Page 73 of No Duke of Mine

CHAPTER TWENTY

Algernon barreled through the house, leaving Maggie behind to be watched over by Stratford, while his brothers went in search of their wives to share his good news. He nodded to anyone he passed, but was furious. He searched the house: the library, the morning room, his study, the dining room, and finally found Aunt Violet sitting on the back terrace, sipping tea alone.

“What is the meaning of this?” he demanded.

The old lady met his gaze, one brow raised regally. “The meaning of what?” she answered, in a manner that suggested amusement rather than fear.

Not surprising, since the dragon hadn’t feared anyone in her very long life. Certainly not a duke.

He planted his feet and put his hands on his hips. “When you said you would invite some of the family to visit Ravenswood, I did not imagine that you intended for all of them to come at once.”

The old lady smiled sweetly and shrugged. “I cannot help it if you don’t listen properly, boy. The family is not only your brothers. It is first, second, and third cousins, too. Well…you are all my family. They are yours, too, and wished to meet your bride, the one you rushed off to London to fetch.”

He groaned and rubbed his hand across his brow. This was not how he hoped to reintroduce Maggie to Ravenswood. The palace was currently fit to bursting with Sweets. She would find it difficult to remember anyone’s names.

According to Nash, every distant relative seemed to have come out of the woodwork to answer the dragon’s summons. His household staff had scrambled with each new arrival to find room to fit them all. Some were sleeping in the halls.

The old lady sighed. “Now, now, boy. Sit down and calm yourself.”

He gave her a hard stare and realized that she was never, ever going to apologize for this disaster.

Ravenswood hadn’t hosted the entire family in years, and the last large gathering had been when he was young. He remembered when his mother had been alive, weaving through a crowded drawing room, trying—and failing—to find a seat to squeeze into. He was too old to perch on a windowsill now, and damned if he would just to give some cousin—third cousin—comfort they thought should be theirs.

The smaller gathering he’d arranged to celebrate his cousin Amity’s marriage had been set in motion before he’d learned of the state of his financial affairs. He hadn’t planned to host another house party for years because he could not spare the money.

“Seymour and I sorted everything out while you were away. There’s nothing for you to worry about or do. It will be a tight squeeze for a while, but in a family as large as ours, that is to be expected.”

“You might have warned me.”

“I did.”

He glanced around and then sat forward. “Do you have any idea the financial strain this puts the estate under?”

“Of course, boy. Of course, I do. But you were going to marry an heiress, and I want to see my family all together once more before I die.”

He groaned under his breath. He had not married for money, and the dragon looked in perfect health, sitting here in the sun. “You’re not dying.”

“My dear boy, no one lives forever. Not even me. We get old. Our bodies don’t work the way they once did. I mean, even you must feel it at your age.”

He scowled at her again. He had only just turned eight and twenty. He was young—younger than his father had been when he was made Duke. However, he was older than his father had been when Algernon was born. That weighed on him a great deal, which was why having all the family here at such a time gave him nightmares. With all the family about, they might harass Maggie by talking about their offspring. Offspring she did not want.

“Now don’t fret. You have your duchess to take over here soon. Lady Kent surely can manage a family gathering.”

His stomach dropped. He had to tell her the truth, and now, before she made things worse. “My wife is not Lady Kent,” he said slowly.

She froze momentarily, and then her cane stamped the ground beside her. “What did you say?”

“I chose a different bride in the end, Aunt Violet. I married her in London.”

One of her canes tapped the ground. “Are you telling me you came home already married, but not to Lady Kent? That you married another without even telling your brothers about it or having them there beside you? Because I know they have not left the estate and they cannot keep a secret to save their lives.”

“I did,” he assured her.

Her lips twitched into an almost smile. “Whom did you marry, boy?”

“I married the woman I love,” he announced.

“Nonsense! I will have her name this minute,” she demanded, and the hair on the back of his neck rose at her obvious agitation.