Chapter 26

“Marshall is building a new home,” Maya said dreamily. She was sitting in a chair in the corner of the room, feeding Nicholas his bottle.

Avery looked up from where she was scrubbing the floor. “Oh?”

“Yes.” She smiled down at the baby. “He says he’s building it for me. He says that once it’s done, he’ll buy me from Tristan, and we’ll be married.”

She kissed Nicholas’ forehead. “It is a very small house. Only three bedrooms but Marshall says that’s enough for us to have a boy and a girl. He says I’ll have to learn to cook and clean. He cannot afford slaves, but I don’t even mind the thought of that. Is that what love does to you, Avery? Does it make even the most menial tasks seem romantic?”

Avery laughed, scrubbing at a particularly dirty spot in front of the fireplace. “I wouldn’t know.”

Maya continued to stare dreamily at the baby. “I was so frightened when Mama sold us to the slave house. I used to lie awake at night and worry about what would happen