Page 42 of Marigold and the Marquess
Marigold smiled up at him, her gaze hopeful and her eyes shining brightly. They stood side by side beside the altar of St. Mary’s Church, a quaint but beautifully appointed edifice tucked in a quiet corner of Mayfair not far from Chipping Way. She looked stunning in a gown of palest pink silk and wore a small circlet of roses in a matching shade of pink pinned in her ebony hair.
He wished they could have had a moment alone, for he wanted to tell her how lovely she looked. But it was not to be, for their guests were streaming in from all doors. Final certificates needed to be signed by John Farthingale as Marigold’s guardian and their witnesses, Ian and Gabriel, who had agreed to serve in that capacity.
In all, they wound up with seventy guests filling the pews for the ceremony. Most were Marigold’s family members. Marigold also pointed out her friends, Lady Sydney Harcourt and Lady Gregoria Easton. Syd and Gory, as Marigold referred to them. Seated beside these two ladies were Huntsford’s brothers, Captain Octavian Thorne and Lord Julius Thorne. “Your skull and bones club,” Leo remarked with a grin at Marigold.
“Yes, and I am quite proud of them. Octavian and Julius would officially join our club if they could, but their duties keep them too occupied. However, they are quite supportive of us.”
Leo was not surprised Huntsford’s brothers were enthusiasts. In addition to the obvious reason of supporting their brother’s academy, it did not escape anyone’s notice that Syd and Gory were very pretty, young ladies.
But his thoughts now turned to his own match.
As a marquess, Leo knew his wedding was small by society standards, a fact that helped substantiate the rumor this affair had been hastily cobbled together because of scandal.
No doubt Lady Barrington, still angry over being spurned, had kept herself busy fanning those flames. His and Marigold’s indiscretion continued to appear in the gossip rags. All the better. Marigold was safest if the traitor believed that woman’s lies and thought Leo had been trapped into marrying this glorious girl.
As the vicar droned on, Leo silently mapped out his next steps.
No outward show of affection when in public.
But in private? It was all about keeping Marigold happy in the marriage.
But no consummation.
Everything short of that was permitted.
This way, he could pleasure her and also give her the grounds to dissolve their union if she needed to seek an annulment.
This could work.
After all, how long did he have to keep up this ruse? With the Crown’s best agents on the task, it was quite possible the traitor would soon be caught. Leo could then end the abhorrent deception and truly claim Marigold as his wife.
In the meantime, he would not deprive himself or Marigold of the pleasures of the bedchamber. There was nothing to stop him from visiting her each night, spending the hours showing her the intimacy that could exist between husband and wife.
Nothing was forbidden as far as he was concerned, except for the actual act of coupling.
“Do you, Leonides Poole, Marquess of Muir, Earl of Allenby…” Leo shook out of his thoughts and concentrated on the wedding ceremony as the vicar read off a string of his titles. “Do you take Marigold Farthingale to be your lawful wife…”
“I do.”
Marigold had already pledged herself to him while he listened with half an ear, so lost was he in his thoughts.
“I now pronounce you husband and wife…”
Dear heaven.
He was married.
Marigold cast him one of her sunshine smiles. “We will figure it out, Leo. I don’t want to lose you.”
“Nor I you.” He kissed her lightly on the cheek before leading her down the aisle to be congratulated by their guests.
Was there anyone in the crowd who did not belong?
He scanned the small church with eagle eyes, leaving not a niche unchecked. To his relief, he noticed Ian, Gabriel, and Graelem doing the same. Perhaps he was not alone in considering this ceremony a likely time for the traitor to appear. While all the crowd hovered around them and distracted his attention, the traitor could easily take the measure of his new wife.
Not only were these three friends on the task, but he realized Marigold’s connections also extended by way of marriage to the Brayden clan. These Braydens were military men, even the peers among them having extensive battle experience.
Had Ian quietly brought any of them into this investigation?
