you Thaddeus and him Thaddeus also—”

“Yes, it might be,” Thaddeus gave a watery smile. “I should be touched enough to be given your child’s middle name, Giovanni. That would be enough honor for me.”

“Well, we’ve decided differently,” Giovanni said, quirking his mouth at Thaddeus. “We’ve decided to change your name, Thaddeus.”

“You have?” Thaddeus looked at them curiously.

“Yes,” Giovanni said. “Our son shall be Thaddeus, and from now on, we shall call you Father.”

Thaddeus looked at them both, his face blank for a moment. Then his eyes began to fill with tears.

“If that is agreeable to you?” Beatrice asked gently, stroking her father-in-law’s arm.

“It is!” Thaddeus sniffed, blinking hard and then laughing. “Oh yes, it is—very much.”

Bravo!” Marco slapped Thaddeus playfully on the back. “We should have a drink to celebrate!”

“Maybe some tea?” Giovanni intervened, knowing how much his cousin enjoyed a little libation.

“Ah, yes,” Marco conceded, smiling at Beatrice. “You should try lemon tea, marchioness, it is very helpful for ladies who are expecting.”

“Oh, God save me from Italian remedies!” Beatrice exclaimed, rolling her eyes in mock annoyance. “Take me inside, signor—and you must call me Beatrice if you are going to insist on being so free with your recipes as your cousin.”

“Of course, Beatrice,” Marco grinned, offering his cousin his arm and leading her inside. “If you will call me Marco.”

“It is such a pleasure to have your cousin here.” Thaddeus sighed happily, watching Beatrice and Marco go inside. “We should join them.”

Giovanni knew he was right, but he had one last gift to bestow upon Thaddeus. It was the simplest gift he had ever given, yet he knew it would mean the world to the man in front of him.

“Lead the way,” he clapped him on the shoulder and smiled, “Father.”


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  • Wonderful story. So well written. I enjoyed reading it so much, I had a hard time putting it down. Great characters. It was intriguing, suspenseful and passionate. Loved the way it ended and the Extended Epilogue. Didn’t want it to end. Hope there will be another series….

  • It was nice how at the end Giovanni acknowledged Thaddeus by calling him father. It is also nice that they started including the rest of his family as well.

  • Such a wonderful story. Loved everything about it. Great sequel to the story of Silas and Anna. Now it is time for us to know more about Marcus he sounds so interesting already. Really enjoy your books

    • Thank you for your kind words, dear Mary! They mean the world! As for Marcus’ story, you never know… 😉

  • A wonderful story about a boy who grew up in rags to become a rich Duke. A lot of drama, beautiful ladies and handsome me. Keep writing.

    • Thank you for your comment, dear Urmi! I’m glad you enjoyed the story. As for a sequel…All I can say for now is to stay tuned! 😉

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