“And you look very dashing,” she told him, smoothing out the lapels of his tailcoat. “A very handsome duke indeed.”
Like this, I believe you may be a seductress, but not one that has trapped me. One that I have gravitated to willingly,he thought, yet dared not say.
“I noticed how uncomfortable you looked dressing in the clothes that other themes required of you, so I wished for you to have some of your usual comforts tonight,” Amelia continued. “I have longed to confide in you regarding the arrangements for the ball, yet you have been as elusive as a zephyr from the ocean, perpetually retreating when I have endeavoured to engage you in conversation. Regardless, I know tonight will not be the most enjoyable, and it discomforts you to have so many of the ton in your house, so many things out of your control, but I thought that if I could at least give you this one small comfort then I would feel much better.”
The consideration among what was expected of them as the Duke and Duchess of Blackthorn softened his angry heart, and he felt a spread of shame.
“I should not have avoided you,” he muttered. “I am sorry I have abandoned you since our moment in the library.”
“It is nothing,” she said, waving it off. “I know how it can feel to be scared, Graham. Scared and out of your depth. But I only hope that tonight’s ball shall show you that I understand, and that I am not afraid of the man you are.”
He did not believe her, could not believe her, but he nodded his head regardless.
“We must not keep our guests waiting,” he told her, sighing. “They are likely all lined up to see the beastly duke.”
Amelia stopped them from descending the stairs. Although he towered over her, he stopped immediately. Her eyes met his, the green in them deep and pretty.
“You are no beast,” she whispered. “You are my husband.”
Her confidence and security in such a claim shivered through Graham, and he did not know if it was the fact that her own nerves would be present and she was trying to best them herself, or if the dress helped her confidence, but he rather liked both sides of his wife that he was seeing.
“And you are my wife,” he answered, his voice gentle.
“Does that please you?” she asked, as if she could not bear to move down the stairs without asking.
“I am a very hard man to please,” Graham admitted. “But somehow,you have come into my life, and you are bringing light with you. You are making Daphne happy, and you are making my mother smile again. That is enough for me.”
Her face fell at the slight lack of admittance. Graham could not tell her the truth, not yet, that she was making him feel a whirlwind of emotions that he could not pin down.
Instead, he guided them down the stairs, wanting to ask her ifshewas happy but was scared of the answer, so it merely became another thing he bit back and let his silence be his resolve.
***
As confident as she tried to feel, Amelia could not deny that her stomach was a mess of fluttering nerves and worry. In other balls, the worst part was entering and every gaze turning to her. The whispers were terrible, circulating gossip, but she would only have to face one every time she heard it. After that initial moment of entry, she did not always have to feel the weight of the ton.
Now, she stood in the entrance hall with Graham, and she knew the onslaught of greeting every guest tonight would fray her confidence.
One by one, the guests arrived, arrayed in their finery. And one by one, Amelia sensed the keen gaze of the assembled company upon herself and her husband, as they were subjected to a thorough examination. The guests appraised them from head to toe, casting measured glances towards the ballroom, whilst spirited conversations ensued regarding the chosen theme for the evening.
“YourGraces.” It was the countess who had worn the peacock feathers at Lady Victoria’s ball. Her voice dripped with enough disdain that showed how she felt about them being the Duke and Duchess—and their hosts. “How wonderful for you to open the doors of Blackthorn to the ton. I had almost got it into my head that you did not care to share your beautiful home! Idohope it hasn’t been a slight insult that you think we were not good enough to enter such a place.”
“Of course not, Lady Eastward,” Amelia answered before Graham could. “His Grace has not had a reason to host due to only having a duchess now. I am sure you understand that the Dowager Duchess Felicity was still in mourning, and Daphne could not host her own ball.”
Lady Eastward’s mouth tightened as she hummed. “I see. However, I am sure the Dowager Duchess could have hosted atanymoment. Even an afternoon tea, or a soiree, perhaps. After all, the Blackthorns have attended every social event yet not shared the honour of inviting us to anything.”
“You are here now,” Amelia said, forcefully polite. “I believe that is an honour, is it not? And as the Duchess of Blackthorn, rest assured I shall be hosting more celebrations in the future.”
At that, Lady Eastward brightened. After she passed with the earl, who nodded to them both, Graham leaned in. “They are so easily pleased when one offers something shiny and of worth to them.”
“The ton is a terrible mass,” Amelia whispered back, “but I know a little about how to appease a situation. Lingering on the outskirts of ballrooms taught me a great deal.”
“You are clever,” he stated, allowing a small smirk. “I already knew that, of course, but you know the ton’s politics well. I admire how you use them for good use, to put people in their place rather than down.”
Amelia could not fight her shyness at the compliment before another couple waited to be greeted. They continued arriving, and she found herself more and more desperate to see a friendlier face. Her family, Eleanor, perhaps even Lord Owen. But those who had scorned and shunned both of them only kept arriving, and Amelia hated that she had even been required to invite them at all.
Graham leaned in again. “It is absurd that my mother told us to invite the very people who have fuelled gossip about us. Are we sure this ball is a good idea?”
Amelia bit back her laughter, surprised by the joined forces of them already. Although she had envisioned the ball to be deeply dark and intriguing, the light way he jested made her break that composure, but she was not afraid to. Let the ton see that they could smile, and laugh, and that if their circumstance was how the ton gossiped it was then those things might not happen so easy.
