Page 69 of A Duke Reformed
The idea of it was absurd. Marriage? To a stranger? He hadn't even met any women during his time up North, save for the housekeeper and the stablemaster's wife. Where in God's name had the tale come from?
He then thought of the estate he had rented up North. It had belonged to a powerful local lord, yes. But Solomon hadn't met the man. He hadn't even known the lord had a daughter. Was that it? Had the sheer fact that he'd taken up residence in such a place birthed the rumor?
"You're not denying it," Emma added, practically glaring at him.
"Emma, I don't have to explain myself to you," he shot back, knowing fully well that his response was only going to rile her up.
Her eyes widened, a flash of disbelief crossing her face. "I see." She swallowed. "So, why did you come to me, Your Grace? To ask after my engagement and offer help?"
Solomon stiffened. "Would you have preferred I stayed away?"
"You should have, if this was your idea of a visit," she said with a shake of her head. "I cannot believe you, Your Grace. You go up North and return with a potential wife as if none of your principles matter."
His brow furrowed. "Is that what this is about?"
"I'm just surprised, that is all," she said, arms crossed. "It goes against everything you claimed that you were. I mean, not long ago did you say you would never marry if it meant leading someone into a life where they would never have a family. Yet apparently you have changed your mind. You are willing to subject an innocent lady to a childless marriage for some business deal?"
He raised a brow. "How do you know she didn't agree to it?"
Emma blinked. "What?"
"What if she doesn't want children either?" he pressed, folding his arms. "What if, unlike you, she understands that not every marriage needs to follow the same tired script? What if she just wants the convenience and protection of marriage but without the troubles of childbirth?"
"You're saying she wants... that?" Emma asked incredulously. "A cold, empty home? A lifetime of silence and–"
"Emma–" Solomon tried to interrupt.
"Do you even know her?" she fired back. "Did you truly tell her, Solomon? Did you look her in the eye and tell her that if she marries you, she will never hold a child in her arms? No one is asking you to change your principles or your rules, but it is paramount that you consider other people too."
His jaw clenched. "That is none of your concern."
"You don't want her to resent you later," Emma still pressed on. "What if one day, she wakes up and decides that she cannot do this anymore. What if she demands that–"
"Don't put words in her mouth," Solomon interrupted her. "You don't know her."
Her expression shifted so suddenly, it caught him off guard.
The fire in her eyes dimmed, giving way to something softer...something solemn. Her lashes fluttered, and when she looked up at him again, her eyes glistened. Large and doe-like. They shimmered with the threat of tears, and her mouth parted slightly as if she meant to say something, but no words came.
She just stood there, quiet. Still. It was so unlike her. No quick retort. No raised chin or narrowed eyes. Just silence.
Solomon looked away briefly, feeling his heart palpitate at the sight of her. It was obvious that he had taken the pretense too far.
He drew in a breath, lowered his head slightly, then looked back at her. "I'm not engaged to anyone," he said quietly. "I never was. In fact this is the first I'm hearing of this. I didn't even know there was such a rumor making its way around theton. I rented an estate in Northen England. It belonged to a powerful lord, but I never met his daughter," he added, voice softer now.
Emma drew in a sharp breath at his words. Her spine straightened as she blinked back the emotion clinging to her lashes.
"Like you said, Your Grace... you don't have to explain yourself to me," she said, her voice trembling.
"Yet I find myself constantly wanting to," he answered. "I don't know what else to do, Emma."
He could hear his own heart hammering beneath his ribs. Everything in him wanted to step closer, to reach for her hand and force the wall between them to collapse. There was no denying that he missed this. Not just Emma's presence, but the way she challenged him, cornered him, made him think faster and feel deeper.
"Why did you lie about Edmund?" he blurted.
Emma stared at him, her eyes wide, and lips parted in disbelief. She looked frozen in place, as though her mind couldn't quite catch up to the words she'd just heard. Her brows pulled together slowly with confusion and something else... fear, perhaps spilling across her face.
He hadn't meant to say it, not here, not now, not like this. But the moment had swelled, and the question had clawed its way out of him. It had been festering for days, bubbling beneath every word he'd rehearsed and discarded. Now that it was out, he couldn't stop.
