Page 12 of Stolen By the Cruel Duke
Just as the meal was winding to a close, and Phineas thought he might at last be able to escape, Lord Carfield rose to his feet, tapping the side of his champagne flute with a knife.
“If I may,” the Viscount called, and a hush fell over the gathered wedding guests. “As the father of the bride, I would like to say a few words.”
His tone was obsequious, but Phineas still felt his wife stiffen beside him.
“To say I’m proud of Iris would be an understatement,” Lord Carfield began. “I didn’t always have high hopes she’d marry, but here she is, not only married but snagging a duke! My own daughter now outranks me.”
Scattered laughter rang out at this.
“Iris has always been a loyal daughter, and I know that she will make an excellent wife and duchess. Her loyalty to her family is unparalleled. Just look at how she has taken care of her sisters all these years…”
The Viscount’s cold eyes glanced over his daughters, and Iris’s expression darkened.
“While relinquishing such a daughter is always difficult, I know there is no better man to watch out for her than the Duke of Eavestone.”
Now he looked at Phineas, whose expression did not shift, even as he braced himself.
“The Duke and I are old friends,” Lord Carfield continued, a sneer now lining his lips, “and I know there is nothing he holds in higher regard than his family’s honor.”
Now it was Phineas’s turn to stiffen. He managed to affect a neutral expression thanks to years of practice, but under the table, his hands balled into fists.
“I am thus comforted in knowing that my daughter is now under his protection. I have no doubt that he will treat her with the utmost respect. So please, join me in raising a glass to my new son-in-law. To the Duke of Eavestone! And his new bride, the Duchess of Eavestone!”
Phineas knew what Lord Carfield was trying to do. In one speech, he was reminding Iris of his threats toward her sisters, while at the same time warning Phineas that if he tried to ruin him, he’d also be ruining himself.
As Phineas raised his glass, the collective murmur of “To the Duke and Duchess of Eavestone”filling his ears, Iris’s fingers found his. She placed her hand over his fist and squeezed gently. This time, she was the one comforting him.
It was a small gesture, but it was enough to fill him with fear. Because he realized that Lord Carfield was right about one thing: Phineas wouldn’t do anything to dishonor or harm his newbride. He could only hope that she hadn’t fooled him, that she really was on his side.
Chapter Five
“Are the Duchess’s chambers ready?” Phineas asked the butler the moment they returned to his London townhouse.
It had been a long day—first the ceremony, then the wedding breakfast, then various social obligations that were required of the new Duchess of Eavestone.
At last, they were back at Eavestone House, and Phineas needed a moment alone. He’d spent the whole day in the company of his bride, yet he hadn’t really had a chance to speak to her or get to know her. And while a small part of him was curious about the blonde-haired, green-eyed woman who was now his wife, he was also anxious to be alone.
In the ten years since his parents’ deaths, Phineas had worked hard to ensure that no one got too close to him. James, of course, was the exception. But Phineas spent most of his time byhimself, and he didn’t feel comfortable spending the whole day in the company of Iris.
If the butler thought it odd that Phineas seemed anxious to get rid of his new wife, he was too professional to show any sign of it.
“Of course, Your Grace,” he replied, bowing to both of them. “I have put Her Grace in the chamber attached to yours.”
This made Phineas pause. He had assumed that his servants would put Iris in one of the family rooms further down the hall from his. But no… of course they had put her in his mother’s former chambers.
The chamber that adjoined his own…
Next to him, Phineas thought he felt Iris grow warmer, and indeed, when he glanced at her, she was blushing. Of course, Iris was not an innocent eighteen-year-old debutante. She had more of a sense of what was expected of wives on their wedding nights, and why her bedroom would be attached to her husband’s.
Phineas felt his own ears start to redden, and he turned away at once.
Why are you acting like a schoolboy? This is a marriage of convenience, nothing more.
But he couldn’t fully shake the feeling of agitation. Even if their wedding was one of mutual benefit, it still hadn’t stopped himfrom reaching out during the ceremony and grasping her hand when she looked as if she might faint.
Poor thing… she had looked so fearful, even through her veil, and her whole body had been shaking. Not that he could blame her for being afraid. He wasn’t exactly known for his kindness. She probably wished her father had started a rumor linking her to any other man but him.
Maybe Phineas had made it worse by taking her hand during the ceremony. The man who was the cause of her misery was probably the last person she wanted to comfort her. But he hadn’t been able to help himself. She’d reminded him of a scared, wounded animal, in contrast to her usually tough exterior, and his instinct had been to care for her. Of course, she’d also taken his hand at the wedding breakfast, so perhaps she, too, wanted to care for him.
