"Well enough."
"No, you know that I am unmarried and poor."
"Certainly. And that you are intelligent."
"You learned that because I argued over two pennies?"
"You were correct."
She folded her arms. "And what exactly would I receive in exchange for producing your heir?"
"A comfortable life."
"How comfortable?"
"A substantial settlement."
"After?"
"Yes."
"After what?"
"After the child is born."
Her eyes narrowed. "So you want a wife with an expiration date?"
Nathaniel paused. "That is one way of describing it."
"It is the correct way."
He said nothing.
Evelyn stood. "I think you should find another woman."
Nathaniel looked up. "You haven't heard the full terms."
"I've heard enough." She picked up her book. Then she stopped. "You said you aren't asking me to love you."
"Yes."
She looked directly at him. "Good."
"Why?"
"Because I wouldn't."
She walked away. Nathaniel remained at the table. For perhaps the first time in his life, a woman had rejected a duke's proposal before asking how much money she would receive. He should have been offended. Instead, he found himself thinking about one thing: she had asked what would happen to the child, not what would happen to her. The child mattered.
He found her outside the inn the following morning. She was carrying a basket of laundry. He stepped into her path. She stopped.
"No."
"I haven't said anything."
"You're about to."
"Yes."
"And my answer is no."
"Why?"
"Because I am not livestock."
Nathaniel's mouth tightened. "I did not mean to insult you."
"You managed it beautifully."
"I want to amend the proposal."
She waited.
"The child would remain yours."
She blinked. "What?"
"You would not be separated, and you could remain at Blackwood."
She studied him. "Permanently?"
"Yes."
"You just said I would leave."
"I reconsidered."
"That quickly?"
"I reconsidered."
"Why?"
Nathaniel looked at her. Because he had spent the night thinking about her question. Because something about the idea of taking her child away from her had suddenly seemed wrong. Because he could not explain why her refusal bothered him. Because perhaps she had already challenged the neat little arrangement he had constructed in his head.
Instead, he said, "Because your condition is reasonable."
Evelyn narrowed her eyes. "My condition?"