Agnes nudged her playfully.
“Is this why you have been so strange?” she asked.
Cecily giggled nervously.
“It is,” she said.
The Countess put her hands together, and Cecily could hear her wide grin.
“This calls for a celebration,” she said. “I shall go tell the cook to prepare something extra special tonight.”
Cecily nodded. As Agnes and her father also exchanged embraces and praise for the eldest Derrick daughter, Cecily laced her fingers together. Everyone seemed supportive of her news. Best of all, Agnes would now feel free to pursue any suitors that caught her interest. Cecily knew she had done a good thing. But she couldn’t help feeling nervous. Would the Duke keep his word?
Chapter Fifteen
That night, her family did indeed have a special feast to celebrate Cecily’s engagement. The dinner was filled with excited conversation, but Cecily could feel eyes on her the entire evening. She did not need to guess which of her family members was staring at her so intently.
Still, she made sure to contribute to the talk of the wedding plans. Vain though she was sure her efforts were, she wanted to show her family that she was pleased with her decision. As soon as she retired for the evening, her suspicions about who had been watching her at dinner were confirmed.
Before Greta took her leave, Cecily heard the door to her bedchambers fly open.
“Cece,” Agnes said, shutting the door behind her and running over to her sister. “I have had no time to talk with you about this. How did this happen?”
Cecily giggled. Not because she was giddy, but because she herself did not really know. She understood that the Duke wanted a marriage of convenience and that he said it was because they both knew how it felt to be scorned by theton. She could only guess that it had something to do with whatever injuries he sustained in the carriage accident of which his mother spoke.
“It seems that the Duke took a liking to me after our dinner with him and his mother,” Cecily said. She didn’t know how true that was. But she had only known her fiancé for a couple of days. She did not feel it was her place to tell even her sister any of the things he had told her.
Greta gasped.
“Do you mean that the Duke proposed to you?” she asked.
Cecily nodded, but it was Agnes who answered.
“And she accepted,” she said. “Can you believe it?”
Greta gently squeezed her mistress’s shoulder, exhaling heavily.
“What an amazing turn of events,” she breathed.
Agnes put a hand on her sister’s back.
“Indeed,” she said. “This is quite the surprise, Sister. Surely, he did not profess to love you.”
Cecily laughed. She should have expected such an interrogation from her sister. She knew that Agnes meant well. But she could never tell her sister the reason she had so quickly accepted such a proposal.
“He believes that we have much in common,” she said truthfully. “I suppose he did not wish to risk me accepting some other marriage proposal.”
The silence that followed told Cecily that Greta and Agnes were exchanging glances. She winced, wishing that her sister would just be happy for her and not question the engagement, however quickly it happened. But deep down, she knew that she would be the same way about Agnes.
“Are you sure this is what you want, Sister?” Agnes said at last.
That was a question to which Cecily knew the answer with complete certainty. She reached out toward her sister until the younger girl took her hands.
“I am certain that this is the best decision,” she said. “After all, this is my chance at the life I thought I would never have. How could I be anything but thrilled?”
Agnes was quiet for a minute, thinking about what Cecily said.
“But will you truly be happy?” she asked.
