Page 49 of His Forbidden Duchess
Many reasons why she should not marry Felix ran through Eloise’s mind, but not once did she think it was because she did not love him.
The priest guided them to face one another, directing them to look into one another’s eyes, to take each other’s hands. It was then that she fell into his essence. She felt herself slipping into a trance, each word of the priest a distant echo.
Felix’s grasp was warm, and the colors in his eyes seemed myriad, like a rainbow of browns and greens. She stared into them, thinking how strange it was to be so close to him, to be here together like this.
This was a man she had known her entire life and yet hardly knew at all. Perhaps there were parts of him that she would never know.
“…to have and to hold…” the priest intoned, his voice bland and repetitive. Eloise shivered, lost in her thoughts.
Felix squeezed her hand gently, his thumb brushing over her knuckles, and it brought her back to herself, back to the chapel. It was such a small gesture, yet it was so kind and so loving in this strangest of situations.
She lifted her eyes to his. He was staring at her, his eyes steady and intense. Was that a flicker of something more in his gaze?
Or was it just her foolish heart imagining things?
“Do you, Felix Greystone, Duke of Kingswell, take this woman, Eloise Manning, to be your lawfully wedded wife?”
Felix’s response was immediate and firm. There was not an ounce of doubt in the words.
“I do.”
She watched open-mouthed as he slipped the ring onto her finger—a modest gold band—and her entire being became lost in the confusion she felt.
It was all so absurd! Felix, Jeremy’s best friend, placing a wedding band upon her finger in this tiny chapel with only a handful of witnesses.
But then, their marriage was not a grand love affair. It was necessity, pure and simple.
No matter what I crave in secret.
“And do you, Eloise Manning, take this man, Felix Greystone, to be your lawfully wedded husband?”
Her mouth felt dry. She parted her lips, and for a moment, no sound came out. She had no choice but to marry Felix. If she did not, her family was ruined, and Mr. Carlisle would take everything her family owned. But the words stuck in her throat.
It is not supposed to be like this.
Felix’s hand tightened around hers, his eyes urging her to speak, and she realized how long she’d been silent. The chapel thrummed with tension. Finally, she managed to say the two little words.
“I do.”
The priest blessed them, murmuring the final words of the ceremony. When he looked up again, it was with a wide, proud smile.
“I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”
Eloise’s heart stilled. It would not be the first time she kissed him, but it would be the first time as his wife. And though the congregation was small, they were there. Witnessing everything.
Eloise licked her lips, staring up at him, feeling that familiar stirring in her stomach.
Felix lowered his head, his mouth hovering just above hers. Eloise felt the warmth of his breath, the closeness of him, the way his scent enveloped her.
Her breath hitched.
This kiss would seal their agreement. Seal their marriage.
His lips brushed hers, featherlight, so different from their earlier passion, so teasing. She wanted to reach out and pull him to her without a care for their witnesses. She wanted to feel him pressed against her as he had been before.
“Congratulations, My Lady,” he murmured, his voice low.
She forced a smile as she throbbed with love and unaddressed need.
