Page 60 of Married to the Cruel Duke

He chuckled and the pair made their way back to the estate. It was only a short time later, when Rebecca made her way to the dinning room, dressed in her best, heart pounding in her chest.

She could hear voices from where she stood on the other side of the door. She took a deep breath.

She wanted desperately for this to go well. It was her first chance to make a good impression on Patrick. She could only hope their first meeting didn’t leave him with too bad of an impression of her.

Rebecca took a deep breath then pushed inside.

The second she stepped through the doors, William and Patrick both turned to look at her.

“Patrick, I’d like you to meet my wife, Rebecce,” William said with an easier smile than Rebecca was used to seeing him wear. “Rebecca, this is Patrick, my solicitor.”

“Lovely to properly meet you,” Rebecca smiled. “I have heard so much about you.”

“I wish I could say the same, but William won’t tell me anything no matter how many times I ask.”

“Oh,” she tried to hide the way her face fell. She should have known he would have better things to talk about than her.

“Forgive me for trying to discuss business when you tell me you came over to discuss business.”

“But this is business! I spent so long arranging it. The least you could do is tell me if things are going well.”

William huffed out a half laugh.

“But you will tell me how things are going, won’t you, Rebecca?” he asked turning to her.

“What?” she asked, stunned. “I-I don’t know.”

“You don’t need to worry, I am simply teasing you.”

“Why don’t we sit down and enjoy our meal?” William said.

“Of course,” Patrick grinned. “That is why I’m here, isn’t it?”

William scoffed, rolling his eyes.

Rebecca was starting to worry something was wrong, but when she caught his eyes, he just shook his head and smiled.

Patrick waited until after they had been served their meals to speak once more.

“So, I hear the pair of you have been spending quite a bit of time together lately. What have you been doing?”

“I would rather discuss how you heard what I am doing in my personal time,” William interjected.

“That is hardly the point! I just want to know if you are up to anything exciting!”

“We went for a picnic earlier today,” Rebecca said after a moments hesitation. “And while we were out, he showed me the grounds.”

“That must have been nice, but why did it take you so long for you to see the grounds? Shouldn’t he have done that when you first arrived?”

“I had a tour of the manor, just not the grounds outside,” she said a bit too quickly.

“I suppose I can understand that, but it still seems like a major over sight.”

“She needed some time to settle in and adjust,” William said, shooting her a reassuring smile. “I rather think we both did.”

Rebecca found herself smiling back, relife flooding over her. It looked like she hadn’t said anything too foolish after all.

“Regardless, did the two of you enjoy your picnic?”

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