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Her mother rose slowly from her chair. “Louisa, where have you been? Emma said you went to Tessa’s house last night, which I believed until Tessa arrived wishing to speak with you.”
Louisa glanced over at Tessa who gave her a slight shrug as if to say, you should have told me. Time for the truth and the dressing-down she would receive.
“I was with Harry.”
Tessa, Emma, and her mother finally noticed him standing behind her. “Your Grace,” all three said with a curtsy.
“Good morning, Mrs. Drake, Mrs. Raynerson, and Miss Emma,” he said flatly.
Mamma recovered first. “What do you mean you were with the duke?”
Louisa tilted her head and leveled her mother a smug smile. “I am certain you know exactly what I mean, Mamma.”
Her mother gasped. Tessa smiled. Emma giggled.
Mamma’s cheeks flushed. “That is most dreadful, Louisa! But I’m certain we can keep the talk to a minimum once you marry Collingwood.”
“Mamma!” Louisa had no idea how she could feel shocked after all she’d learned, but the thought that her mother would still expect her to marry Collingwood was beyond the pale. “I’m afraid that is impossible now.”
“You didn’t elope with the duke? You couldn’t have!”
Louisa laughed lightly. “No, we haven’t wed...yet.”
“Yet?” Tessa asked with an encouraging smile.
“Yes.” Louisa pulled a piece of paper from her reticule and smiled over at Harry. “You see, today is the duke’s thirtieth birthday. And seven years ago, we made a deal stating if I reached the age of twenty-five and him thirty, and we were both unmarried, we would wed each other.”
Louisa let out an exaggerated sigh. “If I don’t marry him, he will tell the gossipmongers that I refused to marry him. Imagine the gossip if it was known that I had rejected a viscount, a gentleman, and now a duke. Poor Emma would never be able to marry.”
Tessa’s lips twitched as she attempted to hold back inevitable laughter.
“Madam, I am arranging for a special license this afternoon,” Harry said to her mother. “We will marry in a fortnight to give your daughter time to have a gown made fitting a duchess.”
Her mother’s eyes widened and then fluttered as if she might faint. She sank back into a chair.
Emma broke the tension by saying, “Oh Louisa, I am so happy for you.”
“You won’t be when your engagement is broken because of this scandal.” Her mother had found her voice again. Her mother picked up a fan and waved it in front of her face. “This is too much, Louisa. Look where your impulsiveness has gotten you now!”
“She landed a duke, Madam,” Harry said bluntly. “Most mothers would be quite proud of that fact. Being that you wanted nothing more for your daughters than money and a title, I should think you would be quite pleased.”
“I have never been so insulted in my own home. I must ask you to leave now.”
Louisa smiled over at Harry with a wink. “He can leave, but it will not stop the marriage, Mamma.”
He reached over and brought her hand to his lips. “I will call on you tomorrow. Let me know if you are staying with your sister.” He turned and bowed to Tessa and her mother. “Good day, ladies.”
Louisa watched him leave un
til the door closed behind him. She knew the real objections would start now. But her focus turned toward her oldest sister.
“Tessa, are you all right with this? I know any gossip will involve your name more than anyone else.”
“I am happy for you, Louisa.” Tessa smiled over at her. “I married those men to give you and Emma a chance to marry for love. I glad you found it.”
“Think of what his father did,” Mamma said in a low tone. “He ruined this family.”
“And what did you do, Mamma? I know all about it, though I doubt you wish to wash your dirty linen in front of Tessa and Emma.”
