Page 46 of An Arranged Betrothal with a Contrite Duke
The butler bowed.
“Lady Strawbridge asked me to notify you that she’s gone ahead and gone to her home to pick up some items she said she’d need,” he said.
Despite his apprehension, he couldn’t help but smile. He might have guessed that Lydia would be too excited to wait any longer to fetch the supplies she mentioned. He didn’t mind at all. In fact, it allowed him time to collect his thoughts.
“Thank you very much, Patterson,” he said. “Please, do let me know when she arrives back home.”
Patterson nodded.
“Shall I send for some tea for you and have it brought to you in here?” he asked.
Michael nodded, smiling gratefully.
“Yes, thank you,” he said. “I was so busy woolgathering that I almost forgot.”
The butler bowed, giving Michael a knowing smile. He turned to walk out of the room but turned back just inside the doorway.
“Milord, if I may?” the butler said.
Michael raised his eyebrows, giving a curt nod of his head.
“Of course,” he said.
Patterson dipped his head humbly before giving him the same smile.
“Things seem to have improved here since Lady Strawbridge joined you as your wife,” he said. “Especially for you.”
Michael froze. He was almost sure that at least one of his servants must know what he had done by marrying Lydia. But he also knew that the butler wasn’t entirely wrong. And the last thing he wanted was to act overly guilty and get rumors circulating about his dishonest intentions if they weren’t already.
“She is a wonderful duchess,” he said truthfully.
The butler nodded once more.
“That, she is,” he said. “She is the very definition of kindness when she addresses us. And her delight since the two of you started the preparations for her school has been almost childlike. And since she has been here, you smile a great deal more.”
Michael sniffed, nodding with a small smile. It was almost impossible not to smile when Lydia was present. That was another truth. But when she wasn’t there, Michael’s guilt tormented him. He could say none of those things, however.
“She is one of a kind,” he said. Again, he was being truthful as he spoke. But he wasn’t ready to admit the reasons why he smiled when his wife was present. And he couldn’t boast about how wonderful his wife had been. Not when he felt so terrible about himself when it came to her.
With one more bow, and thankfully, not another word, Patterson exited the study. Michael paced the drawing room, his thoughts consumed with Lydia once more. He tried to convince himself that he was just being paranoid, that it was only his guilt making him think that people knew more than they did. Naturally, it would be Lark and Patterson to notice things that were different in him with the addition of Lydia as his wife. But how could any of them know what he had done when he hadn’t told any of them a single thing?
There was one thing that was certain, however. He knew that, like Lark, Patterson had a point. He could sense the overall atmosphere change through Strawbridge Manor since he married Lydia. He could also feel the changes within him ever since she had entered his life. Even his mother had seemed considerably happier since he married Lydia. Of course, that could be because she was expecting grandchildren. That thought sent him back into his spiraling thoughts once more.
As he reflected on their time together, he realized that he loved her deeply and wanted to have a proper marriage with her. He was confident that Lydia felt the same way. Regardless of her feelings, he knew that she deserved the truth about the vase and his initial reason for proposing. He also wanted to express how much she meant to him, how she had turned his life around and brought him happiness beyond measure. The thought of having children with her filled him with excitement, more than any material possession ever could.
Determined to make a grand gesture, Michael began to rehearse his words. He would have the house filled with flowers and invite a jeweler to select a special piece for Lydia. He rushed off to find Patterson. He had a plan that he could hardly wait to enact. And he didn’t know just how much time he had to do it. He hurried down the hallway, nearly tumbling into the butler as he rounded the corner of the hall that led to the kitchens.
Patterson stepped back with his hands up, looking at his master with bemusement.
“Forgive me,” Michael said quickly, straightening his coat and trying to appear casual. “I was looking for you.”
The butler chuckled, bowing to his master.
“At your service, milord duke,” he said. “What can I do for you?”
Michael cleared his throat and took a deep breath.
“I need two very important things,” he said. “Well, three, but I will tend to the third.”
