Page 17 of Her Bear of a Duke

"Might you be able to tell me about any of those mistakes?"

"One day, perhaps. I will tell you, though, that nobody knows some of the things I have done."

Given his stature, Dorothy thought, it could have been anything. She could not fathom him being a threatening and violent man, but that did not mean it was impossible. Once again, her fear came flooding back. It was quite apparent that the Duke could see that.

"It is nothing to fear," he chuckled. "It is only that I wish to keep such things private."

"Even from your wife?"

"No, but you are not my wife. I do not yet know if that is what you wish to be."

"I do."

"It is what your parents want for you," he corrected. "I do not care what they do or do not want. I care about what you want."

"Your Grace, I can assure you that I am quite capable of thinking for myself."

"And you will do so, I have no doubt about that, but I want to know that you have done so rather than saying what you think I wish to hear."

Dorothy, while pleased that he was allowing her to make the decision for herself, wished that he would take her at her word. He must have known that she had no real say in the matter, and that she was doing what was expected of her. If that were the case, why was he so adamant?

They reached the park, and as she leaned down with her left hand to exit the carriage she noticed her ring. She had not truly admired it very much, simply acknowledging that it was on her finger and nothing more. Now that she was truly payingattention, however, she noted that it was exactly what she would have wanted in an engagement ring.

"If you do not like it, we can find you another," he said.

"Oh, no, that will not be necessary. This one is lovely."

"It is just as well that you said that as it was my mother's. She spent a lot of time marveling at it."

"Then it is unfortunate that she and I will never meet. I believe we would have had quite a lot in common."

The Duke smiled at that, and they began their walk.

"So," he commented as they reached a row of flowers, "given that you have a passion for these things, I must know: do you know the Latin names for plants, or only the English?"

"I know a few in Latin, but I must confess that I find the language quite difficult. The words can be very long."

"Do you not enjoy reading?"

"I do, but sometimes I see a word that is very complicated and I wonder quite what the use is. It is a word, what does it have to prove?"

He laughed at that, shaking his head.

"If you had attended university, you would have had to learn them."

"In which case, I gladly would have. I would have been able to learn, had I been taught."

"You still could, you know."

She turned to him with a furrowed brow.

"What?" he asked. "I am a duke, and I have my ways. Even if you are not permitted to attend university, I could arrange a tutor for you. That way, you would be taught by someone knowledgeable."

Dorothy's eyes sparkled.

"Do not suggest that if you do not mean it."

"I would never do that. Would you like a tutor? I do not mean to suggest you need one, of course."

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