Page 40 of Married to the Duke By Midnight

Robert looked at the landscape below them. The scattered clouds were casting shadows over the golden green grass, and he followed the journey of one for a minute.

“I have something for you,” he told her as he remembered and sat up straighter to be able to rummage in the pocket of his moss green walking jacket. He found the small dark red velvet pouch and held it out to her.

Jo looked at him tentatively as she opened it. She reached inside, fiddled with it for longer than seemed necessary, before she took the gold band out. She placed it delicately in her hand and looked at it. He could not read the expression on her face. Was she disappointed?

He had ordered another one for her. In white gold with a large sapphire in the middle surrounded by small diamonds. The color had reminded him of the sea and the constellation of the sapphire and diamonds of a pearl nested in a shell. The jeweler had said it would be a couple of weeks until it was finished, and Robert had bought the plain golden one for Jo to wear in the meantime.

“You need a wedding ring. I am sorry I did not think of it sooner,” he told her and felt that the words were not the right ones, even though they were true.

“Thank you,” Jo muttered then held the ring out to him. “Will you put it on?”

Robert took it and moved closer, holding her hand in one of his as he placed the ring on her left ring finger with the other. They both held their breath as he did so and he was reminded of the night they married and the vows they had made.

With this ring, I thee wed, he thought as he slid it on her finger, but did not dare speak out loud. The words seemed more solemn and heavy now than when he had originally uttered them.

“Thank you,” Jo mumbled and withdrew her hand from his.

“You are welcome,” Robert muttered and moved away again. As if he could remove himself from the solemnity of the moment as well.

“Will you wear one as well?” Jo only met his eyes briefly before looking at the meadow below.

“A ring?” Robert asked and she nodded.

It was not customary for the husband to wear a ring. The wife’s ring showed that she belonged to someone, although that should be true for the husband as well, Robert supposed.

“Mr. Oakley wears one.”

“I noticed,” Robert muttered.

He had seen it when they had met Mr. Hawkins and his solicitor on the third day of their marriage. He had wondered briefly about it at the time, but when he had seen Mr. Oakley with his wife afterward, it had made sense. The man doted intensely on her in his own quiet way.

“Would you want me to wear one?” he asked Jo and realized it was the wrong thing to say, when he saw her slightly pinched face.

“If you want to,” was all she answered primly before looking away again.

He did not want to. It would feel like fraud. Like trying to show the world that they were more connected than they were. He would have worn one if he had married Lucretia though. Without thought. He would have been so proud that she was his that he would have wanted the whole world to see.

And he still wanted that connection with a woman, Robert was startled to realize. And not just any woman. With… But that was absurd.

He cleared his throat and sat up straighter without meeting Jo’s eyes.

“Favorite tree?” Jo asked before he had a chance to speak.

19

“What do you think they are talking about?” Thornston asked when Robert turned after checking on Jo who was dancing with Xavier.

He was immediately able to find her in the sea of colorful dresses and dark jackets.

Robert shrugged. He had no idea what his stepbrother and wife were talking about but from Jo’s encouraging smile, it seemed their conversation was going fairly well.

“His lips are moving, he seems to be taking part in the conversation,” Thornston commented with narrowed eyes, as if he was an ornithologist studying a rare species of birds.

“He is not that bad.”

Robert rolled his eyes at his friend and took a sip of the port. It was good; strong and potent. Not something that had been watered down. As he lowered his glass, his gaze immediately found Jo again on the dance floor.

She was wearing the teal silk dress she had worn on the second day of their marriage. It was paired with the diamonds again, but her hair was arranged differently, making it look brighter, and she was wearing different gloves as far as he could tell. She looked radiant as always.