Page 10 of His Highland Duchess
“I am,” she said quickly, but not with confidence.
“Where I was not expecting you to cry out with glee, I would have thought you might have…” He shrugged. “I am not sure. Perhaps a smile might have been nice.”
She scoffed. “And ye care what I think?”
He frowned down at her with concern. “It occurs to me suddenly, you asked what I want from this marriage, but I have no idea what you want. In all the rush, I never thought to ask.”
“Oh…” She blinked back her surprise for a second time. “I…”
“Well?”
What did Margaret want? It should have been a simple enough answer. She did not want this marriage. She did not want to be tied to a man whom she felt nothing for. She did not want to be pulled along as if her life did not matter, no control or agency in a world where she had so little of it to begin with. But it wasn’t nearly that simple.
What Margaret wanted was a family of her own. She was raised with two sisters and a brother, and with no mother, she was used to caring for them as if she were their mother. And she had loved it. She had loved the sense of purpose it had given her. Knowing that it would not last, she had always imagined that one day she would have a family of her own, and with a man who wanted to raise it with her because he loved her as she loved him.
That, it looked like, wasn’t going to become a reality. But did that mean she wanted to return home and live alone for the rest of her days? Was there not another option buried in their somewhere? A chance at a happy ending…does such a thing even exist?
“I want exactly what ye have said,” she said instead, forcing herself to sound as if she meant it. “The end of the Season, ta leave here and never look back.”
The duke looked at her with curiosity, and she was certain he did not believe a word of it. “As you say,” he said.
There was no love here. Likely, there never would be. So, it was best to come to terms with that and resolve herself to what lay ahead, what she had control of.
“You said there was a third thing?”
“Ah, yes…” The duke smiled softly, and his eyes glimmered with love. Not that it was aimed at her. “My daughters. While living under my roof, you will be free to do pretty much as you wish.”
“So long as I behave,” she scoffed.
He ignored her. “The one thing I must insist upon is that while you are here, you stay away from my daughters. I cannot stress this enough.”
This had her frowning. “Ye… ye want me to avoid yer daughters?” She laughed. “Surely, ye are joking?”
“Do I sound as if I am?” He did not.
“But… but why?” She knew he had two daughters, for Catherine had told her as much. She also knew he loved them, that he was a good father, and that he would do anything for them. Again, all Catherine’s words. In truth, this had given Margaret hope, as surely a man who loved his daughters like that had a kind heart?At the very least, he isnae a monster.
“I do not wish to hurt your feelings,” the duke began. “But in this, I will not be budged.”
“Ye shuid know, I practically raised me younger sister and me brother. It is nae as if I da nae ken how ta –”
“That is not the point,” he spoke over her, and then sighed as if with regret. “The simple fact is, my daughters are being raised as is expected of their station. Proper young ladies, bastions of their class and the titles they will inherit. When they are of age, I will see them marry good men, men who will clamor for them as their reputations will be unmarred and perfect.”
“Alright…”
“You have many good qualities, dear wife, but propriety and proper decorum are not among them.” He raised an eyebrow at her, a rebuke that she was not to argue against. “You are a bad influence, and I do not wish for you to tarnish their good names or sensibilities.”
“Ye…” She leaned back as if struck. “Ye think I will… that I will ruin them?”
“Not in so many words, but yes.”
Anger flooded Margaret in that instant. Fury. Disgust. That this man… this cold, dispassionate, hollow shell of a human who had forced her to marry him through trickery should judge her! That he should look down on her as if she were less than him! It infuriated her beyond reason.
“How dare ye!”
“It is not personal,” he said calmly. “It is just the way that –”
“Of course it is personal!” she snapped. “And ta say otherwise insults us both. I understand well enough what ye think of me.” She laughed bitterly. “But if it is yer daughters’ reputations ye are so worried about, perhaps ye ought ta look at yourself first. How far does the apple fall from the tree?”
