Page 83 of A Duchess to Fight For
Percy laughed. “You would make him a happy man.”
Frederick nodded. “I know. And I want to be a happy man. And you Percy can help me.”
“Oh?”
“Yes. You see, my daughter has turned into a different person. Someone I hardly recognize. Gone is the fun-loving girl who made me smile. I can’t remember the last time I heard her laugh.
“She’s–”
Percy jumped in, “Frederick, I–”
Frederick put up his hand. “Now, hear me out, Percy. She misses you. Terribly. She knows she made a mistake turning down your marriage proposal, and if she had to do it over again, she’d say ‘yes.’
“I think she was overwhelmed at the time, and she wasn’t thinking straight. When we got to the estate, and she had time to clear her head, the reality of losing you sunk in.”
Percy asked, “May I speak?”
Frederick grimaced. “By all means. My apologies for cutting you off.”
Percy continued, “Quite all right. I love your daughter. You know that; Amelia knows that. Hell, Hobart knows it too. Is she of right mind now? Is she willing to accept me because she misses me every day at tea? Her friends have gentlemen who will soon ask them to marry. She has no one courting her.
“What I’m trying to say is that I don’t want to be her default partner.”
Frederick nodded. “I understand your concern, and three months ago, I might have even said you were right. But not now.
“Being away from you has been the best thing to happen to her. She took you for granted. When you stopped coming over for tea every day, it gave her a lot to think about.
“She didn’t like how she felt. She concluded that she made a big mistake, something Amelia and I already knew. Tell me, Percy, how do you feel about her now? Would you give her a second chance?”
Percy was quiet for a moment. Frederick gave him all the time he needed before he spoke.
“I was hurt. It was a difficult pill to swallow. I’m still not over it. I think I’ve learned to guard my heart, and it’s not easy to get past the wall I’ve put up.
“I’m not sure how much I can let her in. I can try, but I’m afraid I will always be wary that she’ll do what she did to me before.”
Percy shook his head. “If she thinks we can pick up where we left off, she’s wrong. She might not like the new me. I can come for tea, and see how it goes, but I’m not sure it will go well.”
Frederick said, “I understand and respect how you feel. But know this, if you went to the townhouse right now and asked her to marry you, she would say yes.”
Percy rubbed his hand on the back of his neck. “I don’t think I’ll ever ask her to marry me again.”
“That bad, huh?”
“Yeah, that bad.”
Frederick nodded. “Would you do me the favour of joining us for tea? Just once?”
“Sure. Just once.”
*****
Frederick went straight to Hobart’s apartment. He knew that the warehouse would be shut and locked up by now. He just wanted to see his brother.
“Well, well. Look who has come to visit his poor, neglected brother,” Hobart said.
“It’s nice to know you missed me,” Frederick said.
“I did,” Hobart said, then clapped Frederick on the back.
