Page 47 of Trapped with the Forbidden Duke
What of that situation?
She pushed that thought aside. “Nicholas will never agree to it.”
“Your brother could not stay awake long enough to agree to my stay here,” the Duke countered. “Let me speak with him. All I need now is ayesfrom you.”
But Edwina could not dismiss her doubts so easily. “Why would you do all of this? I understand that you wish to use your influence for good, butwhy?”
“Nicholas is my friend,” the Duke said simply. “Whether he agrees or not, I still see him as my friend, especially now that I know the truth. I once considered him as close as a brother would have been. Despite our bitter falling out, one cannot easily erase a friendship. Not when their friend is in need.”
“So you are doing all of this for him?” Edwina pressed.
The Duke gazed at her before nodding. “Yes.”
Edwina wondered why her heart sank, as if she had been hoping for more.
“We must plan this properly, and you must keep me in the know. For example, where will you move Nicholas? What will we tell the ton when they ask?”
“I have a more remote country estate where his condition will be kept secret. As for the ton, we will say that he is visiting a relative, or that he is escorting Lady Isabel back home and has found himself eager to stay with her. To ensure she is settled and not lonely.”
He is saying that Aunt Isabel will go with Nicholas, thus leaving us… leaving us alone.
She swallowed. “And our marriage, then,” she continued, “it will be one of convenience.”
“Yes,” he confirmed. “You will be my Duchess, and we will live together. You shall want for nothing and never have one single worry about money cross your mind ever again. You will have security and protection. On my honor, I assure you that you will have that.”
The next question left her in a rush. “And heirs? Every duke wishes to continue his legacy.”
“I will not demand anything of you if you do not wish to bear my children.”
My children.
For a second, her stomach swooped, despite the situation.
But after a moment, she sighed.
It had been a year of tragedy, after losing her father and watching her brother fall deeper into his laudanum addiction. A year of sleepless nights, constant fretting, lack of invitations to social events, and worn dresses that shamed her.
Everything the Duke told her about her family’s situation was something she had known for some time but had not wanted to accept. Now, they were all at a breaking point, and she had to be the one to do something about it. For her brother’s sake, if not her own.
For Nicholas’s sake.He does not deserve to spend his life like this.
“I want my brother back,” she confessed in a moment of vulnerability. “I want to see him laugh again. Truly laugh. So… I agree, Your Grace. I will marry you.”
She could scarcely believe that she said those words. Her world suddenly tilted on its axis.
The Duke nodded. “Then you must rest. I will take my leave tomorrow morning to obtain a special license. And… Edwina? You may call me Lucien. We will not be strangers after our wedding.”
Her face flushed at the permission to address him so informally.
“Perhaps you wish us to be strangers,” he said, moving closer to her. “However, I wish to hear how my name sounds on your lips.”
Edwina gasped quietly, looking up into his eyes. “Lucien,” she murmured, letting the name roll off her tongue.
Lucien’s gaze bored into hers, and he gave her a small, pleased smile. “Good,” he told her.
He lingered, and she half thought he would kiss her again, but he only lowered his face to hers, taking in her every feature.
“I will ensure that you are taken care of,” he said quietly as if needing to reaffirm it. Then, he pulled away and retreated to his chamber.
