“The dog is Colonel, isn’t he?” he asked, glancing back up at Leah.
“But of course!” She sounded surprised that he didn’t know her dog’s name, which only added to Lucien’s ill temper. “And now the butler just told me there will not be room for his bed, toys, and favorite foods to be packed in the carriage. Something about the cook’s pots and pans? I’m not sure I heard that correctly, however.”
“You heard correctly,” Lucien snapped. “But why, dear sister, would we need to bring the dog’s things with us?”
Leah looked at him as if he’d lost his mind. “Because he is coming with us, of course!” she said, laughing. “Oh Lucien, I couldn’t bear to leave the darling thing behind! It would break my heart. And his, I’m sure.”
Lucien felt his last nerve sever. He’d had enough. Now thedogneeded to come with them? His family truly was going to be the end of him.
“Leah,” he began, with forced calm, “we do not have room to pack the dog’s things, let alone for the dog itself! We aresix peopletraveling to London--not including a dozen servants--in only a handful of carriages. Nor does that take into consideration all of our things! Where do you think the trunks are going to go if we have to pack in your dog and--”
A horrible thought occurred to Lucien, and he narrowed his eyes. “Is just your dog coming, Leah, or do your sisters also plan to bring theirs?”
“Why, all of us are bringing our dogs!” she said, as if this were the most obvious thing in the world. “You did not expect us to leave them here, did you?” Her eyes widened with horror. “But only a shadow staff are staying here! They cannot look after the dogs, let alone show them the love and attention they need!”
“Love and attention?” Lucien was shaking his head. “They’re just d--”
“Is everything alright?”
Emery. Although the voice spoke from behind him, Lucien recognized her voice at once. It was so immediately calming that he felt all the fight fade out of him at once, all the stress and worry about the move melt away. Never in his life hadanything or anyone made him feel this way, and he immediately distrusted it.
Still, when he turned around to face his wife, he couldn’t help but smile down at her as she gazed up at him, her eyes twinkling slightly.
“Ahh, Duchess.” He cleared his throat. “Leah and I were just having a mild disagreement about the logistics of bringing the dogs with us.”
“I see,” she said, glancing at the dog that was now sitting calmly at Leah’s feet, staring up at them all with wide--and in Lucien’s opinion, manipulative--eyes. “Well, I’m sure it will be a bit of a crush with the dog, but it’s worth it for the reputation it will cement for her.”
“Reputation?” This argument caught Lucien off-guard. “What do you mean?”
“It shows a charitable spirit,” she said, smiling warmly at him, “that a lady of means would take in a stray--not to mention an orphan--and nurse him back to health. Most young ladies would have a dog of impeccable breeding, but Leah is different from the rest. She has a good heart and took in an animal that needed her, not just one that would be a good lap dog.”
Lucien paused as he considered this. Although he had a feeling his wife was spinning this take on the situation in order to convince him to take along the dog, he had to admire her cleverness. There was something convincing about her versionof events. Bringing the dogwouldmake Leah look as if she had a selfless, charitable nature--which, he had to admit, was true.
Emery bent down and rubbed the dog under the chin. He gave a low, pitiful whine that made Lucien’s heart ache. “He’s such an adorable ball of fluff!” she cooed. “There is no way he would cause any kind of scandal, even if he is a mutt. Everyone in London will love him!”
Leah, meanwhile, nodded fervently.
Lucien sighed. “She reallyshouldhave a dog of impeccable breeding, though,” he said, even as he felt himself relenting. “It is highly irregular. Not to mention downright unfashionable.”
Emery’s eyes narrowed slightly, and she stood and tilted her chin up, giving him a defiant smile. “Leah is the sister of the Duke of Dredford,” she murmured, and the low, conspiratorial tone of her voice made the hairs on the back of his neck prickle. “She decides what is fashionable. Not the rest of theton. Trust me. A few weeks in London, and ladies will be trading in their lap dogs for strays.”
This elicited a small grunt of laughter from Lucien. She had a point. Although the last thing they needed was to convince thetonto accept a stray dog, when they were still trying to convince them to accept his and Emery’s marriage.
But as he glanced down at the dog, he couldn’t help but feel his heart melt a little. The dog really had become part of the family in the past few weeks. All of them had endeared themselvesto the family, and Lucien didn’t like the idea of them staying behind here, where they wouldn’t be loved.
“Alright,” he said at last, shaking his head. “I have too much work to do to be arguing about this anyway. I still have to read through mountains of correspondence for both the business and our invitations in London.”
Emery tilted her head to the side and then reached out and touched his arm. Something about the gesture felt very familiar, and Lucien froze.
“Why don’t you go to your study and get that done?” she asked, her eyes gentle. “I can oversee the rest of the packing.”
Lucien stared at her. “Really? There is so much to do, and you don’t know anything about packing up the carriages.”
“How hard can it be?” she asked, shrugging. “And I have Leah to help me as well.”
When he continued to hesitate, she laughed and shook her head. “Don’t worry,” she said in a low, reassuring voice. “I have everything under control. I will make sure the carriages are packed up and everything is set to go so we can get to London and begin this next challenge.”
Lucien hesitated, unsure what to say. On the one hand, he didn’t like to give up control to someone else. It was always better to do something one’s self. And he was used to doing everythinghimself for a very long time. On the other hand, she seemed very confident, and he really did have a lot to be getting on with.
