Page 33 of Notorious

The relief that coursed through him told him that fear for the boy had been no little part of the stress he’d been carrying. “Thank you.”

She squeezed his hands so hard they hurt. “It’s over between us, isn’t it?” Tears spilled down her cheeks, and he kissed them away.

“Yes, Giselle, it is.”

“Will you still come visit—even after Samir gone?”

“You know I will. You and Maria will always be my dearest friends.”

“I’ll miss you, Gabriel, but I’m proud you will give yourself to your marriage with a whole heart—it’s the right thing to do.”

Gabriel wondered if his new wife would feel the same way.

Chapter 7

Drusilla stared at her reflection and grimaced. She looked wrecked—absolutely, positively wrecked. Dark smudges beneath her eyes—which were heavy and bloodshot from lack of sleep. She’d been too nervous to eat at dinner last night. The atmosphere around the marquess’s table had been so genial and normal it had felt . . . dreamlike. Or nightmarish, rather.

“You look lovely, Dru.”

She started at the sound of Eva’s voice, meeting her friend’s gaze in the mirror. Drusilla forced a smile.

“You’re not frightened, are you?” Eva asked.

What could she tell her friend? That she was terrified of her feelings for her brother? That she’d loved and wanted Gabriel with a fierceness that had almost paralyzed her since the first moment she saw him?

“I’m not frightened,” she lied.

Eva chewed her lip, clearly agonizing over something. “I know you and Gabriel have sometimes rubbed each other the wrong way—”

Drusilla snorted at her friend’s understatement.

Eva took her hand. “And I know he can appear . . . imperious—”

“Because he is imperious.”

“Very well then, because he is imperious,” Eva conceded. “But he can also be very caring, kind, and protective.” She shot Drusilla a direct look, making her feel like an ungrateful shrew—because that was how she was behaving. Here was a man who’d not only fought for her honor, but was marrying her and would soon be putting his life at risk for her.

“I know he’s kind, Eva. He’s also been a savior to me—twice. I appreciate what he is doing. I only wish he didn’t have to do so much, to sacrifice himself for me.”

Even her friend could not argue with her words: Gabriel Marlington was sacrificing himself. If he was going to offer for any woman this Season, it would have been Lucinda Kittridge and everybody knew it. It was mortifying to know he would now be forced to settle for Drusilla.

Luckily the door opened, and Lady Exley and Aunt Vi entered. The marchioness stopped in the doorway and smiled.

“Oh, Drusilla, you do look lovely.”

Aunt Vi kissed her on both cheeks in an unprecedented display of affection. Neither her aunt nor her father had been given to physical warmth, and she guessed what her aunt was mostly expressing was relief. Dru didn’t blame her aunt for looking relieved to have shed the burden of finding her a husband. No doubt the older woman had believed she’d be chaperoning Drusilla until the end of her days.

“You look very fine, Drusilla. Your father would be so happy for you today.”

“Thank you, Aunt Vi. How are you feeling? I hope you’ll not overexert yourself.”

Her aunt squeezed her hands. “Don’t worry about me, please. I want you to enjoy your special day.”

Drusilla swallowed down a hysterical bubble of laughter. Her special day? Enjoyment was the last thing she expected from this day.

The marchioness enfolded Drusilla in a warm, tight embrace, her hard pregnant belly pressing against Drusilla in a way that made her realize she might be in a similar condition before too long. That was the wrong thought to entertain; it left her feeling weak, woozy, and unaccountably hot. And . . . eager.

Lady Exley then held her at arm’s length and laughed up at her. “Good, you have some color in your cheeks—no doubt because you are horrified at me for touching you so familiarly.” Drusilla opened her mouth to protest, but the vivacious woman waved it away. “You will learn I frequently act before I think. The marquess says it is part of my charm.” She waggled her eyebrows, making everyone laugh before she turned to her stepdaughter, who returned her embrace with enthusiasm.