Page 30 of Wedded to the Beastly Duke
Emmeline stood stiffly by his side, determined to find something more that would outrage him enough to send her home. But he had defied all of her expectations, and she was powerless to do anything about them.
Heavens above, she had no clue how to proceed.
Simon was the first to attend, wearing his Sunday best, and the Duke transformed. She knew him as a cold, standoffish man, but when Simon was shown into the drawing room, Adam became a genial host, insisting that Simon sit, providing for his every want as though Simon were not a farmer but a man of great importance. His manner was easy, not stiff and standoffish, and although Simon had seemed ill at ease when he first entered the room, that soon changed.
Emmeline watched with dismay, behaving as the perfect hostess as inwardly she was forced to see the Duke in a new light, according to new information. He was everything that was kind and friendly, his manners impeccable but without the coldness she had come to associate with him.
Yet, as much as she raged at this turn of events, she couldn’t help but be relieved that her mismatched guests were put at ease. The curate was seated beside her at dinner, and she did her best to entertain him with talk of scripture and providing for people in need, while on her other side, the Duke spoke to the blacksmith as equals.
And as she watched her husband, her emotions tangled in her chest, no longer easily separated from one another.
On the one hand, she was frustrated that her plan had come to naught, but seeing him behave in a way that was so accommodating made her wonder if he truly was the tyrant she had believed him to be.
After all, he had shown no issue in commanding her to do whatever he fancied. He had arrived at her father’s house with the intention of marrying her sister without having evenseenher.
But this was another side to him. One that spoke to his warmth, to a gentle side she had not yet been privy to.
It looked, she was forced to reluctantly admit, well on him.
He glanced across and caught her eyes for half a second. The look was brief, but there was a hunger there, as though seeing her act as the gracious hostess was doing the same thing to him as it was doing to her. Breaking down walls.
She did not want the walls between them to be broken. And she especially did not want the Duke’s brief glances to lance through her, reminding her of the kiss they had shared.
“I love to see young love,” Mrs. Bridges confided after dinner as the ladies retired to the drawing room. “Seeing the way you and the Duke look at one another… it warms my heart.”
“Oh—” Emmeline stopped herself before she could deny the existence of any affection between her and her husband. “I suppose you have been hoping he would marry for a while?”
“Not him so much as his brother. He was Duke for so many more years before the tragic accident, and we had hoped that he would find a bride in that time, but unfortunately…” Mrs. Bridges shook her head sadly. “We never saw much of him here.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
“That’s to be expected,” Mrs. Bridges said with a smile. “The lure of London. I visited once with my late husband, and there is so much to do and to see. For many, I can imagine it’s far more appealing than the countryside.”
“How did the late Duke die?” Emmeline asked, unable to stifle her curiosity. “I know so little about it.”
“Not muchisknown about it,” Mrs. Bridges said, leaning forward, though they were the only two in the room. “They say he was here, at this very castle.”
“But what happened?”
“No one knows for sure. He slipped and hit his head, or so the rumors say, but you know how well rumors can be trusted, Your Grace. All we know for certain is that His Grace came back from the Continent to find his brother dead and inherit the title.”
“I see,” Emmeline said, wondering what it must have been like for her husband to return to a home he hadn’t seen for years and to find that his final remaining family member was dead.
No. I will not feel sorry for him.
“It’s truly a tragedy,” Mrs. Bridges said.
Emmeline nodded, relieved when the gentlemen entered the room and she could abandon the conversation.
* * *
Adam felt the way his gaze would stray to his wife time and time again, as though it were attached to a string and she was tugging on it.
He hadn’t known how pretty she would look in a simple dress and understated jewelry. And although she was clearly irritated at him, foolishly thinking he would be put out by an opportunity to get to know some of the people living on his estate, she nevertheless did her duty as hostess. That was the trait of a great duchess.
All evening, she smiled and made pretty conversation. The only time her smile died was when she looked at him.
He could not stop himself from thinking about her. When the curate was telling him about the issues he faced with his ‘flock,’ including a young girl who had gotten pregnant out of wedlock and refused to name the father, he was thinking of how his wife might respond if he visited her bedchamber that night.
