Page 42 of A Bride for the Wicked Duke

It wasn’t enough to simply give her lessons and hope that they might somehow see her take on the necessary characteristics required for her to find a husband. If she had the entire Season, sure. But one month? Less than that now. No, if Gerald truly wished to see Lady Hawkins married off and out of his life, he would need to take further action.

A dinner party, perhaps? He knew many a young eligible lord eager for marriage – dammit, he had introduced his sister to enough of them. What if he was to host a party with the express purpose of helping Lady Hawkins to find a mate?Yes... and that will have the added benefit of redirecting Lady Hawkins’ probable assumptions that I am interested in her.

Tonight was a mistake, and it cannot happen again. It will not happen again.

Never mind that the thought of hosting a dinner party to help Lady Hawkins find a suitor made Gerald feel suddenly ill, sickened by the idea of watching other men fawn over her. Jealous even as he pictured this faceless lord doing to Lady Hawkins exactly what he had just done. Never mind that! The end result was what mattered, that was all.

Once that was done with, Gerald could focus on what really mattered. Or what he told himself did, anyhow. Rosalind was in need of a suitor of her own, as she was now three Seasons past her debut and it was time for her to move onto the next stage of her life. And Gerald also, as loathe as he was to admit it, would one day need to find himself a wife. As a duke, it was expected, since put on hold because he told himself he wished to focus on Rosalind’s future first.An easy excuse to tell those who ask, but a harder one for me to swallow.

Lady Hawkins came first, and Gerald forced himself to forget what happened tonight so that he might focus on what mattered. This was no easy thing to do, for his manhood was still painfully erect and all he wanted to do was release it and pleasure himself with thoughts of Lady Hawkins. What was more, he suspected that she might wish to share in this pleasure so the two could devolve into animalistic stylings of lust and --

No!Gerald rose from his desk and strode from the office, determined to put those thoughts out of his mind. He needed a drink. He needed... what he needed was to forget about Lady Hawkins and how easily she unmanned him.Easier said than done.

ChapterFourteen

Aurelia was in desperate need for something to distract herself with. It had been two days since her evening with the duke and needless to say there had been little on her mind but what had happened between them.

I cannot sleep. I can barely eat. And every time I am given even a moment of silence, my mind strays to thoughts of his head between my legs.

It was for this reason that when a letter arrived earlier today, sent from her sister Caroline, inviting Aurelia and Eveline to have lunch with her at her home, that she was thrilled for the excuse. The only downside was that the letter also insisted that they bring Rosalind, not ordinarily a problem as Rosalind was her best friend, but with all that had happened Aurelia feared that to take one look at her friend might see her devolve with memories of her brother. Again.

She needed to be careful. She needed to keep her mind focused. And most importantly, she needed to not do or say anything that might allude to what she had been getting up to with the duke.

Focus, Aurelia. You cannot let them know or even suspect that anything happened. As far as they know, you hate the duke. And he hates you.

“... Aurelia?” she barely heard the voice of her best friend speaking from beside her. “Aurelia? Are you even listening?”

“Huh...” Aurelia was not listening. She and Eveline and Rosalind were riding in a carriage to her sister’s home, and she was typically lost in her own thoughts – exactly the opposite of what she was meant to be.

“She has been like this for the last two days,” Eveline said with an eye roll. “Mother worries she might be getting sick.”

“Oh no.”

“I am not getting sick,” Aurelia said, pulling her attention back inside the carriage. “I am merely distracted – I mean, I have a lot on my mind.” Her sister and best friend looked at her quizzically and Aurelia’s eyes widened. “With my search for a husband, I mean,” she said a little too quickly. “That is what I meant. It is causing me stress, which is why I am so distracted. Yes, that is all it is.”

“There is no need to worry,” Rosalind said with sincerity. Taking Aurelia by the hand. “You still have plenty of time.”

“I know I do,” she sighed.

“Perhaps you will be able to ask Caroline if her husband knows of anyone,” Rosalind continued. “Surely he has friends he can introduce you to.”

“The Cruel Duke?” Eveline snorted. “Not likely.”

“Oh, that is just a nickname,” Rosalind chastised her. The moniker was one given to Caroline’s husband by the ton, since proven not to be nearly accurate as all the girls had met him several times and had since agreed that he was a lovely man not deserving of such a terrible nickname. “Clearly, there is no truth to it – your sister has said as much.”

“Perhaps he has her sworn to silence,” Eveline teased. “Threatening her to keep her mouth shut.”

“You are being silly,” Rosalind said. “Aurelia, tell you sister she ought to know better than to feed into rumors.”

Aurelia was back to not paying attention. Her mind drifted to the duke, as she had lately begun to wonder if her search for a husband might not have been as difficult a thing as she had initially thought.Is it possible that he has been right before my eyes this entire time?She did not want to think on it too much, as that would only lead to disappointment. But what if --

“Aurelia!” Eveline shook her. “Stop doing that!”

“Oh...” Aurelia found her sister and friend watching her again. Rosalind looked worried. Eveline appeared annoyed. “Sorry, were you saying something?”

There was an irony here that Aurelia could not help but notice. The duke’s ‘lesson’ had been an attempt to teach Aurelia how to control her more impetuous nature and keep her mouth shut when it ought to be. Now, since this lesson, she was so distracted that even if she wished to join in on conversation, she found herself unable.It looks like his lesson worked after all.She chuckled at the thought.

It was only a few minutes later when the girls arrived at Eggleton Estate to find Caroline waiting in the driveway for them.

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