Chapter 26

Dominic sat in the armchair in Marie's sitting room. The cozy atmosphere provided by the crackling fire made him feel at home. He'd been utterly horrified when Christopher had told him where Marie was heading. Not only was the club no place for a respectable woman, but he wasn't sure how he would have lived with himself if anything had happened to her.

"Here is your tea. I apologize if anything tastes funny. My grandmother gets her moods when she suddenly decides to put extra herbs in everything I drink." Marie came into the room carrying a silver tray with a white apron tied around her waist.

Dominic couldn't help but smile at the mention of her grandmother. "You know my grandmother has grown quite fond of yours. I don't think we could separate the two if we tried prying them apart."

Marie laughed and shook her head. "I don't quite understand their friendship, but they seem to make it work. They had me laughing until I cried the other day at tea. The dowager duchess is still as sharp as a tack."

"And as sly as a fox, make no mistake." Dominic reached for a cup and gingerly sniffed the amber liquid before taking a sip. The tea seemed earthier than usual yet wasn't altogether unpleasant.

Settling into a large armchair, Marie reached for a cup of tea and made herself comfortable.

"Now, are you going to tell me what trouble you are in? Or will I have to find you in a chamber at White's threatening one of the prime ministers?" Dominic placed his cup back on the tray and sat back, clasping his hands between his knees.

Color filled her cheeks as she let out a heavy sigh. "Well, I guess there is no longer any use hiding it from you." She pursed her lips and placed the cup back on the tray.

"Not that there ever was any logical reason to hide it from me in the first place," Dominic teased her gently, trying to put her at ease.

The faintest of smiles touched her lips. "Business at the shop hasn't been doing very well lately; in fact, there isn't any at all. I first thought it had to do with the Arrindell scandal, so I eventually confronted Lady Arrindell. It turned out that Lady Arrindell had no idea, nor had she or her staff spread any rumors."

"I heard something of the scandal, but I didn't realize it had caused you so much trouble." Dominic frowned; most of the ladies of the ton had been talking about Arabella Arrindell and how she had run away after visiting Marie. His grandmother had kept an eye on the situation, yet it hadn't seemed so dire to him at the time.

"After that, I assumed that it must have been James; obviously, I was wrong. I didn't know that you had threatened him with ruin if he so much as mentioned my name ever again." She smiled sadly at him, tugging at his heart.

"Marie, I didn't want to concern you with all of the clauses. Are you sure that there is no one else who would hold a grudge against you?" He searched her face, wanting to solve the problem for her, yet feeling utterly powerless. He didn't know enough of her business at the shop to even have a clue.

Marie shook her head. "I can't think of anyone that would have a grudge strong enough to want to cause me so much pain. I've never had a match that has ended badly, and everyone who has come to me has eventually ended up in a happy marriage, even if there were a few bumps along the way."

"There has to be someone that would have it out for you. Can't you think of anyone that you had an argument with? Even if it's one of the shop owners who helps you feed the stray animals." He tried to encourage her as best he could, feeling the need to solve all of her problems.

Marie sat thoughtfully for a moment before shaking her head. "I honestly can't think of anyone, Dominic."

The ease with which she used his name caught him off guard. It hadn't been the first time that she'd said his name, yet something was different now. She used it in an almost affectionate way as if she were seeing him differently.

Is she seeing me as someone she could marry?

His heart skipped a beat, making him take a deep breath as he watched her from across the room.

"I'm afraid that I will have no other choice but to marry if things go on like this." Her voice was tinged with sadness as she fixed her dress over her knees.

"If only there was someone like a handsome Duke who would be willing to marry you. And it would certainly be beneficial if he already owned the building from which you ran your shop. And I don't know. Perhaps if your families liked one another, that wouldn't be so bad either." He looked up and smirked at her, noting the way her shoulders relaxed a little when he teased her.

"Don't start again; you know I don't think we have enough in common to make a marriage work. Besides, don't you think that me paying you rent every month is something of a conflict of interests?" She raised her eyebrows in question and pursed her lips.

"Fine, you no longer have to pay rent. You may have the shop for free. I will even go as far as signing that specific shop over to you." He interrupted her before she could protest. "And if that still seems like a conflict of interest to you, then Christopher can buy the shop from me."

A soft laugh filled the air as she rolled her eyes and stood. "You are incorrigible, Your Grace." She attempted to walk past him and gather the tray of tea, but Dominic reached out and gripped her wrist, gently pulling her onto his lap.

