Page 71 of The Replacement Duchess

“I am five and twenty!”

“And I am five and sixty, so you will do well to heed my advice. You will be fine, as will the Duke, but you must learn to listen. There is so much more out there than what you know, and so you must think of the experiences of others before you speak. If you do that, then the rest will become quite easy. You shall see.”

“I hope so, because I cannot continue like this.”

“You will not have to. All will be resolved in time, and you and the Duke shall be back to normal, I assure you. Now, here is the key to the library. Be sure to hand it to the Duke soon, or else he might think that you are doing something that you should not be.”

Miss Thornton handed her a key, but it felt like it was on fire in her hand. Diana felt her skin burning as she held it, and she wanted to throw it away so that nobody would know that she had done anything. Once again, she had gone against her husband’s wishes only to feel incredible guilt afterwards, but this time she did not want to tell him. She wanted to go to her new sanctuary, where nobody would dare interrupt her, and read.

So that is what she did.

Before dinner, she went to her room and slid the key into a book to hide it. Her library could not be taken away from her a second time, not now that she had changed things to her own tastes.

“The house certainly feels different,” Colin said gently as they ate.

“Do you dislike it?”

“Not at all. It is about time that things changed here, even if it is only wallpaper and furnishings.”

“It is certainly fresher now, not that there was anything wrong with how it was.”

“Sometimes even if there is nothing wrong, it is still good to change things. For example, I took your advice and found a new supplier for our milk and cheese in the village. I told him that you asked specifically, so you can rest assured that the local opinion of you shall only be improving.”

“Oh,” she said breathily, her cheeks flaming. “Thank you. That is so kind of you, but there was no need to give me credit for it.”

“It was your idea. There is no pain in it for me to tell others that you have good ideas.”

“No, I suppose not. What else did you do today?”

“I took some time by the lake. I needed some time to myself with no other voices or the bustling of servants. A lot has happened of late, as you know.”

“I do. I did something similar. You know, I sat down this afternoon and did not think for an entire half an hour.”

“Good. It must have been good for you to stop thinking for a while. You certainly seem calmer.”

She was not, of course. She was sitting across from her husband, knowing that she was keeping a secret from him, one that would enrage him completely if he found out the truth, and all she could do was smile and talk and eat her dinner.

“I think it has all simply been too much of late,” she sighed. “I must also think on the matter of my brother. He must be arriving soon enough to meet my father, and I wonder whether or not it might be wise to meet him myself.”

“If you do not wish to, there is no need.”

“And what if he is simply some con artist? He might be pretending to be a part of our family to gain access to our estate.”

“Surely, and I mean this in the nicest possible way, if he were to attempt to steal away an estate, he would have chosen a larger one?”

“I suppose so. Not only that, but it was his mother who spoke with my father. Do you see? Everything happening has made it impossible to think of late.”

“That is perfectly fine. You and I will navigate all of this.”

“And I forgot to tell you. I have invited Samantha to stay for a while. I knew that she would not come unless I gave my express permission, and I miss her.”

“Wonderful. You shall both enjoy that.”

Their conversation continued for a while, and when they finished, Colin followed her to her room. It should have been a moment where her heart fluttered and made her excited at the prospect of him liking her once more.

Instead, the only thought in her mind was one of relief—the key was hidden.

CHAPTER 21

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