Page 39 of Taken By the Dangerous Duke

“A debt he has paid off many times over by being a good friend and an even better whist partner,” said Arthur.

“Which reminds me—there is a tournament here, right?” asked Parker.

“There is,” said Arthur. “And, without the elite players from London, we are sure to win it this time.”

“I would love to come and watch that,” said Margaret. “And perhaps you could both teach me how to play?”

“You have not taught her how to play whist yet?” asked Parker. “Well, what have you been doing? You know what? Don’t answer that. I can imagine what you have been doing, and I don’t like the images in my head. No, I should not say things like that.” Parker turned more serious. “I know you have been going through a lot, Margaret. Arthur has been telling me that your parents are in town.”

“They are,” said Margaret. “I won’t go into too much detail, but coming to York was my way of escaping them. They managed to find me, and now they want me to convince the duke to give them some money, all so they will go back to London. That is how little they love me. They did not come here to find me, only to get something from me because of who I am married to.”

“I am sorry,” said Parker.

“And, I have told Margaret that I will give them all the money they want as long as it gets them out of her life,” said Arthur.

“And I have told Arthur that he will give them nothing. They don’t deserve it, and I am prepared to wait them out. While I am in this house, the staff have orders not to let them in, and as long as I don’t tell them where I am going, they won’t be able to hunt me down.”

“Do you think they will give up?” asked Parker.

“They will,” said Margaret. “They are away from London, and that means they will be losing out on money. They can only stay here for so long.”

“I hope that you are right,” said Arthur.

“I do too,” agreed Margaret. “I will stop unloading my familial issues on the two of you, and let you do whatever you men do when you are alone. Probably get drunk and burp. Do I have that right?”

“Arthur burps more than I do,” laughed Parker.

“Goodnight,” said Margaret with a smile. “I will tell the butler to bring you both some refreshments.”

“Now, where can I find a wife like you?” asked Parker.

“You can’t,” said Margaret with a wink. She left the room with a smile.

“She is a great woman,” said Parker when she was gone. “You managed to find exactly what you were looking for.”

“It might not be conventional, but perhaps it plays into the Almighty’s plan.”

“Do you believe that?” Parker walked over to the card table and sat down. He started shuffling some cards.

“I don’t know,” admitted Arthur. He joined Parker at the card table. “When I talked to you about finding a wife, I didn’t really think that I would, but here we are.”

“So, you are still going ahead with the plan? You are going to have a son and then go your separate ways.”

Arthur was about to answer when the butler walked in. He suspected that all the staff knew by now, but it did not feel right to talk about it in front of them. The butler moved the small drinks table over beside the card table and placed the tray on the edge of it. He unloaded the whisky decanter, two glasses, a plate of sandwiches, and a selection of cigars. It was only when he left that the duke answered the question.

“That is the plan,” said Arthur.

“And Margaret is on board with all of this?”

“Yes. She wants to get away from her family, and this is the perfect solution to that problem. But, we have not talked fully about what will happen after. We both know we will separate, but I don’t know what that means.”

“She will have a child with you, so she is not likely to move away from York, or even the house.”

“No,” agreed the duke. “I have kept the entire east wing free. I thought that she might live there, and she could see her child or children as much as she wanted, and be a part of their life. Or, I don’t know. Maybe she will want to move somewhere else. I am fine with whatever she chooses.”

“I still can’t believe that you are married, nor that you have worked out this agreement with a woman, and a woman like her. You know, you could have done a lot worse.”

“I know,” said Arthur.

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