Page 15 of A Gentleman's Wife

Chapter Seven

The carriage ride to Claremont Hall was not an easy one. Thomas carefully watched his bride seated across from him, but Marianne did not give any indication of pain or discomfort. She carried on light conversation with him throughout the day, all the while giving him reassuring smiles, and occasionally whispered to her maid.

Thomas found he was terribly grateful for the relationship Marianne had with her maid. Eliza seemed to understand her intuitively and anticipate her every need. He didn’t know everything about his wife the way Eliza did, but he wanted to. Not to replace the one good person Marianne had been able to retain from her previous life, but to show her that she need not only depend on one person. He wanted Marianne to feel like she could depend on him too. He wanted to be a good husband. Perhaps that would come with time.

Night had already fallen by the time they arrived in Hertfordshire. When the carriage came to a stop, Thomas stepped out to servants holding lanterns standing before Claremont Hall. Thomas had visited this place maybe once before and had vague memories of Henry’s parents before they’d passed.

By the time he’d turned to help his wife from the carriage, Eliza had already given her a hand down, so Thomas moved to greet the butler.

“Good evening, Mr. Ramsbury. My name is Baxter, at your service.”

“Thank you, Baxter. Is the house still awake?”

“The ladies have all gone to bed, but the gentlemen are taking their port in the study. Once you and your wife are settled, I have been instructed to show you in to them.”

“Of course you have,” Thomas said with a chuckle. He was not getting out of this explanation easily. “Thank you. Please show us in.”

Even in the low candlelight, Claremont Hall was a beautiful house. They slowly made their way through in the dark with servants leading the way. Thomas saw that Marianne was secure in her room with her things, but before Eliza closed the door, he put up his hand.

“I’m glad you’re here, Eliza,” Thomas whispered, “And that Marianne has your constant support in spite of all the changes.”

She smiled with a wisdom beyond his own years. “It is I who should thank you, sir, for accepting my mistress with such compassion.”

A surge of understanding pulsed through him as she gave him a brief nod and shut the door. Eliza knew in full what Marianne had suffered at the hands of her family, and she recognized Thomas’s efforts to provide a different environment for his wife. They were allies in that regard.

But where he was going now, no one could help him. Taking a deep breath, he made his way downstairs to the gentleman’s study.

Thomas opened the door and found his two friends with drinks in hand, talking quietly and standing before a large fireplace. When they looked up, their faces immediately altered. Henry’s smile brightened and James’s darkened, which suited them perfectly.

“Finally!” Henry almost shouted. The drink had clearly loosened his inhibitions, but his steps across the room bore confidence, as did his embrace. “Glad you made it, Thomas.”

When Henry stepped back, Thomas was met with the Undesirable Duke’s glare.

“The only reason you’re not meeting with my fist right now is due to the request of the bride and groom, and as we’re in their home, you’ve been spared,” James grumbled, extending his hand. Thomas anticipated the painful squeeze in a handshake, but he still didn’t know what he was going to say. How to explain it all to his closest friends that the one thing he’d longed for, he’d failed at?

“But we do require a full explanation,” Henry said, pouring another glass and handing it to Thomas. “Come now. It must be a good story to keep it so secret, even from us.”

Thomas flinched. Henry’s letter had been all forgiving, but there was still hurt in his voice.

“I am sorry for… it all just happened so fast, and much of it was not within my control…” Thomas sighed, then took a sip, once again wishing for peace the drink could never bring.

“Please, continue,” James said, his voice losing some of its previous edge as he settled in his seat again.

Thomas thought long for a moment about how much to reveal. Even though he should, he did not want to paint Lady Finley in a negative light. Nor did he want to reveal Marianne’s secrets if she did not wish the truth of her hand to be public knowledge. But how to justify his actions to his friends?

“The night of your engagement party, I learned that Lady Finley was set to announce her engagement at any moment. So when I returned to my grandfather, we decided that it would be best for me to leave town and have him arrange a marriage for me instead. It turned out one of my father’s old friends had a daughter seeking a match, so they secured the special license and arranged the whole thing. They brought her to my home, had a quick ceremony, and it’s been near a month now.”

His two friends looked at him expectantly.

“That can’t be the whole of it,” Henry said, blinking quickly.

“You learned then she was going to marry Slanton? And you said nothing?” James’s anger returned with a burst. “That she had been stringing you along, even since the house party? That wretched––”

“James, please.” Thomas shook his head. “It hardly matters anymore. She will marry Slanton, and I’m happily settled with a wife of my own.” Thomas only wished he meant the words, but they did not reflect the emotions thundering around in his chest.

The duke huffed, and the room went quiet.

“And how do you get on with your new bride?” Henry asked with a curious smile.

“She is… lovely.” There was no other word for Marianne. She was quiet and timid but pleasant company. And the little he knew of her family made him feel terribly protective of her, making the rare smile on her face a great prize.

“As it was an arranged marriage, it’s been a slow process getting to know her, but I’m confident we’ll be happy together.”

“Ahhh.” Henry leaned back in his chair with a satisfied smile. “Who knew the three of us would all eventually end up married? We each put up a fight, though, didn’t we? His Grace certainly did,” Henry said, shoving James on the shoulder. “And heaven knows I never would have, were it not for Emma.” Then he turned his eyes to Thomas. “I’m sorry it didn’t work out with Lady Finley as you’d hoped, but it sounds like you’re going to be just fine with your wife.”

The words twisted in Thomas’s chest for a brief moment. Out of his friends, Thomas had been the only one who had desired marriage, and what more, desired love in marriage. The duke had fought against it for years, finally giving in and returning to parliament when given the insight of the right woman. Henry had been a determined rake for years until his future bride caught his eye and helped him change his ways. Both of them had gained the one thing Thomas had longed for all his life, a woman to love and start a family with, which was the thing that Thomas had been denied. True, Marianne was a good person who deserved a good life, but Thomas did not love her. Maybe even couldn’t love her. He might find contentment in his future with her, but he knew it would only be a portion of the happiness he might have had.

“To happy marriages and happy wives,” Henry said.

James lifted his glass, as did Thomas. He tried not to hate his friend, blissfully happy on the night before his marriage, and he wouldn’t take away from the celebration and make it all about himself. But if he were being honest, Thomas had little hope for his future.

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