The duke was still sitting. He looked between Florentia’s mother and father; a decision being made behind his dark eyes. Florentia held her breath, praying that their ridiculousness had scared him off. So eager were they to see her wed, and to a duke for that matter, that they had made fools of themselves. Surely, the duke could see that?
“I think we can find common ground.” The duke stood up and Florentia’s stomach dropped. “Lord Gillingham, after you?” He indicated to her father to show him the way.
“Right this way!”
Florentia sat there in a state of utter shock. Frustration, also. Hopelessness, as she knew now there was nothing she could do or say. The suddenness of this was impossible. And she did not believe for a second that the duke had simply decided one day to get married and then committed to the first woman he met. There was more to this, she knew.
And what was more, still she did not know his feelings concerning starting a family. Although the dispassionate and businesslike way that he spoke of marriage gave her a pretty darn good indication.
Maybe this is a good thing? If he thinks of this marriage as a business, than he will surely see the advantages of producing an heir. That is, after all, the entire point of marriage…
“Miss Parsons...” The duke was standing before her suddenly. Still sitting down as she was, his sheer size dwarfed her likea mountain leering over a small village. She looked up to meet him, a lump appearing in her throat because all things considered, he was rather handsome. “It has been a pleasure...” He reached out a hand for her.
“Oh...yes, I suppose it has.” She had no idea what to say, so she gave him her hand and he kissed the back. Again, once his lips touched her skin, she felt a fire come to life in her chest and her skin flushed bright pink in ways that she had never experienced with Lord Breccan.
“Until we meet again,” he said, releasing her hand, holding her eyes for a moment... another... locking her in so that she forgot to breathe as if he was trapping her... and then he looked away and she gasped.
And so it was that in the space of five minutes, Florentia had gone from aspiring to being courted by the duke to being engaged to him. She knew nothing of the man. And while she felt deep in the pit of her stomach that she would come to regret this, as she turned and watched him go, she could not help but stare at his broad back and wide shoulders, and wondered secretly if maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all.
CHAPTER FOUR
“Oh, surely it was not that bad,” Albina dismissed.
“It was worse,” Florentia said. “My parents...” A shake of the head. “I have never been so embarrassed. Had His Grace insisted that my father strip off his clothes and cluck like a chicken, I dare say he would have done so without hesitation.”
Albina giggled. “Well, can you blame them? It is not every day that a duke asks to marry someone’s daughter. And so quickly! Honestly, Florentia, I thought you would have been more excited.”
“It is the quickness of it which worries me,” Florentia sighed. “His Grace and I hardly exchanged two words! He did not seem to care about me at all. It was as if he made up his mind on the matter before even seeing me.”
“Oh, I doubt that,” Albina said. “I prefer to think that he was considering courting you but then once he saw you, so taken washe by your beauty that he knew he could not waste any time. He knew from the minute he laid eyes upon you that he had to have you, and thus he made it so.” Her face took on a dreamy expression. “I think it’s rather romantic.”
“Romantic?” Florentia scoffed. “You were not there.”
“But I will be there at the wedding,” Albina insisted. “And as His Grace is brother to Elias, you and I will see one another even more than we do already! Oh, think about it, Florentia...” Her eyed widened with excitement. “I shall have a first-row seat to what I just know will be the second most wonderful and love-filled marriage in all of London.”
“The second?”
“Obviously mine and Elias’ss is the first,” she tittered. “Even I am not so confident in His Grace and you to takethattitle away from us.”
To that, Florentia offered her friend a dramatic rolling of the eyes. Why she had expected anything less from her best friend was beyond her, even if Albina knew that love was the last thing on Florentia’s mind.
It was the day after the duke had paid a visit to Florentia, meaning it was the day after she had officially become engaged. Naturally, the first thing that she had done was to send a letter to Albina, demanding that her best friend come and visit her so that they could discuss and so that Florentia might get some answers.
One of Florentia’s favorite things to do in the whole world was to go riding. Her parents owned a large stable, and five of the horses that it kept belonged to Florentia; each was favored for a different reason. Today, with Albina visiting, and the desire to converse at the top of her list, Florentia had selected two well-bred mares to take for a casual trot across the paddocks which surrounded the estate.
That was where the two friends were now. Riding side-by-side, ahead of the chaperone who was far enough back that he could not hear what was being said. That he was here at all spoke largely to the sense of control that Florentia’s parents were instituting over her life, determined it seemed to make sure that nothing could possibly go wrong until she was wed.
The pace was steady. The field was flat. The sun shone brightly. And the wind was minimal, meaning they did not have to shout.
“I just wish that I knew more about him,” Florentia said despondently. “I know that I am lucky that a duke of all people has agreed to marry me. And, even I am not so blind as to deny how attractive he is...” She felt her cheeks flush at the thought, deepening when she caught Albina grinning. “But I do not care about any of that. If we are to spend the rest of our lives together, I wish to know who he is.”
“Which is why I am here,” Albina said. “Honestly, Florentia, I am trying not to find insult in your constant worry and dismissal of His Grace, but I am starting to feel that maybe I should.”
“Insult? Why would you be insulted?”
“Did you really think that I would suggest His Grace to you if I did not think him a worthy husband? I mean, what are you expecting? That I, your best friend, would saddle you with a monster?”
“I did not mean it like that...”
