Page 59 of Maid for the Duke

Somehow Mrs Hampton had managed to wrestle him into his full suit and he looked like a mini version of Will.

‘You are a vision, Amelie,’ Mrs Hampton said, and as the nanny turned her attention away from Charles for a minute Amelie saw him slip one of his toy soldiers into a pocket. At least he would not get bored at the wedding.

Amelie twirled. She felt incredible. The modiste had worked such magic with the fabric she had chosen—a beautiful pale-gold satin. No request had been too much and it meant the gown was exactly as Amelie had imagined.

‘Come, Charles. It is time to go. Are you ready, Mrs Hampton?’

‘Let me fetch my handkerchief; I think there may be a few tears in the church this afternoon.’

As the carriage slowed outside the church, Will looked across at Amelie and felt his heart swell with love. Today he would marry the woman who had saved him. Before Amelie, he had been all sadness and loneliness. When she had burst into his life, everything had changed. He felt lucky to have found her. Their summer together in Grantchester would always be one of his fondest memories, something he would hold close and cherish.

The children had gone on ahead with Mrs Hampton, to take their places at the front of the church, and now for a minute it was just Amelie and him in the carriage.

‘Are you ready, my love?’

She looked at him with such joy and anticipation that he felt like the luckiest man on earth.

‘I am,’ she said. ‘I have been ready for a long time.’

Their engagement had felt terribly long, but he had been eager to do things properly. He wanted to show the world that this was no rushed wedding; that he wasn’t marrying her purely to prevent a scandal. Even so, there had been times where he had wanted to scoop Amelie up into his arms, ride off with her on the back of his horse and not stop until they got to Gretna Green.

Now though their patience was being rewarded. Today he would marry the woman he loved in the church where every one of his ancestors had married. It sent a message to society that they did not mean to hide away from the world and they were not ashamed of how their relationship had started.

He took her hand and helped her down from the carriage and then together they walked to the door of St George’s. The pews were packed. It had been a risk, inviting a large section of the aristocracy. There had been a chance that everyone would decline the invitation, but their curiosity had been too strong, and now their wedding was being supported by marquesses, earls and viscounts.

As they walked in through the door, all eyes turned to them and he felt Amelie stiffen beside him. He moved closer, murmuring reassurance in her ear, telling her to lean on him.

He could see Amelie’s siblings at the very front, bobbing up and down with excitement under the watchful eye of Mrs Hampton. Amelie’s father was a few rows further back. They had deliberated hard as to what was best to do for Mr Somersham.

Amelie had been torn—she was certain if Will paid her father’s debts he would not change his ways for long and would soon start borrowing money and gambling. Yet she could not leave her father in the terrible debtor’s prison when Will had the resources to pay the money to buy his freedom. In the end they had decided to pay and set Mr Somersham up in a small set of rooms in the city, on the condition that he understood that if he found himself in trouble again he would be on his own.

On the other side of the church, sitting side by side and beaming with happiness, were Lady Elizabeth and Miss Flint. Despite the families’ agreement that Will would marry Lady Elizabeth, when he and Amelie had called on them the two women had been ecstatic at the news of their engagement. Amelie and Miss Flint had become firm friends, exchanging letters weekly.

They were halfway down the aisle now and Will felt Amelie grow in confidence as she realised no one could stop her from taking her place by his side as his duchess. Soon she would outrank every other woman in the room, and it would not matter about her family’s scandal or her past.

As they reached the altar and turned to face one another, Will took a moment to relish his feeling. His heart was full. There was no more loneliness, no more sadness. His sense of duty was still strong, but now he made sure he weighed his decisions to ensure he was making them for the right reasons.

Never again did he want to risk losing something as important as Amelie. She had given him a second chance and he was not going to squander it.

Keep reading for an excerpt from HER ROYAL HOUSEGUEST by Jade Lee.

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HER ROYAL HOUSEGUEST

Jade Lee

Book 1 in Princes of Siam

Thinking it was one of the female servants at the door, Prince Deva spoke too harshly.

‘Be gone! No woman is allowed here!’

Lady Anna drew up short at his hostile words. ‘Your place was my place not more than an hour ago,’ she snapped.

She abruptly clenched her teeth and forced herself to dip her chin. He could see the struggle to give him even that much and he respected her for it. How many times had he been forced to swallow his own outrage? Her next words were more polite but the tension remained clear.