Page 66 of Eliza and the Duke
The moment he’d knocked, Eliza had opened the door and practically jumped into his arms. He’d managed to barely get them both inside, shove the door closed with his foot, and set his portmanteau on the floor.
“I missed you.” She kissed him and then hugged him tight before kissing him again.
He’d missed her so much that he’d ached with it. “It wasn’t until you opened the door that I understood I feared that I might never see you again, or that I’d wake up one morning and realize you hadn’t been real at all.”
A curl had come loose from a pin and fallen down over her cheek. He rubbed the silky length between his thumb and forefinger before pushing it back from her face. He’d missed every part of her, from her deep brown eyes to the soft husk of her voice. He kissed her softly, reverently, still not believing that he’d be able to keep on kissing her for the rest of his life.
“I’m real, Simon. This is real,” she whispered against his lips.
“How is Daisy?” he asked when he was finally assured that Eliza was here and whole. “Is she here?”
It was only then that he looked up and noticed this was no mere hotel room: it was a suite, and it was as grand as the rest of the hotel had indicated it would be. They were standing in a marble entryway with arched doors leading off in different directions. Each doorway was framed by marble pillars, and the doors were carved from a rich-looking wood. A gas chandelier hung above them, sparkling with crystals.
“Yes, she’s here and well and excited to see you, but first there’s something you need to know.” She smiled at him, but there was uncertainty in her eyes.
A terrible heaviness settled over him. She was real and he still wouldn’t have her. “Is it about our marriage? Did the license not come through?”
“We’ll be married,” she hurried to say.
His relief was very nearly palpable.
Touching her, because he couldn’t stop feeling her, he usedhis thumb to free that plump lip. “Then does it have anything to do with this hotel?” He’d thought Dunn had made the hotel arrangements, but he couldn’t afford this.
She nodded. “A little. Come with me.”
She took his hand and led him into one of the rooms off the foyer. It was a bedroom decorated in shades of rose and touches of blue. The boots she’d worn the night he’d undressed her were lying forgotten by a winged chair, and her scent already floated in the air. This was her room. Her bed. He went half-rigid just thinking of sharing it with her.
He pulled her to him instinctively, and she made a soft sound in her throat as she felt his growing desire for her against her stomach. Her eyes began to dilate as she looked up at him, but she said firmly, “Not now, but later. I promise. We really do need to talk.”
It was true, and he still needed to see Daisy. He’d never gone this long without seeing her. He missed her. Still, he kissed Eliza and let his hands roam down to her bottom. She kissed him back, but he reluctantly pulled himself away.
“Did Leigh or Rothschild pay for this suite?”
She hesitated for a fraction of a second, enough to make his suspicion rise again. “Neither. It’s a wedding present…from my father.”
“Hathaway?” he asked.
She nodded.
“Does he still believe you’re marrying Mainwaring?”
“No, he knows you’re the bridegroom. Well, I don’t actually know if he knows who you are, but he knows I’m marrying the man I love.”
“I don’t understand.” Simon had assumed that he’d be running from her father as much as from Brody. The man wouldn’t take kindly to the fact that Simon was eloping with Eliza anddashing his chance for an aristocratic husband for her. Connections meant everything to the wealthy.
“Jenny arranged to marry Lord David Felding on the condition that I be allowed to marry the man of my choosing.”
It took a moment for the words to sink through his almost instinctive refusal to accept them. “But I thought you mentioned she hadn’t planned to marry under Hathaway’s condition?”
“She hadn’t. She sacrificed herself so that we could marry.”
“But why?”
“Well, there’s more. You see, part of her condition was that I still be able to inherit my share. So, you’ll receive my dowry upon our marriage.”
“Your dowry?” he repeated stupidly as his legs sank out from under him and he sat on the end of the bed. He heard what she said, but it didn’t make sense.
She followed him down to sit beside him. “Simon, my father has agreed to give us the two hundred fifty thousand dollars. There are also some investments. I don’t know the particulars, but they earn an income of about twenty thousand dollars a year. You’ll be able to pay off your debt to Brody.”
