Page 30 of Wicked Is the Duke
Chapter Ten
"I'm afraid we mustleave, my dear," Carlisle drawled.
Caroline looked at him as though he'd grown an extra head during the night. She was not ready to give up the fight. Somehow she and Blackmont would be together, and that wicked woman would be no match for her. Not once the earl was finished with her. Blackmont would never want her. Time, however, was running out.
"We can't leave. We haven't finished what we came here for," she replied.
"What do you intend?"
"Once we show up at their wedding, the vicar will never marry them. Not after you claim you compromised Miss Grover."
"How do you propose doing this? Blackmont and Norwood are sure to have men all over his estate."
"That shouldn't be too hard. Since he's invited his tenants to partake, we should be able to blend in."
The earl snarled in disgust. "Blend in with common, working people? I don't see how, nor will I dress like a common merchant."
"Do you want Miss Grover or don't you? Her dowry is more than enough to give you a fresh start. All we'll have to do is blend in. Once the wedding is to start, we'll storm in, and you can voice your objections."
"No one makes a fool out of me, especially Miss Grover," the earl snarled. "As soon as she is with child, I'll send her to one of my lesser estates."
"I'm sure that won't take long, my lord."
The earl puffed up. "Of course it won't. And you? You'll have the duke, though I have the feeling he'll take some convincing."
"I'm confident once he's lost Miss Grover to you, he will be distraught. I can use that to my advantage."
A smile curved up on the earl's face. "I have no doubt of your abilities."
Caroline knew this would be her final chance to turn things around. To make Blackmont her husband. She was certain he would be distraught and angry at Miss Grover. She would use that to her advantage. Blackmont would be so desperate to gain a wife and begin filling his nursery he would never realize he was being tricked. Finally, she would be a duchess, married to one of the most powerful and influential men in England.
She was the only daughter of the duke of Marlborough. Though her parents doted on her, her father never kept it a secret that his son, his heir was more important.
It was her parents’ wish that she marry well. Her prospects had been many, though Caroline found them boring and stuffy. Having met Blackmont at an early age, she made a promise to herself all those years ago. To marry Blackmont and no other.
And she always got what she wanted.
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