Page 72 of Married to the Forbidden Duke
“Whatever you like,” she said absently, waving a hand at him, and after doing as he said, he went in search of his father’spolitical friends. There were matters he would like to discuss with them—matters that were long overdue.
It didn’t take him long to meet with the lords in question and explaining his intentions. For too long, he had neglected his duties as Duke, but as one of the most powerful men in the country—there were few Dukes, and most were far older than he, with limited aspirations in their dotage—he fully intended to change the country for the better as far as possible.
Not to his surprise, few were supportive of his goals, but the others at least seemed moved by his arguments, or a little, and he had the advantage of witnessing firsthand their surprise at his transformation. This was not the man his father had groused about—not any longer. He refused to be that man. He would step into his father’s shoes.
As the afternoon progressed, he glanced over to see Alice sitting with first Helena, and then with a blonde lady he presumed she knew, as they were speaking very animatedly. As she had friends to entertain her, and seemed not to be looking for him, he left her to her own devices as he strove to repair the damage done to his reputation by his careless actions half a decade ago.
“So you mean you married him with the intention of ruining him?” Charlotte asked, her eyes wide. “He forced you into marriage and you determined to destroy his reputation entirely?”
Alice nodded. “That was my plan, but that was before I knew him. Truly knew him.” She ran through her initial resolutions and the actions she had taken toward that end. Her behavior at the first ball they held, her deliberate and malicious drinking, the rumors she spread about how much she disliked him.
“But then,” she continued, recalling the opera and the way he had touched her. Then the way he had gifted her Fortuna and made her comfort one of his greatest priorities. Since their marriage, she had not doubted his devotion to that duty once. “Then he impressed upon me the depths of his regret. He hurt me dearly, and I can’t merelyforgetthat, but I can forgive.”
Charlotte’s eyes widened. “Forgive him? Surely not!”
“Is that so very strange?” Alice asked, hugging her knees to her chest as she looked out across the grassy bank to the river glinting in the light.
Frederick was still talking politics, engaging a rather dull-looking collection of gentlemen, but she rather hoped he would come and find her so they could take a boat out on the water soon. She was tired of this discussion with Charlotte. Much as she respected and liked her friend, there was more to her life now than her past.
“It seems strange to me,” Charlotte asserted. “Perhaps you do not remember, but I saw you after the accident, and—”
“Iremember, Charlotte. Of course I do. I’m not dead. My memory has not failed me in this.” She raised one shoulder. “Iwas broken then, when you saw me after the accident. The only thing I knew then was pain and loss. But I’ve come so far since then.”
“And you hold no resentment toward him?” Charlotte pushed, a line appearing between her brows. Her mouth turned down. “Despite everything?”
“Despite everything,” Alice nodded. “I felt a great deal of resentment when he first married me, but I didn’t understand then as I do now that he did so for my sake. Everything he has done has been for me. Should I hold him accountable for a mistake when I know he would never do such a thing maliciously? It was tragic, yes, but it was an accident.”
“He ruined your life!”
“And now he is repairing the damage. I am whole again now.” Alice smiled. “And we are discovering how to be happy together. This morning, we even—” She paused, considering her words carefully. “This morning, we spoke about the ways I have changed, and he reminded me that my parents would not want me to stay still. I am older now, and wiser, and I have a great deal more life experience than I did then. When he first hurt me, I thought I could never forgive him, but that was because I didn’t understand human nature as well as I do now.”
“So you have entirely given up on your plan for revenge?” Charlotte asked, looking almost pained.
“Yes, and I beg you will come to think of him kindly in time, as well. For my sake, if not for his. I’m finally learning how to be happy.”
Charlotte smiled, but there were shadows in her eyes. “I want nothing more than your happiness, Alice, dear.”
“Then, shall we drink to that?” Alice raised her glass of wine that Frederick had brought her; there was very little left at the bottom, yet enough for a sip. But Charlotte put out her hand.
“It’s hot and you look thirsty. Let me bring you another drink, and then we can toast to it properly.”
“Lemonade?” Alice asked, mindful of the last time she’d had too much wine. One glass was well enough, but there could be danger in more than one.
“Lemonade? Truly? Wine will slake your thirst far better, sweetie.”
“I would rather not risk losing my head today, when I am supposed to be reminding thetonthat Frederick and I are happy together, with no suggestion that we were forced into marriage.”
“But you were,” Charlotte said with a light laugh. “You can make the present anything you would like it to be, but you cannot reshape the past.”
“His intention to marry me was shaped far more by my actions than his,” she said. “He would not have acted in such a way to preserve my reputation if I had not behaved the way I did. Let bygones be bygones, Charlotte.”
“Very well,” Charlotte said with a huff, smiling to soothe the sting of her words. “Lemonade it is. I shan’t be long.”
Alice rested on her hands and closed her eyes at the sun just brushing her cheeks. Soon, she would have to move, but for now, she was enjoying the softness of the warmth, and the knowledge that soon Frederick’s reputation would be restored and they could go back to living their life as they wanted to, without having to concern themselves too much about the opinions of others.
Not long now.
She couldn’t wait.
