Page 75 of Wedded to the Scottish Duke

“How did this happen?” she muttered.

“Your sister discovered the truth, Celia,” her father said soothingly. “She has been at her publishing house this morning. I think she practically raced there when the sun rose, shortly after the scandal sheet arrived on her doorstep. She asked questions, pressed people, until she had an answer.”

“An answer?”

Celia’s mouth was suddenly dry. She feared what would come next. Surely it would be some declaration that they had been seen together at the opera or Lady Arundel’s house. Her father was about to tell her that he knew exactly just how much she had broken the rules of propriety.

“It seems Lady Alicia gave these lies to the scandal sheet. Fortunately, one of your sister’s good friends at the publishing house has a connection with the printer of the scandal sheet.” Her father cast a glance at the Duke. “It seems that Lady Alicia went there and delivered the news. Perhaps out of spite.”

“Spite?” Celia repeated. “She had no reason to detest me.”

“I preferred ye to her, that much was obvious,” the Duke abruptly declared. “If she had her heart so set on marriage, and ye put in her head that I would marry her, perhaps she wanted revenge.”

Celia felt sick. Never had she thought it would come to this when she had first thought Lady Alicia and the Duke of Hardbridge would make a good match.

“It seems your sister has also taken justice into her own hands,” Jonathan went on.

“What?” Celia asked distractedly.

She was all too aware of the way the Duke was staring at her now. He hadn’t even blinked. It reminded her of how he had looked at her in that dressing room.

“There’s more to this than we could have known,” Jonathan said with a sigh. “Violet has discovered a great secret through her contacts, indeed. It seems Lady Alicia is with child.”

“I beg your pardon?” Celia stumbled forward.

“Yes. Perhaps the father has refused to marry her—that part isn’t clear. Yet, she is determined to marry. It seems when her best chance of marriage was taken away…” Jonathan looked between Celia and Keith. “She decided to take revenge.”

Celia felt rather sick. Sympathy for Lady Alicia welled up in her gut. She had been a woman seduced by a man, just like Charlotte. She had tried to save her child from poverty. Yet… she took revenge in a vicious way, indeed. As fast as Celia felt sympathy, bile rose in her throat.

A memory resurfaced. Celia could see in her mind’s eye the first night she had gone to Keith’s chamber. She had mistakenly stumbled into another gentleman’s chamber, where she had spotted a blonde lady in his arms.

Had that been Lady Alicia with her lover? Was that the lord who had refused to marry her?

“Violet has written a story of her own and given it to the paper, all about Lady Alicia. If she’s to be believed, no one will want anything to do with Lady Alicia after this.”

“Some comfort,” Celia muttered wryly. “Maybe Violet should focus on exposing the man who got Lady Alicia pregnant in the first place. But nothing can change what has happened already.”

“No, but there’s something we can do about that.” Jonathan took another sip of his brandy and then gestured to the Duke with his glass. “Did you think the Duke of Hardbridge had come just to talk about this matter? He has come to ask for your hand in marriage, Celia.”

Celia spun around to face the Duke again. His expression was impassive, completely inscrutable.

“You asked for my hand?” she whispered in disbelief.

She knew he did not want this. Time and time again he had ignored her as a potential bride. He wanted someone he didn’t care about. He merely wanted to make her his mistress. That much had been made abundantly clear.

“I did not agree to this,” Celia declared with sudden ferocity. “Father, I need to talk to the Duke of Hardbridge. Alone.”

CHAPTER 21

Iexpected something like this.

Keith didn’t move much as he watched the Marquess of Pembroke put up a fight with Celia. In the end, Celia won.

“I cannot leave you alone for long,” the Marquess said as he stood up to leave.

“If you intend for us to be married, what is wrong with another minute spent alone?” Celia asked as she opened the door for him. “I need to talk to the Duke of Hardbridge plainly.”

The Marquess clearly took this as a bad omen. He left, but not before grabbing the brandy carafe and taking it with him. As the door closed behind him, Keith lifted his head to look at Celia.

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