Page 16 of His Unwanted Duchess

She glanced behind her. Sure enough, Theodore and Anna were stepping out of the church, deep in conversation. They would see them in a moment and head right towards them.

“Let me be straight with you, Miss Haversham,” the Duke said, speaking a little quicker now. He clearly wanted to get the matter over with before his friend approached. “You are under no legalobligation to give me my favor. Some might argue you have nomoralobligation, too, but you strike me as a remarkablyhonorablewoman, my dear. I have upheld my end of the bargain—rather nicely, if I do say so myself—and now it is time for you to uphold yours. That requires agreeing to my proposal. I cannot force you to marry me, naturally, but this is my favor. This is what I want. And if I were you, I would not risk turning me down, Miss Haversham.”

“Can I think it over?” she managed, her voice a trifle hoarse.

He chuckled. “You may. But don’t take too long. There are some rules we must agree on before anything is announced. You’ll want to hear these rules.”

Beatrice frowned. “Rules?”

Before she could say anything else, there was a distant yelp, and she heard her name being called. It wasn’t a surprise when she turned to see Anna, red-faced, racing towards her, Theodore hot on her heels.

Anna’s condition was beginning to show, her belly gracefully curving out, pressing against her dress. Probably, she would be expected to go into confinement soon, but Beatrice couldn’t imagine her friend doing anything of the sort.

“Anna, I—” Beatrice was cut off when her friend threw her arms around her neck, squeezing her tight.

“Oh, Beatrice, that was awful,” Anna whispered. “You poor dear.”

“I’m… I’m not exactly heartbroken, you know.”

Anna pulled back, eyeing her carefully. She’d always been too sharp for Beatrice to hide much of anything from her. Flushing, Beatrice glanced away.

Theodore, the Duke of Langdon, was staring at his friend, his eyes narrowed. “That was quite a show, Stephen,” he said.

“Yes, but necessary, I think,” Stephen answered blandly. “A private matter might have allowed the Marquess to talk his way out of it. Or worse yet, do more harm to that poor woman he has already wronged. You know how I hate dramatics, Theodore, but it wasquitenecessary.”

Theodore and Anna exchanged a pointed look, and Beatrice felt as though she were eavesdropping on a private conversation, somehow.

What would it be like to have that kind of connection with somebody? It was more than what she felt with her friends. It wasdifferent,somehow. She bit her lower lip, hard, and averted her gaze.

“Beatrice, I’m sure you’re very upset after all of this,” Anna said abruptly, making her flinch. “And, Theo, I’m sureyouhave a great deal to talk about with your friend, don’t you?”

That sounded distinctly ominous. Judging by the furrow between Stephen’s eyebrows, he thought so, too.

“Indeed,” Theodore drawled, meeting his friend’s eyes. “What do you suggest, my dear?”

“I shall take Beatrice home,” Anna answered firmly. “Lord and Lady Stanley are quite lost after all of this, and I assured them that I would take care of her. I’ll take her home in our carriage, and you can walk His Grace here home yourself. How does that sound?”

Theodore shot her another meaningful look. “As you say, my dear.”

Anna gave a brief nod. And then, before anyone could say anything, or protest in any way, she grabbed Beatrice’s arm and towed her away, leading her away from the church and down towards a little grassy hill, besides which the wealthier members of the congregation would park their carriages.

Beatrice spotted Anna and Theodore’s carriage at once, the ducal crest standing out against the smooth lacquer. Anna hustled her towards it, a footman barely getting the door open in time before Anna pushed her friend forward, up into the plush, newly upholstered interior.

Beatrice obeyed—it was generally easier to go along with whatever Anna wanted—and sat there meekly, waiting for her friend to rearrange her skirts and speak first.

Anna knocked on the roof of the carriage. “Drive on,” she commanded, sounding equal parts tired and annoyed. “So, Beatrice, are you going to tell me what, exactly, is going on here? Why did you look so relieved when Stephen made that fuss? Didn’t you wantto marry the Marquess?”

Beatrice took a breath to explain—and burst into tears.

The two women sat in silence for a while. Beatrice had told the story of how she came to be engaged to the Marquess, and how she had gone to the Duke of Blackwood for help. She hadn’t yet mentioned thefavorhe had asked for. The carriage trundled along the paved streets, the world passing by right outside the curtained windows.

Beatrice privately thought that Anna and Theodore’s carriage was much nicer than theirs. For one thing, it was pretty clear that the carriage had just been recently resprung, and there was no John to kick at her shins when he was bored.

Honestly, that boy is just an overgrown child.

“I had no idea things were that bad,” Anna murmured. “Oh, Beatrice, I’ve been such an awful friend.”

Beatrice bit her lip, shaking her head. “No, Anna, I’m not blaming you for anything. You’ve been through a great deal, and now you and Theo are in love, and I’m so happy for you. Truly, I am.”

---