Page 7 of The Duke’s Matchmaker

“That’s going to make it harder, not easier,” Nathaniel said. “The fact that there are too many candidates is my whole problem, Dorothy.” She was pleased to hear him drop the formality. “It’s impossible for me to remember who is who. That’s why I made this list in the first place. It’s the reason I’ve had no success in courtship. Even if I do enjoy an encounter with someone, by the end of any evening I’ve met so many ladies that they all start to mesh together in my mind. And now there will be even more of them pressing themselves on me.”

“I just can’t believe that that’s your problem,” Dorothy said, shaking her head. “You have too many candidates, and that bothers you?”

“Of course it does. I’m only looking to marry one person, after all.”

“Then choose one. It’s easy if you know what you’re looking for.” She thought about the list she had seen. “Although I suppose it’s clear that you don’t.”

“And what is that supposed to mean?” His eyebrows arched.

“I saw the things you wrote down,” she said. “The only thing you notice about ladies is what they look like, so how can you expect to connect with any of them?”

“And what ought I to be noticing? Since you seem to be the expert?” His lips quirked slightly, and she was annoyed all over again. Just because she was unmarried herself didn't make it foolish to think she might know what she was talking about. Didn’t everyone keep saying what an observer she was?

“You need to think about all sorts of factors in choosing someone to marry,” Dorothy said. “What kind of family is she from? That matters. What are her reasons for wanting to marry? What are the qualities of her character? What about her is intriguing or entertaining to you, and what about her irritates you?”

“I wouldn’t marry someone who irritates me.”

“Of course you would,” she told him. “Every living person irritates those around them from time to time. What you’re looking for isn’t a lady who has no flaws, because that doesn’t exist. You’re looking for flaws you can accept. Perhaps even flaws you enjoy?”

“Flaws I enjoy?” He cocked his head. “You’re going to have to explain that one.”

“Just look at Agnes and Gabriel,” she said. “Each of them has a bit of a temper from time to time. Agnes can be bossy, and Gabriel often fails to take anything as seriously as he should. Wouldn’t you agree?”

“I suppose I would,” he conceded.

“And yet, they adore one another,” Dorothy said. “And their marriage works very well. That isn’t because they aren’t aware of those flaws. It’s because they’ve learned to enjoy them.”

Nathaniel sat back in his chair. “I was right about you,” he mused.

Dorothy felt uncomfortable. “What do you mean, right about me?”

“I mean that I always knew you were keenly aware of everything around you,” he said. “I knew it from the first time we met. I could see the way you paid attention to everything that was going on. I should have known when I saw you in those curtains that something would come of it.”

“I told you I was sorry for reporting that list,” Dorothy said.

“I know,” Nathaniel replied. “And yet, you can’t deny that it is your fault I’m in the position I’m in now.” He paused. “But you can make it up to me.”

Dorothy’s skin prickled. “How would you have me do that?” If he asked for anything she didn’t like, she’d send him off at once.

But she found herself hoping that his request would be one that she’d be willing to accommodate, if only to make amends for her misstep. She really did regret the fact that she had published his list. She was so used to going unnoticed. It surprised her that he had picked up on anything at all about her. That he had paid enough attention to her to know her at all.

And he’s right about me. Everything he’s saying is true.

“You seem to understand how a gentleman ought to search for a wife better than I do,” he said. “Certainly you understand it better than my friends do. It was their idea to make a list in the first place, you know…heaven knows how either of them ever managed to marry.”

Dorothy did not remark on that. Her friends loved their husbands deeply, and she felt the two gentlemen were worthy of that love—but she couldn’t have explained it to Nathaniel or to anyone else. She didn’t fully understand herself how it had come to be. All she knew was that Agnes and Violet had found perfect matches.

“What are you asking me to do?” she said.

“I’m asking you to be my advisor as I look for a wife. Nothing more. Counsel me.”

Dorothy bit her lip. “I can try,” she said at last. It did make sense for her to take on that task. It would mean spending more time with Nathaniel, but since their friends were all married to each other, that was bound to happen anyway. “But you’ll have to tell me what you’re looking for in a wife. It can’t just be looks. What kind of lady do you want?”

He didn’t meet her eyes when he replied. “I have a child to care for,” he said. “I need someone who can be a mother to a child—and who can do so without requiring much from me. It’s not a wife I want, really—it’s a mother. What I need is a lady who doesn’t care for romance or love, but who is equipped to be a good mother.”

Dorothy tried not to let her surprise show. She managed a nod of understanding. But her thoughts were whirling.

Nathaniel has a child?