Page 44 of The Duke's Forbidden Bride
“It is good to see you again. How is business?”
“It is well, Your Grace,” she replied, her tone much more reserved in his presence. “I was just discussing jasmines with Her Grace. Fine flowers for a fine duchess you have chosen.”
“I’ve chosen well, indeed,” the Duke agreed flatly, sparing Eleanor a sidelong glance.
“Your Grace?” Mrs. Pavely asked, looking between them. “It is true, is it not? After all, the village is abuzz with the whirlwind romance of two young aristocrats who, despite traveling so far from their homes, managed to find one another not once but twice. It is terribly romantic. Some wondered at the hasty wedding, but when love calls, it shouldn’t be ignored.”
The Duke stiffened, almost blowing their charade.
Mrs. Pavely looked lost and a little worried, so Eleanor reached for the Duke’s hand and offered him the honey bun.
“Regretfully, I did not know when you would return from yourever-so-mysterioustravels, my darling, so I did not think to buy a bun for you,” she cooed. “But please take my last bite. After all, everything I have is yours.”
She pressed close to him, amusing herself as she tipped her head back to look up at him. He flashed her a warning look.
Eleanor had won this hand, backed him into a corner.
But then he leaned in, making her heart race and her eyes widen. For a moment, she pictured his lips wrapping around her fingers as he bit into the pastry.
Their gazes met, and her breath hitched. But at the last moment, the Duke plucked the bite from her hand and popped it into his mouth.
“Delicious,” he murmured, pulling her close. “It is almost as sweet as you,darling.”
She was caught off-guard by how effortlessly he played along, even though she could see the fierce reluctance in the tightness of his mouth.
She started when Mrs. Pavely clapped her hands together. “Oh, you are lovely together, Your Graces! A truly charming match.”
“Hmm, I am sure,” the Duke muttered. “Do excuse us, we must take our leave.”
Before Eleanor could properly say her farewells, he was steering her away and toward the carriage.
As soon as they were out of sight, she pulled free from his grip, but he was already rounding on her. He backed her up against the carriage.
“What do you think you are playing at?” he hissed.
“What areyouplaying at?” she shot back. “You cannot look as though the very sight of me offends you. Not here, at least. You may show your disdain in Everdawn Hall, but here… We do not know whether Lord Belgrave has people lurking in the village. We must act like a happy couple in public. Surely, you can see reason in that.”
The Duke looked at her for a moment before sighing, stepping back, and nodding with a groan. He opened the door to the carriage.
“Play as you must, but do not ever offer me anything in such a way again,” he warned, pointedly motioning for her to go in.
Eleanor arched an eyebrow at him as she climbed into the carriage. “Oh, I think I will. And next time, I will aim better—perhaps get some honey on that lovely, unruffled collar of yours.”
His eyes flashed with annoyance, but she was already laughing to herself as she settled into her seat.
Chapter Thirteen
“Lord Heswall is planning to start a new business in London, Your Grace. Have you heard?”
The question came from Lord Milborne, a man who had recently inherited a barony. The way his eyes kept flicking to Eleanor had not gone unnoticed.
Several days after his venture into the village, Spencer found himself in Lord Heswall’s drawing room, surrounded by the local gentry and their associates and relatives.
Businessmen, merchants, and barons mingled, and although Spencer had originally worried that it was not the company his wife desired, he quickly retracted his initial judgment.
Conversation flowed well, and he found himself interested in how the neighboring villages and estates were faring. It filled in the gaps of the knowledge he had already sought.
“I have, indeed,” he answered. “The two of us drank to it in his drawing room several days ago.”
