Page 19 of Married to a Wicked Duke
The guests began to chatter amongst themselves again and slowly filtered toward the door. Carla reached out and grabbed the wrists of both Frederick and Veronica before they could escape. Frederick raised his eyebrows, clearly annoyed.
“What is it, Grandmother?”
Carla smiled, ignoring his terseness. “I just wished to congratulate you both again. It is a fine piece. I hope you will do me the honor of allowing me to hang it in the entrance hall with the late Duchess’s pieces.”
Veronica’s cheeks reddened. “Of course, Your Grace.” She faltered. “I mean…” She looked up at Frederick. “If that is all right with you, Your Grace.”
Frederick nodded, not looking at her. “It’s fine.”
“Good,” Carla said brightly, still keeping a firm grip on each of them. “I hope we will see you both tonight at the festivities.” She looked pointedly at her grandson.
“Yes, Your Grace,” Veronica stuttered. “Of course.”
“Good,” said Carla. “Your grandmother will be pleased to hear it, Lady Veronica. As I am sure you know, she is quite determined for you to come away from this celebration with a potential match.”
The blush in Veronica’s cheeks intensified. She kept her eyes down, painfully deliberate in not looking Frederick’s way. “Yes, Your Grace.”
Carla released her grip. “Thank you, Lady Veronica.” She watched her dart off towards her father and grandmother like a rabbit released from a snare.
“The same goes for you.” She looked up at Frederick, meeting his eyes. “I hope you will come away from this celebration with an inkling of who you would like to make your wife.”
Frederick sighed. “Must we have this conversation again, Grandmother?”
“Yes, we must,” she said firmly. “Because each time we have it, it goes nowhere. You end up storming off in a huff before anything is ever decided upon.”
“That is because I do not wish to marry. I have no desire for a wife. I do not wish to share my life with anyone.”
Carla sighed. “Well. I am afraid you have little choice in the matter, Frederick. Like it or not, you are a duke, and you owe it to your ancestors to continue the family line.” She softened her voice. “Is the thought of finding a wife truly so terrible?”
Frederick rubbed his eyes. “Grandmother,” his voice softened, “you know how hard I find it to be around other people for any length of time. I feel as though all the energy has been sucked out of me.”
Carla felt an ache in her chest. “You have not always been like that. Once upon a time, you thrived in the company of others. Do you not remember?”
The pained look in Frederick’s eyes told her that he did remember. “That was a long time ago,” he said huskily. “I am different man these days.”
“So what?” asked Carla gently. “You wish to just let your life waste away?”
“No,” Frederick said, “I do not intend to do that at all. I intend to see the gallery my mother dreamed of come to fruition.Thisis what I wish to dedicate my life to, not the pursuit of a wife, just because thetontells me I must.”
Carla smiled faintly. She knew how much her daughter-in-law had dreamed of opening her own gallery. But she hated the thought of Frederick spending his life alone, even if it was spent realizing his mother’s last wishes. “Perhaps this work will be made even more meaningful if you have a wife to share it with.”
Frederick shook his head. “I very much doubt that.”
Carla gave his wrist a gentle squeeze. “I know you will feel differently when you find the right person. And perhaps she is closer than you think.”
* * *
The party was well underway by the time Frederick made it downstairs. He had deliberately missed dinner, having asked for his meal to be brought to his room, but he had promised his grandmother he would make an appearance for this cursed fireworks display.
It was almost dark—surely it couldn’t be too long until the damn thing was over and done with. And tomorrow… Tomorrow all these infernal guests would disappear back to London, and he would have some time to himself. He would need to return to the capital soon, of course. There was plenty of work to do. Among the most pressing was a school for orphans he had invested in, and had requested to be kept abreast of all updates. Then of course there were the plans for his mother’s gallery. There were a few artists he had his eye on, but was yet to find a suitable premises. Nonetheless, he would perform better when it came to these tasks if he was in the right frame of mind—or at least a better frame of mind than he was right now. It would be a good use of his time if he was to stay up here in Cambridge for an extra day or two.
After all, I’ll need it to recover from all this socializing…
He stepped out of the house, following the lamplit path down towards the marquee. Music and laughter were floating out into the night, and as Frederick stepped inside, he saw the tent was filled with a wash of color and movement. All the young debutantes were dressed in their best gowns; pink and purple silk and lace everywhere he looked.
Unbidden, he felt his eyes pull towards Lady Veronica. She was dancing with a young gentleman, a warm smile on her face. She was dressed far more simply than most of the other young ladies, wearing an unadorned green gown with a simple pearl comb in her dark hair. Despite her modest attire, she was far more striking than the rest of the young ladies here put together.
Frederick thought of his grandmother’s words: that Lady Hilt had brought Veronica here with the sole purpose of securing her a husband. He could not be surprised at that, of course. He knew that was why most of these young ladies were here. But somehow, the knowledge that the men on Veronica’s dance card might be in with a chance to be her husband filled him with jealousy.
