“Famous,” Reggie said, rolling her eyes. “Though I should be relieved. At least my Nicholas will be spared, now that you have your target for the day.”

“Don’t count on it, m’dear.” James grinned wickedly. “Wouldn’t want him to feel neglected just because it’s Christmas.”

Molly appeared in the doorway just then. Jason hadn’t spoken to her since she had started reading the journal. She had finished it late last night, long after he’d gone to bed. He came to her now with a hopeful look, and she knew exactly why he wore it.

But reaching her, he glanced up at the doorframe they stood under. She followed his gaze to see the mistletoe hung there as it was every year. Before it even occurred to her that he might do something outlandish like kiss her with his entire family in the room and possibly watching, he kissed her, and quite thoroughly, too.

A few breathless moments later, he said, “Do I need to ask my question—again?”

She smiled, knowing exactly which question he meant. “No, you don’t,” she whispered, so they wouldn’t be overheard. “And my answer is yes, though with one condition.”

“Which is?”

“I’ll marry you, Jason, if you’ll agree that we won’t tell anyone about it, aside from your family, of course.”

“Molly—” he began with a sigh.

“No, hear me out. I know that’s not what you were hoping I’d say, after reading about your grandparents. But things were different for them. She was a stranger to the area. The people here and in Havers didn’t know her most of their lives. It was easy for them to ignore inquiries, or put them off, so that no one ever did really know the truth. But you can’t deny that they didn’t own up to the truth, that only a select few ever knew—and besides, her father was a Russian noble, even if her mother wasn’t.”

He rolled his eyes. “And your point?”

“You know I can’t say the same, Jason. And I still won’t bring more scandal on your family, when it’s already borne so many scandals in the past. If you can’t agree to keep a marriage between us secret, then we’ll just have to go on as we have been.”

“Then I suppose I’ll have to agree to those terms, of course.”

She gave him a suspicious look, considering she had been anticipating much more of an argument from him. “You wouldn’t agree now, only to change your mind after we’re married, would you?”

He feigned a hurt look before asking her, “You don’t trust me?”

She scowled. “I know you, Jason Malory. You’ll do or say just about anything to get your way.”

He grinned. “Then you should know that I’d never do anything to get you seriously annoyed with me.”