Page 37 of A Wounded Duke's Passion
Anthony smiled. “I would never betray your trust. We are courting, after all.”
Bridget shook her head. “I need you to sincerely promise.”
His face became suddenly serious. “I will tell no one,” he said. “What is it?”
“I fear that my father needs for me to marry the Marquess of Thornton to cover his debts, and I fear that if I do not, the burden will fall to Anna. I do not wish for that to happen to my dear sister. She deserves to be wed to a man who loves her.”
“Lady Anna would not want you to sacrifice your happiness for her own,” Anthony said.
“I know, but nor could I ask her to do that for me. Mr. Russell has no title, but he is a merchant’s son,” Bridget said. “I imagine he has some wealth of his own, and my father may find that appealing.
Especially given that neither she nor Anna would have dowries. Most lords of the ton would be horrified at the thought of wedding a woman without a dowry, but perhaps a common man would be different. If she agreed to marry the Marquess of Thornton, she might be able to persuade him to provide a dowry for Anna.
“I hope your parents find Mr. Russell to be an acceptable match,” Anthony said, “if that is who your sister is happy with.”
“Yes.”
They lapsed into silence, and Bridget cast a furtive sideways glance at him. “Would you allow Rose to marry a commoner?”
“If she wanted.” Anthony paused. “In truth, my lady, I have not given it much thought. I assume Lady Rose will present suitors to me once she has developed some genuine feelings forthem, and then I shall let her choose who she wishes to wed, unless her pick is someone truly disreputable.”
“I cannot imagine Rose falling in love with a man who is disreputable.”
“She may not know that he is,” Anthony replied. “Often, men know secrets about one another that ladies are not privy to. Only a very foolish man would allow a lady to know all his vices.”
“Oh? If I am courting you, I think you should tell me your vices,” Bridget said. “Otherwise, I may discover them later in the marriage and be unpleasantly surprised.”
“And what would you do?” Anthony asked. “You would already be wed to me.”
Bridget considered that for a long time. After some deliberation, she shrugged a little helplessly. “I suppose you make a fair point. I am not certain what I would do in such a situation.”
“There would be little you could do.”
She clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. “Let us suppose that I fled. I might leave and begin a new life in America.”
Anthony chuckled. “You say that as though it would be the easiest thing in the world.”
“I know,” Bridget said, “but surely, your vices cannot be too terrible. You are quite kind, Your Grace—Anthony.”
“I will accept the compliment,” he replied, “but every man has vices, Bridget. Some worse than others, but vices all the same.”
“Noted.”
They reached the table in the garden, and Lady Victoria waved to them. “Your Grace! We have places for you and Lady Bridget right here!”
Bridget felt heat rush to her face, suddenly aware of the many lords and ladies that had turned their heads in her direction. This was what she had asked for, was it not? A pretend courtship to a handsome duke did not come without a few gawkers.
Bridget smiled and let Anthony guide her to the seats. She would be sharing a meal with him, right at his side. Their façade would be witnessed by an entire crowd of people, who would hum and gossip about her.
Well, it was time for her to be an actress. “This is lovely, Lady Victoria. Thank you.”
Chapter 18
As Anthony seated himself beside Bridget, his arm tingled from where she had touched him. He was aware that they were not alone, but still, he found it difficult not to feel as if he and Bridget were the only two people in the entire world. After Anastasia’s death, he had sworn that he would never fall in love again, and it was dangerous to become attracted to this woman in particular. They were only pretending to court. None of this was real.
But he feared too much of it was. Bridget was not pretending to be friendly and witty. She was not pretending to be charming; these were things that she already was. Lady Victoria sat across from them with something like triumph in her expression. He could not quite make sense of that. Did she just want to watch them for her amusement? She and Lady Rose both knew he and Bridget were not truly lovers.
He sipped the offered lemonade and ate a few of the scones. Women were strange, he decided. Wonderful, but strange. Lady Victoria seemed to be in good spirits, though, so Anthony decided that was a good thing, no matter her motivations.
