Page 46 of The Devil's Accidental Duchess
CHAPTER 15
Another restless night sent Selina to the breakfast room half asleep. Mary had not been there that morning to help her dress, but an older maid who had barely said a word.
Her hair was simply pinned, her eyes puffy, her legs leaden, her appetite absent, but she wanted to see Lizzy and Melody. They would be at breakfast, and they were the only reason she was not taking breakfast in her room, avoiding everyone.
She opened the door and wondered if she wasstill asleep, trapped somewhere in the midst of a peculiar nightmare. For right there at the table, alongside her mother, Lizzy, Melody, and the Dowager Duchess, was the Marquess of Ramsbury. The gentleman who was supposed to become her husband, until the letter that had upended everything.
“Lord Ramsbury?!” The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them.
The Marquess glanced up from a plate of eggs, some surprise registering on his face. Maybe she looked worse than she thought.
He dabbed his mouth with a napkin and rose to his feet, bowing his head. “I had hoped to speak to you later, Lady Selina, but I suppose now is as good a time as any,” he said, all pleasantness.
She grimaced. “I am sorry about?—”
“Heavens, no. There is nothing to be sorry about.” He gestured vaguely around the room. “I came as soon as the invitation reached me, to show your betrothed that I hold no grudges. You, too. It was some relief, in truth.”
A crease formed between her eyebrows. She didn’t want to marry the Marquess, but he did not have to be quite so enthusiastic about the change of circumstances.
“No… no, I did not mean it like that,” he said, clearly realizing his mistake. “It is just that I… um… Well, we did not know anything about each other, and I had… uh… somewhat formed another attachment.”
“Oh…” She nodded. “There is no need to explain, Lord Ramsbury. I am glad for you.”
“As I am for you,” he said, and it sounded like he meant it.
Selina offered a smile. “Thank you for understanding. My father won’t forget your generosity in considering me in the first place, nor your dignity in all of this.”
“It is nothing, truly,” the Marquess insisted.
They stood for a moment in awkward silence. There was nothing more to be said between them, but how did one part ways politely in a situation like this?
“Well, I should get back to my eggs before they cool,” he said.
Apparently, that was how.
“Of course,” she replied.
As he sat back down, Selina headed for the opposite end of the table, where all the women were gathered.
Sitting down, she leaned over to kiss her mother on the cheek. “When did you arrive? Father said you would be here with my things, but there was no sign of you.”
“I came with the second carriage full,” her mother replied shyly. “I arrived just before breakfast.”
“Just in time to help with the preparations for the house party!” the Dowager Duchess interjected gleefully. “We have alreadybeen discussing plans in your absence. I hope you don’t mind, dear.”
Selina laughed stiffly. “Not at all. The less I have to do and the less I have to think about it, the better.” She shot Lizzy a pointed look. “Besides, this was all my dear friend’s grand idea, so she should be the one doing the lion’s share of overseeing the preparations.”
“Oh no, I am just the one with the ideas,” Lizzy protested with a grin. “My grandmother is the one who makes things happen. Truly, whatever idea you might have, she can make it a reality. If you wanted an elephant, she would find a way to get one. There is no one she does not know in society.”
“Now, an elephant would be rather difficult with the amount of time—or lack thereof—that we have,” the Dowager Duchess said, before taking a delicate bite of toast and marmalade.
Selina’s mother stared at the older woman in obvious awe.
Perhaps this will be good for her,Selina thought as she reached for the coffee pot.
She had been so concerned with her own situation that she had not thought about how this might actually be beneficial for her mother. To get away from London and her father. To be more than just the invisible Duchess for a while.
“What do you think, Mama?” she asked.
