AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Just when Sarah thought she couldn’t stand the silence for one more moment, the duke entered the parlour.
“Good afternoon,” the duke said.
Lord John turned to him. “Good afternoon, Your Grace. We were discussing important matters, as you might guess.”
The duke lifted his brow. “Indeed. I just ran into Patrick at the tavern.”
The duke seated himself at their table, and there was shock written on Lord John’s face. “At the tavern?”
“Indeed. He was enjoying a pint of ale with his cronies.” The duke turned to Sarah to gauge her reaction.
Sarah kept her face placid. “I suppose there’s no sense in judging Patrick for being at the tavern in the early afternoon since you, yourself, were there, as well.”
“You make a sound point, Sarah,” the duke replied. “I often attend the tavern, if only to see how the lower classes live.”
Sarah detested the duke’s insult. His words were hypocritical at best.
Lord John shook his head. “I can’t make sense of any of this, Sarah. I feel as though I don’t know the woman you’re becoming.”
The woman that shewishedto become; that was the woman she was becoming.
Just then, another unsettling feeling took hold. There must have been a reason for her father and the duke summoning Lord Kelly Spencer, a man that appeared positively identical to Patrick. They knew something that she did not, and they were withholding information from her.
“What is my escape from this?” Sarah asked, looking from Lord Edward to her father. “If I agree to marry you, Your Grace, does that mean that this whole ordeal shall come to a close?”
There were hope and expectancy in Lord Edward’s eyes. “I assume that this turmoil would cease, yes.”
“And, do you love me, Your Grace?” Sarah demanded.
“I suppose so.”
He supposed so? Would wonders never cease? Here her father was pushing her into a marriage with a man thatsupposedthat he loved her. Sarah would not be surprised in the slightest if her father wished her to marry the duke for pecuniary reasons.
“I fear that I can’t listen to this for a moment longer.” Sarah stood from the table, and the duke stood in response.
“Be seated, Sarah,” her father said. “We’re not finished with this conversation.”
“I’m quite finished. I don’t wish to discuss the matter further.” Sarah turned on her heel and made her way to the door, but her father’s words halted her.
“You risk disinheritance, daughter,” Lord John said.
Sarah felt her breath catch in her chest. She slowly turned back to her father. “Then so be it. Give the title to Lisbeth. She needs it more than I.”
With that, Sarah exited the room on the verge of tears. What a conundrum she found herself in. If she chose Patrick’s love, there was a chance that not only would she relinquish her title, but also her father’s love. Would she be willing to go to such lengths to marry the man that had captured her affections?
Sarah shook her head in dismay as she walked down the hall. She was crestfallen, and since she looked down at the ground as she walked, Sarah didn’t see the person who was approaching and slammed directly into him.
“My word!” Sarah exclaimed.
“I apologize.”
Sarah looked up to discover either Patrick or Lord Kelly. For a brief moment, she didn’t know which.
“You are … ?”
“Lord Kelly Spencer,” he replied, gazing into her eyes. Although he and Patrick shared the same blue eyes, there was something markedly different about Lord Kelly’s gaze. There was a lack of familiarity there.
“I am Lady Sarah Crawford, daughter to the Duke of Benton.”
