Page 25 of The Duke and the Runaway Bride

Modesty looked at Beatrice with a slightly furrowed brow. “I’m sorry? Gibbard’s?”

“The dress,” Beatrice clarified. “You asked where it was from.”

“I did?” Modesty rubbed her forehead. “Yes, I must have, haven’t I?”

“When will you have children?” Elizabeth blurted out.

Beatrice could not work out the young woman. She had a suspicious attitude, and she did not know where it came from.

“Elizabeth,” Edwin scolded.

“What?” Elizabeth asked, seemingly shocked. “Is that not what comes next, or am I mistaken about marriage? It was a perfectly good question, Edwin.”

Edwin shook his head and picked up the newspaper, leaving Beatrice to fend for herself. Elizabeth clasped her hands together and stared at Beatrice.

“Oh, you wish me to answer?” Beatrice asked.

Elizabeth nodded. “Mmm-hmm.”

Beatrice looked at Edwin, but his face was hidden behind the newspaper. She groaned inwardly.

“Um, I don’t know,” she said.

The question was equal parts intrusive and exciting. The Duke had promised pleasure in a week, minus a day now, and he would surely want to start a family, which meant more pleasure. Shehopedit meant more pleasure. He had a well-known reputation in the city, but he had shown tenderness in his kiss.

Still, he was happy to remain hidden behind his newspaper.

“I am sure we will have a family in time,” Beatrice added.

She looked at him again, but he gave no indication that he had heard anything anyone had said.

It made Beatrice nervous to consider starting a family after marriage amid a whirlwind. She did not have anyone to talk to about it. She had expected to be alone with the Duke, but his stepmother and sister were here too, which made her feel more alone. It was as if it were her against the three of them instead of how it should be—she and her husband against the world.

Of course, that would only have happened if she had been allowed to marry for love.

“Will you host a ball here?” Elizabeth asked.

“I… I suppose that will be up to His Grace,” Beatrice replied.

“If it were up to Edwin, we would do nothing in Walford Estate except host business meetings. You simply must host a ball and invite everyone,” Elizabeth gushed.

“Yes, perhaps that is a good idea,” Beatrice said, hoping to get on her sister-in-law’s good side.

She studied both women at the table, and it had become obvious to her that Modesty lived in her own little world. She was unsure about Elizabeth, though. The questions could be the curiosity of a young woman, or she might be probing for more. Such as the real reason they had married in such a rush, when they had no contact prior to the incident at the ball.

Her dream came flooding back. Beatrice could not believe she had tried something so idiotic. What she had expected might happen could never have come to pass, but of all the ways it could have gone, marrying theCruel Dukehad never come to her mind.

Everything that has come to pass is my own fault, and I might as well accept that.

“I suppose you will want to redecorate the entire manor,” Elizabeth said.

“No, I would never dream of it,” Beatrice replied. “I find the manor to be beautiful as it is.”

“Oh,” Elizabeth murmured.

Beatrice knew she had given the wrong answer.

“Change can be good,” Modesty added. “You won’t touch the flowers, will you?”

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