Page 2 of An Accidental Bride for the Duke
“Good girl.” He gave it a squeeze and then opened the door.
Daniel was the first out of the carriage, followed by Iris, and then her mother. Before them stood the family parish, a building which Iris had visited hundreds of times. Often, it brought with it hope and the feeling that inside, no matter how awful things were, salvation would be found. Today, however… nothing could be further from such a feeling as that.
Nonetheless, with her mother holding her right hand and her brother holding her left, Iris held her head high and the three started across the grounds and toward the entrance.
Today was Iris’ wedding day and with nothing to be done that might stop it, she would make her family proud and commit fully to this union that had been forced upon her shoulders. Even if she knew, as everyone else did, that the circumstances which brought it about were not her fault.
And yet, as is typical, I am the one being punished for them.
It was a month ago now when her life was changed forever. A perfectly innocent circumstance it had seemed at first, and Iris being as ignorant and blissfully unaware as she was hadn’t considered the grander implications and where they might lead. But why would she?
At twenty-one years of age, Iris was now in the throes of womanhood and with the Season being in full swing she was expected to attend social events and put her mind toward meeting a suitor who might one day ask for her hand in marriage. And in truth, the prospect excited her. Unlike some of her friends and even her older sisters, Iris had always dreamed of falling in love. She was a romantic at heart and she truly believed that when the right man came along she would know it, he would see her as nobody else had, and they would fall for on another as so often happened in all the stories.
Alas, the man who caught her eye on that most wicked day was Lord Robert Lawrence, a rogue and a rake and a scoundrel of the highest order—not that Iris knew such things! She was at a garden party when she spied him, he was handsome and wore a charming smile, and when he approached her, her heart skipped a beat, and she dared to dream…
Lord Robert was indeed charming and with this charm on full display he managed to convince Iris to go for a walk with him. She did so, not considering the implications as she should have. And no sooner were they alone did Lord Robert transform into the man she would soon come to know him as, that which the ton already did.
He tried to kiss her. She pushed him away. He tried a second time, only for others to stumble upon them and see with their eyes not what was happening but what they believed to be. That Lady Iris Hawkins was involved in a most scandalous affair which should it be found out by thetonwould smear her name for all time and ruin her family’s reputation.
So it was that her brother took charge. Although he knew the truth of it, he also knew that it made no difference. Iris had no choice but to marry Lord Robert lest she become a social pariah and be doomed to spend the rest of her life as a spinster, shunned from society and never to return.
In the month which followed, Iris had spoken little with Lord Robert. The wedding was organized by her brother, she was left to simmer as she learned more and more about her future husband’s reputation, and by the time the day arrived she knew beyond a doubt that he was indeed that which everyone said, and nothing would change this perception.
“Iris…” From beside her, Iris’ mother squeezed her hand. “Smile, dear. Please do.” She indicated ahead, the doors of the church approaching.
Iris resisted the urge to sneer, forcing a smile instead because at this point what did it even matter? Better to get this marriage off on the right foot, she supposed.
“Here we go,” Daniel said as they breeched the church. “And again, Iris, I am so proud of you. So proud…”
Iris did not blame her brother for what happened, nor did she blame her mother. They were doing what was best for the family, and Iris would never begrudge it of them. At the end of the day, this mess was her own and she would suffer its consequences. Even if those consequences were a roguish lord who she was just as likely to slap come the end of the wedding as she was to kiss.
Only then, once they entered the church, did Iris see that something was wrong.
The church was filled with family and friends; among them were her four older sisters, each with husbands of their own. It was colorfully decorated, a theme of springtime she thought, based on the colors of the flowers and streamers. At the end of the aisle was the altar and standing next to it were two men, neither of which were her future husband, so she guessed them to be his brother and best friend.
And then there was the man himself, Lord Robert… or not.
“Where is he?” her mother said in a whisper. “Daniel?”
“I…” Daniel was biting into his lower lip, his brow furrowed with confusion. “I am not sure.”
Iris’ betrothed was nowhere in sight. She had been told that he would be waiting for her—he was meant to be there right now, standing at the altar, watching her walk to him. But his space was empty and from the looks on the faces of the guests, his absence was causing confusion and panic.
“Daniel…” Iris turned to her brother. “What is going on?”
“Wait here.” Daniel released her hand and hurried down the aisle. At its end, he spoke in hushed whispers to a tall, dark and very imposing man who she knew to be the Duke of Crayford. And where Daniel appeared confused, the duke appeared furious.
That was when it dawned on her. From the anger on the duke’s face to the pitiful gazes that the guests were now fixing her in, it became all too clear what was happening. Her betrothed, the man who had forced this situation upon her, had decided not to show.
One might think that this would bring Iris some relief. And indeed, where there was a little bit of that, it was quickly replaced by anger.
How could he do this to me! To humiliate me like this. To spurn me! When he was the one who was its cause, when he was the one who forced this to begin with! And now… and now…
Iris was shaking with fury. Embarrassment too because the whispers about the church were growing. She caught hints of ‘poor girl,’ and ‘I can’t imagine how she must be feeling,’ uttered from the guests and all Iris wanted to do was turn and run and never look back.
“Quickly, Iris.” Her mother, still holding her hand, started to pull her back toward the entrance of the church. “Quickly, dear.”
“What? Where are we going?”
