Page 64 of A Duchess to Unravel
“Perhaps my marriage of convenience has turned out better than expected,” she replied.
“Yes. You and Alistair seemed to be getting along quite nicely at Everett’s ball,” Amelia mused, smirking behind her teacup as she looked at Theo.
Theo’s answering grin was wide and instantaneous, and she looked away from her friend as she leaned forward to pluck a finger sandwich of cucumber and ham from the tray. As she had promised Alistair, she was eating more frequently. Doing so even beyond their daily break of fast.
“We were both quite surprised at how much we enjoyed ourselves at the party,” Theo answered, then took a bite. “Who knows? Perhaps we may try to attend one or two more before we leave London.”
All of her friends, Amelia, Seraphina, Rose, and Ophelia looked at her in surprise.
“That’s quite a statement coming from you,” Ophelia noted, “You used to hate the balls as much as Rose and I do.”
“I am still not a fan of them,” Amelia noted, “even though Dominic makes them more bearable.
“Yes,” Seraphina agreed.
Theo shrugged her shoulders. It was true that she once abhorred the forced functions, but with Alistair, she had experienced genuine fun at Everett’s ball. Especially the portion where they’d snuck off to have a private celebration of their own.
“So, things are going fine with the new duke then?” Rose asked.
Her flippant tone drew everyone’s attention and their laughter stopped. Even Ophelia stared at her oddly.
“Is that so surprising?” Theo asked, taking in Rose’s hardened look.
Rose shrugged.
“It just seems like much has changed, is all,” she replied. “As you said, it appears this marriage of convenience has become much more than that.”
Theo thought for a moment. So what if it was? There was a safety she felt with Alistair. One she’d never experienced before. Sheliked his hardness and was no longer afraid to be soft. The need to hide herself was no longer there with him, and it had given her a sense of ease she’d never felt before. Was that so bad?
“If you have something to say, Rose,” Seraphina stated, giving her a warning look, “You might as well just say it.”
Rose put her embroidery ring down and sighed.
“I just want our friend to be careful,” she replied, her eyes on Theo. “He may not be the brutish Scotsman the rumors say he is, but heisstill leaving in two months time. I just do not wish for you to be heartbroken.”
Theo was silent a moment as all her friends turned from Rose to her, their eyes full of inquisitive worry. Then Theo laughed. Loudly. Forcefully. She waved a hand through the air as she shook her head.
“Do not be silly, Rose!” She exclaimed. “Just because I have found happiness in our arrangement does not mean I am falling in love with him!”
Ophelia, Seraphina, and Amelia all let out a collective breath of relief, but Rose still stared at Theo in an intense, studious manner.
“I am in control,” Theo stated, picking up another finger sandwich from the nearby tray. “And soon, I will be free. Completely free. The way I have always wished to be.”
Rose’s features eventually softened into a smile.
“I just want you to be careful,” she said as she picked up her embroidery again.
“I am,” Theo promised.
As she bit into her sandwich, she wondered if she had lied not just to her friends, but to herself.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
“For me?”
Theo accepted the prettily wrapped box from Alistair and stared up at him with surprised eyes. He could not help the smile of satisfaction that slid across his lips and nodded.
“I have conducted all of the business I had wished to here, but there is one more thing we must accomplish before we depart from London and return home,” he replied.
