Page 65 of The Scarred Duke's Bride
The Marchioness was in the drawing room, speaking to none other than Eric’s mother. The latter lit up when she saw Freya. “There you are! Did you get enough rest?”
Freya smiled. “I did. Thank you. I gather we are leaving soon?”
“Yes, I was just thanking the Marchioness, Lady Digby, on behalf of the family.”
“Oh. I had the same thought.”
The Dowager sighed. “I was hoping to speak with your husband before you left. I’m sure we left quite a bad impression on him yesterday, but please do assure him that we meant nothing untoward. It was simply an unfortunate lapse of good manners.”
Freya smiled, “I appreciate you saying so, my lady. I shall make sure to tell him.”
“Whereisyour husband?” Eric’s mother asked.
“Still asleep. I shall just go and wake him.”
Mrs. Campbell nodded. “That is a good idea. We shall meet you in the courtyard.”
“Yes, Mother Campbell.” Freya smiled at her before turning and hurrying away. She was filled with a sense of relief about how that had gone. Her mind was actually boggled that the Dowager Marchioness was willing to apologize. She suspected that Mrs. Campbell must have said something to precipitate it. A woman of Lady Digby’s caliber was not likely to have spared much thought for her own actions or how they affected anyone else.
Freya climbed the stairs slowly and thoughtfully, thinking about everything that had happened, especially Eric’s promise that this morning had not been the end of their explorations. She felt her stomach swoop with excitement at the thought and realized she could not wait to see what else Eric might show her.
Last night, she had almost been frozen in shock when after emptying himself inside of her, he had proceeded to shuffle down the bed and lick her with hismouth.
She still could not believe he had done that. The sensations he had evoked had exceeded everything she had been expecting. She had just wanted to recreate the feelings that had encompassed her when he first touched her intimately, but last night had been beyond anything she could have imagined. And it made her wonder if there was more to be discovered. If he could put his mouth on her most intimate parts, could she do the same for him?
She opened the door to her chambers and found him buttoning his shirt. He turned to look at her with a smile, “Oh there you are. Where did you go? And why didn’t you wake me?”
“You looked so peaceful; I didn’t want to disturb you.”
He grinned, doing up the last button before crossing to the chair to pick up his coat. “How kind of you.”
“Not at all,” she murmured, distracted by the rippling muscles of his arms as he donned his coat, “You should know that we are leaving.”
Right on cue, there was a knock on the door.
“Yes? Come in.” Eric called.
The door opened, and Silver, followed by Diana, stepped into the room. “I have come to pack up your bags,” he explained, “as we are leaving this place.”
Eric seemed quite relieved. Freya bit her lip to stop herself from smiling.
He walked up to her, offering her his arm. “Shall we, my dear?” Eric asked with a small bow.
“We shall,” she replied looping her arm through his and allowing him to lead her out of the room, down the corridor, and down the stairs where they joined his brother and mother and her sister.
ChapterTwenty-Five
In spite of the debacle that happened at Lady Digby’s, Silver did not let them rest on their laurels. Fortunately for both them and him, he did not have to create occasions for them to spend time alone. They were quite happy to run off in the afternoon for a ‘nap’ while William and Isabella entertained themselves, and Mrs. Campbell went visiting.
The Campbells were settling seamlessly into the day-to-day life at Stark Manor. Mrs. Campbell had even managed to make friends among the local gentry. Isabella and William never seemed to tire of each other. It all felt like a dream to Freya, and she spent a lot of time waiting to wake up.
Mrs. Campbell inadvertently helped Silver with his agenda by obtaining invitations to a local Venetian breakfast.
“But I hardly speak to those people; why should I go?” Freya protested when Silver strongly suggested that they accompany Mrs. Campbell.
“His Grace wishes you to be influential in the area since your offspring will take over everything; he wants you to begin forging ties.”
“Why does he not do that himself then?” she asked with annoyance.
