Page 30 of Duke of Chaos

So have I,Ezra thought to himself.Maria had been his last. Ceasing his intimate activities had not been a conscious decision. Indeed, after the blunt talk he and Lydia had on their wedding night, he knew he had her blessing to continue, but he no longer wanted to indulge in his former pastime.

It was not that he had lost his urges, if anything they had amplified, and annoyingly so. Most mornings when he awoke, he was so hard he could have used it to pound through a stone wall. It did not help that his dreams and his waking thoughts vividly portrayed a naked and panting Lydia. Though solo play was something he never enjoyed, he found himself needing to imbibe so that he could leave his rooms in the morning.

He knew that he could avoid all of these issues if he simply demanded that Lydia assume all of her wifely duties... But he did not want to force her, even when he sometimes felt her curiosity pique during their teasing. No, he would not do that. Working with Lydia had become too enjoyable and too successful to draw away from, and he would not threaten what they had created.

They did not know that, though, and Ezra decided they did not need to, either.

“Good for you, Ambrose. It takes a strong man to discontinue bad habits,” Ezra offered wryly, raising his glass toward him.

Ambrose gave him a flat look, then shook his head.

“While I am honored that it is still obvious that I am feared and revered in some circles, I am afraid the rest of our darling societyis changing its collective mind,” Ezra replied in his usual bored tone, “Think whatever you want of me. All I know is that Lydia and I are succeeding in our work, and that is all I care about.”

His friends began to chirp their sarcastic remarks, but a booming voice muffled them from a few paces to their left.

“Your Grace! My heavens, what a delight to see you here!”

All four dukes turned toward the rather loud and cheerful shout from their left, and Ezra smiled from beneath his mask as he saw Lord Issac Watergate, his new client, and his wife, Nora, smiling at him with joy as they approached.

“They are speaking to you?” Morgan asked, the surprise obvious in his voice.

“Of course they are,” Ezra retorted, before turning and providing a gracious bow to the couple.

“Lord Frampton, what a happy coincidence!” Lady Watergate said enthusiastically, offering her hand to him.

After slipping off his mask, he laid a chaste kiss on her knuckles, and as he turned to Lord Watergate he replied, “Indeed it is! How did you know it was me?”

Lady Watergate laughed in her usual high-pitched, birdlike manner, and flittered her hand at him.

“No one could pull off such a devilish costume but you, Your Grace,” she replied.

“It is true, though, I am surprised I do not see any horns atop your mask,” Lord Watergate added, his tone playful.

Ezra noted the second his friends’ bodies subtly shifted as if getting ready to step in if he took things too far.

“I thought it would be a little too on the nose…orhorn,” Ezra jested, giving the man a wink.

The couple laughed as the jaws of his friends collectively dropped, and he smirked before he continued with the show.

“Lydia will be most joyous to see that you are here, Lady Watergate. I believe she is just over there with some friends.”

Ezra, playing the game he and Lydia had created so well, provided proper introductions among his small group of friends as well as the band of ladies surrounding Lydia. As he did so, he did not miss the skeptical, surprised looks his friends kept throwing at him. He stunned them again when he complimented the couple’s costumes.

“They all sound so lovely,” Nora gushed, “I shall go join them and leave you gentlemen to it. Oh, I am so happy you are here! I thought I was going to have to be stuck with my husband all evening with no one to talk to.”

“Oh, I am so boring, am I?” Lord Watergate asked though he was clearly teasing as he smiled down at his wife.

In turn, Lady Watergate reached up and cupped her husband’s cheek affectionately and winked.

“Only when you speak business, darling.”

“So, always, then,” the lord replied with a sarcastic grin.

Ezra watched their interaction with amusement. He had never pictured the wives or children of his associates before, nor had he assumed any strong emotions existed amongst them. Now, though, he’d begun to notice these things between couples; how they looked at one another; whether or not they jested. During the last two months, he had observed that the men with families were far more dedicated to making money than those without.

“I do hope you do not object if I insert myself into your group for the evening,” Lord Watergate said with an apologetic look, “But, as my wife inferred, we have been suffering through business talk. I would most appreciate a recess if you would permit me.”

“Of course,” Ezra replied, waving over a servant carrying a drink tray.

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