Page 66 of A Marquess to Save Her
"You think it sounds lovely?" the Duke asked, "I am glad you love it too."
"I love that you are happy, Your Grace," Callum said tentatively, "however, don't you think a quieter wedding would be appropriate?"
"Why is a quiet wedding appropriate?" The Duke asked, frowning down at Callum.
Callum shrugged, trying to pick his words carefully in order not to upset his grandfather.
"Considering your age and the fact that you have once been married, I suppose an extravagant wedding and engagement would just be too dramatic," Callum said.
"Dramatic?" The Duke repeated, "There is no such thing as too dramatic."
"But a big wedding is sure to draw people and turn heads than having a quiet wedding," Callum said.
"But my aim is to turn as many heads as possible," the Duke said. Callum sighed.
My grandfather is just impossible."I believe a quiet engagement and wedding would be more befitting for people your age," Callum said.
The Duke's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Are you saying that I do not deserve to be happy because of my age?" the Duke asked.
Callum quickly shook his head. "Certainly not, Your Grace," he replied, "I would never say that to you. You deserve to be happy and I support you marrying Lady Theodora."
"But you do not wish that I have the wedding of my dreams, do you?" the Duke asked.
Callum sighed again. "I..."
"Shouldn't you rather be with your best friend consoling him instead of trying to dissuade me?" the Duke said scathingly.
"Consoling him?" Callum was confused.
"Was your best friend not jilted by his fiancée?" The Duke asked.
"Certainly, he was," Callum nodded, "an unfortunate incident too, might I add?"
"Indeed it is, then why have you not gone to him to keep his company lest he get even sadder?" the Duke said.
"I plan on going to his house later today," Callum said, "I sent him a letter yesterday when I found out what had happened but he did not respond."
The Duke nodded. "Do you now see why I always tell you to only marry a woman who is from a reputable family? If you do not, you might end up suffering the same fate as Felington. His name is now being dragged through the mud and everyone sees him as an object of ridicule."
"But what does the incident have to do with the woman not being from a reputable family?" Callum asked.
"If she had been from a reputable family, she would never have been corresponding with a captain when she is already engaged to another man. This is why you should only marry a woman who is from a family with values," the Duke said.
Callum rushed the rest of his food as his grandfather droned on and on about why it was important that he married from an old family. Whenever his grandfather started to give one of those talks, Callum knew that it could take a long while for him to stop and Callum did not want to deal with that at the moment. Once he finished his breakfast, he bid his grandfather goodbye and went out of the house.
"Where should I take you to, My Lord?" the carriage driver asked.
"The Scranton House," Callum said.
Callum's heart pounded as the carriage began to move. He knew that what he was about to do was rather foolish, but he knew he just had to do it. He had been unable to get Louise out of his head ever since the house party and the fact that he had been unable to see her for so long was driving him crazy.
For the past few days, Callum itched to talk to Louise, even if he could not see her. He had penned letters to her and then destroyed them because he could not bring himself to send them.
Callum was afraid of a lot of things. He was afraid that if he told Louise how he truly felt about her, she would say that she did not feel the same way about him and she would keep away from him. He was afraid that just like the woman that had broken his heart, Louise would make him fall deeper for her and then, she would break his heart into smithereens.
Callum glanced outside only to see that his carriage was now at the entrance of the Scranton residence. Terrified out of his mind at the kind of reception that he might get from Louise, Callum called out to his carriage driver. "I do not wish to visit the Scranton residence anymore, take me to the Felington residence instead," he said.
The carriage driver did as he had said and Callum took a breath of relief. Now that Callum thought about it, trying to see Louise was a bad idea. He was certain that she now had tons of gentlemen queuing up to see her and spend time with her. If he showed up at her house now, Callum feared that he might have to be faced with the reality that Louise did not care for him as much as he did for her.
