Page 65 of Her Bear of a Duke

"Dorothy!" Morgan exclaimed. "I was wondering when you would come to join us."

"I was unaware that you were here," she replied.

She made the introductions, which Lady Annabelle joined, and watched as her friends forced smiles for him. They had already formed opinions of him during their first visit, and seeing this only made them worse.

"Aunt Dorothy," Catherine said brightly, "are these your friends?"

"Indeed we are," Cecilia grinned. "Which, I suppose, means that you are a friend of ours, too."

"Oh, really?" she asked excitedly. "That is wonderful! I love friends."

"That is good, because you have three more now," Beatrice smiled. "Which reminds me, we were going to spend some time in the glasshouse. Would you like to join us?"

"Yes please!" Catherine replied, before turning to her uncle. "Can I go?"

"Of course. These ladies shall take excellent care of you."

Dorothy liked that he trusted her friends, at least.

"You will be going with them, I assume?" Lady Annabelle asked Dorothy. "Since you know the plants so well, I mean."

"She will not," Cecilia replied. "We are going to be very selfish and steal this little one away for a while."

"Perhaps not selfishly," Emma interjected, "or at least, not entirely. We would like our good friend to have some time with her husband before the festivities truly begin. Alone."

Dorothy bit her lip to stop herself from smirking. Her friends were wicked, but she adored them.

"You may join us, if you wish," Beatrice suggested to Lady Annabelle, "so that you are not alone."

"I will not be alone. I shall have the Duke."

"You shall not," Morgan replied. "That would be lovely, ladies. Thank you."

Cecilia took Lady Annabelle's arm while Beatrice scooped Catherine into her arms, and they all left in a hurry. For a moment, it was silent in the room, and Dorothy did not know what to say.

"I have a feeling that they do not like me very much," Morgan said absent-mindedly.

"They will," she assured him. "My friends are protective of me, that is all."

"And I assume that did not look the best."

"It certainly did not."

Dorothy realized that she had folded her arms, and placed them by her sides again.

"You must know that I had not intended to be alone with her," he explained. "The governess was resting, and as you know I cannot have Lady Annabelle alone with Catherine."

"Where is Mrs. Herrington?"

"She is in town," he explained, taking her waist in his hands. "With how little preparation was made for this visit, she has had to make some last minute purchases. Truly, Dorothy, I have no intentions of being near that woman."

She smiled, running her hands up and down his arms. He was being sincere, and any unease she felt was not because of him. He was a good man and a good husband. She repeated it to herself, trying to believe it completely.

"She ought to be careful with what she says," Dorothy laughed softly. "My friends will not hesitate to straighten her up. Then again, they may not wish to say anything in front of Catherine. They all love children."

"I noticed. They all seemed so excited to meet her."

"Lady Annabelle did too, but then I suppose it is because they are family."

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