Page 64 of The Lady Who Said No to the Duke
It looked as though it had always been on her finger, Thea thought, turning her hand so the candlelight sent green fire flashing deep inside the stone.It was lovely, and a thoughtful choice, when tradition should have sent him unthinkingly to the sapphire.
‘Thank you,’ she said again.‘It is exactly what I would have chosen myself.’
He looked pleased, dipping his head to kiss her fingers before he rose and sat down.
Of course he is pleased.He is not uncaring, he simply does not love me.
And why did that matter now when she had never expected a love match?
Because I love him, Thea answered herself.And thoughtful, sensitive gestures like this defiance of family tradition did not help her subdue that emotion as she must do for her own sanity.
Her parents were delighted with the ring.At least, Mama declared herself in ecstasies over the beauty of it and Papa simply looked relieved that the betrothal was cemented by this very visible object.
* * *
Thea, who had thought herself the possessor of a very adequate—and fashionable—wardrobe, was bemused by the amount of shopping Mama thought necessary for her trousseau.
And she was marrying a duke, for goodness sake, a man who was possessed of a number of fine, fully furnished dwellings, so why was it necessary for her and Mama to visit his town house and go through the rooms, Mama’s new temporary secretary at their heels with a notebook, to decide what she wanted changed?
She said as much, standing in the middle of a very elegant drawing room, Hal’s town butler, Mayhew, in attendance.
‘This is all perfect.And beautifully kept,’ she added with a smile for Mayhew, who looked deeply gratified.‘Why would I want to change anything?’
‘Surely you wish to put your own stamp, your own style,on the house,’ Mama said.‘Hal would not have asked you to do this if he did not expect that.’
‘It would be a great deal of disruption, to say nothing of pointless expense, to make changes just for some whim of mine,’ Thea said firmly, earning another approving look from Mayhew.‘When I have lived in each house for a while, I may have suggestions for changes, but for now, it is premature.’
‘Well, at least look at your suite, even if you do not want to make changes to the reception rooms.’Mama led the way to the hall.
Thea thought mutinously that she would much prefer to survey her own future bedchamber by herself, and certainly not in company with her mother, Mayhew and Mr Scott, the earnest young secretary, notebook in hand, pencil poised, pince-nez clamped to the end of his nose.However, one could hardly say so, let alone explain why, so she obediently toured the ground-floor sitting room, which was pale green and pink with one wall of Chinese paper, its flowers and exotic birds giving the space the air of a garden room.
‘This is delightful.There is nothing I would change here,’ she said firmly.
Upstairs, the Duchess’s Suite, as Mayhew announced it, opening the door with a flourish, consisted of another sitting room, the bedchamber, a dressing room and a bathing chamber.
The sitting room was a little formal, but that could wait and she certainly was not going to criticise it now.The bedchamber, which appeared to be half filled withThe Bed, as she could not help thinking of it, was far too frilly for her taste.Perhaps when all the bouffant and decorated soft furnishings were stripped back,The Bedwould not loom so.
She would feel ridiculous, sitting in the middle of it,encased in pink frills, white tulle and what looked like an acre of fine Brussels lace.But at least she would not have to spend her wedding night in it, which was one mercy.Again, that could wait.
The dressing room was a masterpiece of mahogany fittings with enough room to store three duchesses’ wardrobes.That certainly did not require any changes and she suspected that Jennie would be thrilled.
Mama, however, had discovered the bathing chamber, and was exclaiming in delight at the large bath, the pretty washstand and, behind a tactful screen, a wonderful innovation.
‘The latest design utilising Mr Joseph Bramah’s valve closet,’ Mayhew murmured from the doorway, then effaced himself, leaving the ladies to view this marvel in sanitary engineering in privacy.
Thea would have been happy to leave on that discovery, but Mama insisted that they tour the kitchens and meet the chef and the housekeeper.
Thea had asked Mr Scott to make a note of the names of the servants they encountered so she could be certain to learn them all quickly.Mama maintained that it improved domestic discipline if one knew all one’s servants.Thea preferred to think that everyone was happier if they were treated like human beings.
The afternoon was taken up with a visit from Hal, bearing flowers not only for Thea, but also for her mother, which Thea considered showed cunning.
‘The flowers are lovely, not that you need to turn Mama up sweet,’ she told him, lapsing into some of Piers’s regrettable slang.‘Simply being a duke is quite enough to ensure that she is a happy mother-in-law.’
He tutted in pretend disapproval, whether at her cynicismor her language, she wasn’t certain.‘Have you any thoughts on what you would like changed in the town house?’he asked.
‘I thought it better to wait until I was used to it before making any suggestions,’ Thea said.‘Everything seems delightful and very efficiently run.’
But The Bed must go…
