Page 23 of Loving a Noble Gentleman
Chapter 11
Mary smiled at Edmund across the room where he sat chewing on the food that the cook had prepared for their third meeting. As she had waited for him to arrive, Mary felt unable to control the excitement that bubbled up inside of her. She found herself actually looking forward to seeing the Duke again, which was highly unexpected. It had been almost two weeks since they previously spent time together, and she had missed him.
Maybe thiswasthe right thing to do, and not just for Daisy and Charlotte, but for herself too. Maybe this was where her future happiness lay. She could not explain it, even to herself, but she felt that there was something in the air between her and Duke Edmund. Something strong and powerful.
“I noticed your bookshelf earlier,” he said with a smile on his lips. “There are some very interesting reads on there.”
“You read?” Mary could not stop the shock from pouring out of her mouth. The only other businessman she had known well was her father, and he never had the time to sit down with a book. “I cannot believe it.”
“Do I not look intelligent enough to read?” he teased her, showing a playful side of himself that he had not realised was there. “I cannot believe that you would say such a hurtful thing.”
Mary blushed and giggled girlishly. Her eyes darted downwards, but then she looked back up at him through her eyelashes, admiring his strong and powerful looks. She had always thought him attractive looking, but now that she knew him a little better, that feeling was even stronger.
“I did not mean it like that; I simply presumed that you were too busy with all of your work.”
“Well, I have managed to readFrankensteinduring everything that I need to do.”
Mary’s heart stopped dead in her chest; that was her all-time favourite book. Her father often made comments about it not being the sort of literature that she should be reading, but she much preferred it to the sappy, romantic books other girls her age liked.
“Yes, that is a wonderful read,” she said happily. “One that I have devoured more than once.” She pushed herself to her feet and took a couple of steps towards Edmund, doing something braver than she ever thought she would. Something about the confusing feelings she had racing through her veins made her much less shy. “Would you like to go and look at the bookshelf? See if there are any other books that we both share a love of?”
Edmund could hardly believe it; Mary was absolutely perfect! He had never met anyone who likedFrankensteinas much as he did. Of course, he wanted to see what other books they both enjoyed. The more he discovered that they had in common, the surer he started to feel.
Maybe his mother was right, and love was not something that hit you in the face. Maybe it was one of those things that crept up slowly and unexpectedly.
“I would love that.” He rose too, before glancing down at Walter. If there was one thing he was sure of, it was that they needed some time without him. “You should stay here, Mr Thompson, and enjoy your wine. We should not be more than ten minutes, I am certain.”
Walter felt completely taken aback. He had lost all control of this meeting a long time ago, but this was something else. He was supposed to be a chaperone for the Duke and Mary; he was not supposed to leave them alone, but was there much use to him following them towards the bookshelf to listen to a terribly boring conversation about literature?
No, he felt that he would rather remain in his chair where he could relax for a moment. There was not any real trouble that they could get up to in that time anyway.
“Sure, I shall remain here.”
Edmund and Mary started to walk. They moved slowly and deliberately at first but picked up the pace as they left the room. Stifling a laugh, Mary found herself almost running in a desperate attempt to get away from Walter.
“Goodness me, he is a boring man,” Edmund said with a chuckle. “All he wants to talk about is business.”
Mary bit down on her bottom lip as she tried to decide whether or not to say the first thing that popped into her brain. On a whim, she chose to throw caution to the wind and just go for it. “I thought that about you when I first met you.”
Edmund turned to face Mary head on. He was a little taken aback by that remark; he was not expecting it at all. It was not common for Ladies to be honest with their feelings in such a way, but then again, he was far more used to his mother than any other woman. She often told him how it was.
He decided that he should do the same. After all, why not? Maybethatwas what love was based upon, the ability to be honest with one another. “I see, is that why you rolled your eyes at me?”
Mary clapped her hand over her mouth as horror struck her; she could not believe it! An icy lump formed in her stomach as she tried to imagine what that must have looked like. He must have assumed her to be so rude. There she was, thinking him a horrible and arrogant man, and she had acted in an awfully uncouth manner.
“You saw that?” she gasped. “I am so sorry; how terrible of me.”
Edmund laughed. He loved to see Mary coming out of her shell bit by bit. By shaking off the shyness, she was showing herself to be a kind and sweet young Lady. “Yes, I did, but looking back, I believe I probably deserved it. I was droning on and on about my businesses, showing off more than is deemed polite.”
“Oh, w ... well,” Mary stammered. “So you should, you have many reasons to be very proud of yourself.”
“Maybe so.” Edmund shrugged one shoulder. “But that is no excuse for being boring.”
They remained standing for a couple of seconds with their eyes locked on one another, drinking each other in. Edmund did not feel the need to question himself anymore. He was growing increasingly certain that this wonderful, beautiful Lady was the one for him. They shared interests; she captivated him. He enjoyed having her around, and he missed her when they were apart ... it was everything that he had always been looking for, but he had not realised it before.
Mary was slightly less certain, but not because of Edmund. He was much more wonderful than she gave him credit for at first; she was really starting to feel a lot of things for him. How could she not like this handsome, funny man who was extremely ambitious and successful? Usually, women only got to pick one of those traits, so Mary knew that she was lucky. She was sure that if she gave into the love that threatened to swallow her up, it would be wonderful.
No, her only doubt came from the fear that just maybe she was convincing herself that the Duke was the man she wanted to marry because it would help everyone else out. Walter could relax and stop worrying about the will, and Daisy and the other staff members would be allowed to keep their jobs. Charlotte would be presented with a potential option if she ever needed anywhere else to live.
