Page 33 of Married to the Earl

So, she lost herself in the details of the party that had been arranged to celebrate their wedding. It, too, was small, and Astrid found that the small guest list worked against her in a way she had not anticipated. It was impossible to get lost in the crowd.

Wherever she went, whatever she did, she felt scrutinized.

Groups of ladies clustered together, heads bent toward each other, eyes on Astrid.What are they saying about me?she wondered nervously, shuffling through the fears she’d had about what people would think of her at her wedding.Do they think I’m with child? Do they know I’m buying my father out of legal trouble?

There was no way of knowing, and it tormented her.

Her one comfort was that Lord Middleborough seemed to be the object of just as much gossip as Astrid was. There were clusters of people looking at him as they talked, too.

But Lord Middleborough seemed not to care. Astrid thought it was possible he might not even have noticed.

He led her onto the dance floor for a turn, keeping his eyes fixed on something far above her head as they danced. Astrid did her job, going through the motions of the dance with him, but she felt bereft. She had imagined this moment in her life, her wedding day, her first dance in the arms of her husband.

It had never been likethis.

She felt as though he didn’t care who he danced with, or even that he danced. He was doing what was expected of him, nothing more. When the song came to an end, he kissed her hand and accepted that of a lady in a yellow gown, leaving Astrid alone on the dance floor.

A tap came on her shoulder. She turned and found herself face to face with a well-dressed man of about her own age with thick dark hair and smiling eyes.

“May I have this dance?” the man asked.

“Certainly, My Lord.” Anything was better than standing here alone on the dance floor.

He swept her into his arms as the song began. “Oh, I’m not a lord,” he said with a little laugh. “I’m a commoner, like yourself. Well, like you were until today, I mean!”

“What brings you to the wedding?” She was surprised. She had thought that she and her father were the only commoners here, apart from the servants.

“I own a stake in Lord Middleborough’s gentlemen’s club,” the man said. “My name is Henry Wilson.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“And you. He speaks quite highly of you, you know.”

“Does he?” Astrid wasn’t sure what to make of that. “I’m surprised he speaks of me at all,” she managed.

“Oh, yes,” Mr. Wilson said with a laugh. “He admires you quite a lot, My Lady. He speaks of your beauty and wit.”

I’m not a lady,she itched to say again, but she held herself back. She didn’t want to change the subject. “When did he speak to you of me?” she asked, curiosity overwhelming her.

“Many times!” Mr. Wilson said. “He said you were lovely, and I must say, he had that exactly right. You may not be of noble birth, Lady Middleborough, but you will fit right in among theton, I have no doubt.”

Lady Middleborough. It was the first time anyone had referred to Astrid by her new name, and it sent a shiver down her spine.That’s who I am now.

And her husband had told his business partner that she was lovely? Andwitty?

Astrid couldn’t believe it. It was hard to imagine Lord Middleborough speaking that way of anybody, to anybody. He simply wasn’t the kind of man to rhapsodize.

Mr. Wilson is just being polite.

But she couldn’t help glancing over her shoulder toward her new husband, still dancing with the lady in the yellow gown.

Was it possible that Mr. Wilson was reporting the truth?

Could Lord Middleborough really think those things of her? Was it possible he had a genuine interest in Astrid Dawson?

Chapter 14

It was surreal to be the wife of an earl.

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