Page 28 of Sincerely, the Duke
Her aunt wasn’t going to relent and supply additional details. Vexing as it was, she had to give up. “All right, I’ll take your advice and be completely surprised by what is expected of me on my wedding night.”
“Excellent.” Pauline smiled contentedly. “That’s what I wanted to hear. Now, let’s see how this red-and-white stripe looks on you.”
“We have looked at enough fabrics for one day, Auntie. Do you feel up to a short walk to clear our lungs?” And thoughts.
“I think so, but maybe I should have a bit of a rest first. It would be good for you to have one too. You seemdisquieted. We can’t have you overwrought for the upcoming marriage, can we?” She dropped the fabric she was holding. “I’ll meet you down here in a little while, dearie.”
Instead of heeding her aunt’s suggestion and following her up the stairs, Edwina went back to the window that overlooked a narrow strip of garden. The start of spring was transforming wintery gray days into warm sunshine and empty trees into unfurling buds of green leaves. In a couple of weeks everything in the garden would be green. An assortment of flowers was beginning to bud but most blooms hadn’t opened yet to reveal their vivid colors. It seemed as if life would be so much easier if she only had flowers and walks in the park to contend with.
“I’m sorry to interrupt you, Miss Fine,” the housekeeper said from behind her.
Edwina turned and greeted the housekeeper. “It’s not a problem, Mrs. Needlesmith. If more boxes have arrived, place them on the settee with the others. Auntie will look through them later.”
“I’m afraid I wouldn’t fit into a box, Miss Fine.”
At the sound of the duke’s voice, Edwina’s pulse quickened. The duke bypassed the housekeeper to enter the drawing room. Looking at him made Edwina’s heart feel as if it were lifting. Fluttering warmth filled her chest. It didn’t matter if he was as impatient as the first day they met or caring and thoughtful as he was the last time they were together. She was happy to see him. Her breath grew uncomfortably shallow. Heat flared inside her and settled low in her abdomen.
“Your Grace.” She curtsied as the housekeeper quietly left the room.
Stonerick nodded as he regarded her closely. “I’m sorry if I stopped by at an inopportune time.”
“No,” she answered softly, enjoying how handsome he was. He wore a perfectly fitted dark-brown coat and waistcoat, and buff-colored trousers stylishly stuffed into shiny, below-the-knee boots. She wondered if he would always look so commanding and powerful that her insides quivered with exciting little squeezes every time she saw him.
“These are for you.” He handed her a small nosegay.
Her gaze caught his again and held for a moment before she glanced down at the delicate cluster of early, pale-yellow primrose blooms that looked as if they had been hastily and unevenly cropped and bundled with small fragrant twigs of rosemary and sage. She doubted the gardener or the duke’s very dignified butler had composed the bouquet. There wasn’t even a ribbon to hold the stems tightly together. Obviously, flowers for her were a last-minute thought, but a nice one. She couldn’t help but smile when she imagined the duke bending down to grab a handful of whatever was nearby as he passed.
“Thank you. They are lovely—but.” Hooding her eyes with her lashes, she asked, in a silky voice, “Does this mean I won’t receive any more gossip columns?”
The duke shifted his stance and grinned. “So, you read them?”
“Every word. My favorite story was when you shocked the entire ton by having two dances with four different young ladies on the same night and had all of them believing you would ask for their hand. It seems everyone in Society was aghast when you didn’t ask for anyone’s hand but snubbed them all.”
He did his best to not look guilty by clearing his throat and coughing a little before he responded, “There might have been an overindulgence of brandy and a wager involved in that unfortunate evening.”
Edwina nodded and gave him an amused smile. “Would you like to sit down and tell me about it?” She turned toward the settee and saw the strewn pieces of fabrics and strips of lace and suddenly remembered the unbecoming squares of cloth pinned to her dress. No wonder he assumed he’d arrived at an inconvenient time. He had!
Mortified, she felt a blush searing up her neck. In a panicky moment of racing thoughts, she first wanted to start yanking at the pins, but then she saw a glint of amusement sparkle in the duke’s beautiful blue eyes. He had found delight in catching her in such a state. And no doubt even more pleased that it appeared she was indulging so feverishly in the samples he’d sent over for her.
It took all her inner strength, but she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing her flapping around like a fish out of water while trying to remove the swatches from her bodice.
Searching for the right words to say, her chin lifted and her shoulders eased back. “I’ll just take a moment to move these so you can make yourself comfortable.” She placed the flowers on a nearby table and headed for the settee.
“Don’t bother for me, Miss Fine. I can’t stay long.”
All the better. Wonderful, in fact. Maybe she could find a way to recover from her embarrassment after he left.
“All right,” she calmly said. “What can I do for you?”
The duke took a more relaxed stance. “I just left my solicitor. He informed me you are insisting on reading every page of the contracts for our marriage settlement before they are sent to the viscount for his acceptance and signature.”
Taking interest in what he said, she answered, “Yes, of course.”
With silence and a firm set to his jaw, he joined her near the settee. It didn’t appear that was what he wanted to hear. From beneath thick lashes his eyes questioned her, but she remained quiet too.
“Assurance the contracts are satisfactory is what your guardian’s solicitor, Mr. Lewis, and your trustee are for. They are looking after your best interests for the viscount. But more than that, as your betrothed, it’s my responsibility to take care of your future and see you are protected.”
Edwina believed the duke was a man of honor and would see to fairness in the settlement, but that didn’t keep her from wanting to read and understand them. She was learning to read by the time she was learning to walk. “I understand,” she answered. “Is there a problem with me looking at the documents as well?”
