Page 43 of His Duchess in Disguise
Emma looked down at her hands.Even in embarrassment, she is beautiful.She should be courted gently and tenderly, not rushed into an arrangement. But do I really have a choice? For that matter, will she even say yes?Giddeon is not wrong in his assessment that more time should be taken, but I have so little of it now.
“Emma,” he said gently, “I know you are running away from a forced marriage. Your instincts that the Earl is an evil man are not wrong, but being alone in the world makes you vulnerable. So far, you have been very lucky. Your adventures included a kindly farm wife and a happy-go-lucky lad with a big heart, and now me. I can think of only one way to protect you. Emma, will you marry me?”
Emma looked down at him and swallowed hard. “Your Grace, I had hoped to marry for love,” she said.
He sighed. “And so, had I, Miss Hoskins. If it helps, I find you comely, intriguing, and not in any way boring. All of which is more than I can say for most of the young ladies at court.”
“I’m not really a lady,” Emma said, “Father called me a blue-stocking and said that it was a shame that I had learned to read.”
The forlorn note in her voice caught at Leo’s heart. “Emma,” he said, “if you marry me, you may read all the books in the Menhiransten library, and as many as I can afford to buy for you. I’m rather fond of books myself.”
“You are?” Her face was filled with wonder, as she looked at him. “I don’t think I ever met a man who liked to read books.”
Leo studied her face very carefully. Aside from the ugly bruise that had by now faded to a faint yellowish-green, it was a lovely face. Her eyes were the color of spring columbines, her skin lightly tanned, and the dusting of freckles across her nose was simply adorable. Her full mouth was a deep pink, and although the lower lip trembled just a little now, he had watched her smile and laugh at herself as she told her story of mishaps and bits of luck. And right then, he knew that this was the one, the lady of his dreams, and there was no way that he would give her up to the Earl of Cleweme.
“Emma,” he said, “I think we would get on famously, and that if it has a chance, love would happen. I do have need of a wife.”
She began to giggle. “That’s howPride and Prejudice, the new book by the author ofSense and Sensibilitystarts out.”
“There, now, you see? This is a meeting fated by the heavens. Before I go to face that nasty Earl in a duel, I shall be a married man. If I prevail, you will be cosseted, loved, and cared for as no other woman. If I die, you will be a widow of means. While I cannot leave you Menhiransten, for it would likely be dissolved and given back to the crown unless you should be with child, I do have a considerable personal fortune which I will settle upon you.”
“Being comfortable sounds quite nice,” Emma said. “I’m not sure about the becoming with child part. Are you sure that we will come to love each other? What if we wed and then discover we don’t get on well at all?”
“I do not think there is any danger of that at all unless you find me repulsive,” he said.
“Oh, no, Your Grace, I do not find you repulsive at all. Quite the contrary. I just don’t know you, that’s all.”
“I understand. If circumstances were different, I would beg your father leave to pay my addresses, but I fear that fate and time are against us. Dear Emma, if you say yes, I can have the village parson here, and we can be quickly wed.”
Chapter 27
Emma looked into the Duke’s earnest face. “Your Grace, do you mean it? This is not a cruel hoax, not a scheme to use me and then throw me aside?”
“It is not a hoax, I promise. Emma, I would not rush you, but I might be dead seven days from now. If I am to protect you, then I must give you my name and make provisions for you before the duel. I cannot court you from the grave.”
“Why must you fight the Earl, Your Grace?”
“Because I caught him cheating at cards. In fact, now that I think about it, there is a good chance that he cheated the night he won your father’s permission to marry you.”
“Good heavens! Is that possible? And the losing at horses?”
“As to that, I cannot say. But I can have someone look into it. If you will give me the right to do so.”
“The right to look into it, I will give you and gladly, Your Grace. I do hope you will not regret this.”
“I do not think I will, Miss Hoskins.”
“Then, yes, I will marry you.”
The Duke caught her right hand in his and kissed her fingers, then he caught her up in his arms and kissed her lips. He then took off his signet ring, and placed it over her thumb, folding her fingers around it. “I think we shall deal famously together,” he said.
“Your Grace!” said Mrs. Noddicott, “Is this not rather sudden?”
Emma flushed and started to turn toward the housekeeper. Leo cradled the hand he held and smiled. “Mrs. Noddicott, there are some things in this world that come to one, and you just know that they are right. This is right.”
“But Your Grace,” burst out Mrs. Noddicott, “Is she not affianced to the Earl of Cleweme? It was in all the papers that came with the evening mail. And there is a reward out for her return.”
“Precisely. But the marriage was arranged by her father without the young lady’s consent. Since she is nineteen . . . am I not correct, Emma?” At her nod, he went on, “She is free to bestow her hand where she wishes. Since her signature is not on any papers, we shall proceed as if we know nothing of her father’s arrangements. It is plausible, given our somewhat remote location.”
