She grinned at him, and he found himself smiling back. He didn’t think he had ever smiled so much with a woman he was also sexually engaged with; usually, the smiles were for the moments after, when he was boneless and satisfied.

He had no doubt but that she would leave him that way, and smiling, but to find himself so pleased even before things had begun—well, that was unusual.

“Where are we going?” she said in a low voice, placing her hand on his thigh.

He put his hand over hers, squeezing her fingers. “Some place where we can be alone for a while. Some place where there are no duke’s daughters besides yourself, no missing sailors, no best friends who are fiercely guarding their friend.”

“Has Sarah done that to you?” she asked, surprised.

He shook his head. “Not yet, but if I were to misbehave, she would make it very clear to me. You have a good friend in her.”

She nodded. “I do. And what about you? Who are your friends?”

“Clark and Hyland, two of my crew. Frederick.”

“I have my sisters and Sarah, you have your sailors and your cousin.”

“And the many people clamoring to meet me now that I am the heir to a dukedom.”

She fluttered her eyelids at him. “Surely your outsized sense of self-worth would argue with that. I mean, it is you we are discussing. Lord Handsome of the Exuberant Expression.”

He guffawed at her words and she joined in. He had never laughed so much with anybody ever, much less with a woman he was planning on getting naked and sweaty with.

“I suppose I do have a healthy opinion of myself,” he replied. “But really, when you look like me, how could you not?”

She exploded into giggles, and he found himself smiling at her, relishing how she didn’t care if she was being exuberant herself. That she probably wanted to be as outrageous as possible so she could remain true to herself.

Della gave a few final chuckles, then glanced out the window. “Where are we? I don’t recognize this area.”

Griffith squeezed her hand and nodded toward the outside. “It’s a few miles outside of London. I found a small inn that is quite clean where we can stay the night.” He frowned, and Della felt her breath hitch. Unless he didn’t want to spend the night with her?

“Unless you need to return earlier to see your daughter?”

Della let out a sigh of relief. “Becky will have Nora well in hand. I imagine the girls will want to ask Mr. Wattings all about the sea, and your boat—”

“Ship,” he corrected as he helped her out of the carriage.

“Ship,” she echoed, rolling her eyes at him. “Anyway, if there is any concern, Sarah will understand what has happened, particularly since she saw us together, and she knew—”