She wound her arms around him and hugged him tight. “Well, you’re my hero, Benedict Wylde, whatever medals you’ve earned. And we should both be extremely proud of what we achieved yesterday. Think of the trouble Napoleon could stir up if he ever escaped St. Helena.”

He grunted in grudging agreement. “Ah, here we go.” He hooked a familiar chain from amid the clutter, and Georgie saw it was her wedding band—which had been joined by his plain gold ring. The last time she’d seen that, she realized, was at Newgate; she’d assumed he’d pawned it or sold it.

He uncoupled the clasp of the chain and slid both rings free, then took her left hand and solemnly slid hers onto her fourth finger. Her heart glowed with pride and love.

She winced when his fingers touched her palm, however, and he frowned as he turned her hand over and noticed the skin was red and torn from handling the submarine. “You idiot,” he chided softly. “Why didn’t you tell me you were hurt?”

Georgie shrugged. “I truly didn’t notice at the time.”

He pressed his lips to the tender skin on the center of each palm, then straightened and kissed her mouth. “God, the next month is going to be torture. We’ll have to wait three whole weeks for the banns to be read, and we’ll be under the eagle eye of the ton the entire time. I’ll actually have to behave myself.”

She chuckled, and he looked into her face with a wry smile and a shake of his tousled head. “I still can’t believe you want to be married to me. Are you sure you know what you’re doing? What if I turn out to be a terrible husband? I don’t have the first clue how to be happily married. My own parents barely spoke to one another. They ended up living apart for almost twenty years.”

“We are nothing like your parents, Benedict. I’m sure we’ll figure it out.”

He tilted his head as another thought struck him. “I still need to introduce you to my brother, John. He’d have been a far better choice for you, you know. He’s the earl. He’s solid. Dependable. Steadfast. He can run an estate. Organize tenants. He doesn’t run around getting himself thrown into prison.”

Georgie shook her head. “You’re a good man, Benedict Wylde. Despite what you might believe. It’s you that I love.” She sent him a teasing glance, determined to lighten the mood. “Do you think it’s actually legal to marry the same man twice?”