Page 15 of His Accidental Duchess

The butler executed a neat bow and withdrew, closing the door softly behind him.

The Duke threw himself into the chair he’d occupied earlier and gestured to an empty armchair opposite. “Sit, sit. We have things to discuss, I think.”

Anna wasn’t aware she’d already crossed to the armchair until the cool leather touched her skin. Drawing in a breath, she laid her arms on the armrests.

“Go on, then. I imagine you know already that I have no dowry. So, what are your expectations?”

“Expectations,” he murmured. “Not the word I would have chosen. Expectations imply hope. No, I haveterms, Miss Belmont. Rules, I suppose. Hear me out, then you can decide for yourself whether you wish to agree to my terms. If you do agree, then we can put the special license my brother obtained to use and marry immediately. Thoughts?”

Thoughts? Anna hadn’t had any of those for a full minute or two. A headache was forming behind her eyes, pulsing at her temples. She longed to rub the bridge of her nose, or better yet, lie down in a darkened room and purge the memory of today from her mind forever.

Well, that was certainly not going to happen, so she concentrated on the here and now.

“If you want to marry,” she said, “why not choose a Society lady? Why marry your younger brother’s cast-off bride? I imagine rich ladies throw themselves at you daily.”

“They do,” he conceded. “But they are swiftly driven away by my… shall we say, mycharacter. To be frank, Miss Belmont, I’m a singular sort of man. I like to make things happen. I like to seek out what I want. Henry is content with whatever he stumbles across, but I am more discerning. I have toyed with the idea of a wife before. A second wife, I should say. There was a previous duchess. Her successor must be…” He hesitated, fumbling for the right word. “…remarkable.”

“Remarkable how?”

“That is for me to decide. Now, do you want to hear my terms or not?”

Anna considered telling him exactly where to take his terms and then getting up and marching out. It would be satisfying, certainly, but only for a minute or two. Then she would be outside again, in the rain that had just begun to fall, a jilted bride and the laughingstock of London, with nowhere to go and nobody to help her.

She conjured up an image of the Earl of Downton’s unpleasant, smiling face and momentarily closed her eyes. When she opened them again, the Duke was staring at her, a strange expression on his face.

“Go on,” she said. “I’ll hear you out.”

On cue, the door opened, admitting the butler and a footman. The footman set down a tea tray laden with cake, good things, and a steaming bowl of savory-smelling stew that made her mouth water. The butler carried a clean, warm blanket and carefully draped it around her shoulder. Her cheeks burned.

“Thank you.”

“You are most welcome, Madam,” the butler responded carefully.

They both withdrew, and she glanced over to the Duke. He was pouring two cups of tea.

“Rule number one,” he said, pushing a cup towards her. “As my wife and the Duchess of Langdon, you will be responsible for raising my daughter.”

She flinched, nearly spilling the tea.

“You… you have a daughter?”

He smiled mirthlessly. “Hasn’t the gossips told you that, at least? She is seven years old, and her name is Katherine. Kitty. She?—”

“I had no idea.”

He narrowed his eyes. “Rule number two, do not interrupt me. I’m not a chatterbox, so waiting your turn to speak should not be terribly hard, don’t you think?”

She felt the color rise to her cheeks. The man was insufferable, but hewasshowing more hospitality than she had strictly earned. He was, to her annoyance, being perfectly polite, too. Except for when he’d grabbed her chin, of course. She could still feel the ghost of his fingers brushing against her jaw.

“May I speak?” she ground out, at last.

He nodded benignly. “You may.”

“Go on, then. Rule three. I assume there’s a third rule.”

He took a delicate sip of his tea. “You assume correctly. We would be the Duke and Duchess, not two halves of a whole. We are not soulmates. We are not even in love. I expect you to leave me alone. No idle chit-chat, no cozy evenings in the drawing room. I shall have my life, and you shall have yours. Do not bother me about pointless matters. In fact, don’t seek me out at all unless it’s an emergency. By emergency, I mean something important and pressing that you cannot solve yourself, or something to do with Kitty. Do you understand?”

“I think perhaps you underestimate how fascinating you are. I don’t particularly see myself wanting to speak to you very often, Your Grace.”

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