"I'm not trying to be incorrigible, Marie, and please don't revert to calling me Your Grace. I like the sound of my name on your lips." His hand moved up her thigh, pulling her leg closer until she leaned on him for support with one hand on his chest.

Her breathing deepened when she looked him in the eyes and softened her voice to a whisper. "Dominic, there is so much more that marriage requires, like friendship, understanding, and passion. I know these things because I used to make matches in taverns long before I became a matchmaker. I used to be a barmaid, and I observed people very closely."

Dominic found the aspects of her past fascinating. It was no wonder that she had garnered a reputation among men as being someone who didn't back down. She had lived quite a rough life before getting her start among the ton.

His eyes fell to her lips as his hand moved up her thigh. "I think I have more than proved to you that I can be a friend, and I don't think that passion should be called into question." He leaned in closer, waiting for Marie to close the distance between them.

Her lips parted with a gentle sigh as she leaned down, placing a chaste, lingering kiss against his lips. Her eyes stayed shut for a moment as she drew back. "No, the passion between us cannot be called into question, but that still doesn't mean that we should get married. I'm sure that as a man, your passions have been inflamed many a time for many a woman."

His mind instantly wandered to the women in the club with Christopher as his hand ran up Marie's back, pulling her closer to him until all of her weight rested in his lap. "My desires have never been aroused as much by anyone else as they have with you. From the moment I saw you behind your desk, I knew that I wanted to kiss you."

Something flickered in her eyes before her lips broke into a smile. "Was this before or after you wanted to wring my neck for trying to find you a match at your grandmother's behest?"

"The only thing I have ever wanted to do with your neck was run my tongue over it," he growled in her ear and pressed his lips against the tender flesh right beneath her ear.

Marie moaned softly before pulling back. "We had better not start anything right now. My grandmother will be home soon." She gently applied pressure to his chest, wanting to push herself away.

Dominic reached up and gripped her wrist, holding her hand in place. "I want to marry you, Marie; I don't want to wait for your answer any longer. I will come and see you at your shop tomorrow, and I will be expecting an answer." He fought the urge to kiss her again, wanting her with every fiber of his being.

"Dominic I…" Her voice was softer than a whisper as she looked into his eyes.

"No, don't answer now. Give me your answer tomorrow when I come to see you, and if you still have doubts, remember this." He lifted his chin, pressing his lips against hers in a tender kiss before slaking his tongue over her lips and gaining entry to her mouth.

Marie moaned louder this time, embracing the kiss as she placed her hand behind his neck and caressed his skin with the tips of her fingers.

His arousal grew as she shifted in his lap, making the spark of desire in his chest take flame.

"We have to stop." Marie lifted her head and sighed deeply when she heard the door to the kitchen open.

"Tomorrow then," was all Dominic could utter through a deep sigh of longing as they drew apart.

Shutting the door behind her back and leaning against the cool wood, Marie took a moment to compose her thoughts.

Does he love me?

Her heart fluttered furiously in her chest as she recalled everything he had said and promised. It sure seemed as if he wanted to move the world to make her happy and comfortable, but was that love?

"Marie, are you there darling?" Elaine called to her from the kitchen.

She pushed back the ache in her heart and headed toward the kitchen.

"I thought I saw the Duke's carriage outside, so I decided to give the two of you some privacy. I thought I heard the front door closing. Has Dominic left already?" Elaine kept her back to Marie as she reached for jars on a shelf above her head.

The iron kettle had already been placed on the hook above the fire, indicating her grandmother's need for a cup of tea.

"He went back." Marie pulled out a chair and sat at the table, relishing the comfort that her grandmother's presence always brought to her. The fresh smell of herbs had always been the scent of her childhood; her grandmother had been there for her even before her parents had died and had proved to be her pillar of strength.

"That's nice dear; I'm glad to see the two of you spending more time together. I saw him coming you know; I had a feeling in my gut that your true love wasn't far off. It's the same kind of feeling that I got right before I met your grandfather." She finished with the jars and replaced them on the shelves before bringing two cups to the table.

"He wants an answer to his proposal tomorrow," Marie reluctantly confided in her grandmother; she hadn't wanted to start the conversation, but there didn't seem to be another option.

Elaine hesitated before arranging the cups on the table; her eyes held the question, yet her mouth remained still.

Marie wished she had an answer, but the truth was that she didn't know herself. There had been times she had felt like saying yes and twice when she had almost said yes. Yet the questions still plagued her mind.

"Grandmamma, how did you know that you were in love with Grandpa? More importantly, how did you know that he loved you?" Marie strummed the tips of her fingers on the top of the table, feeling a great amount of frustration with her situation.

Elaine took a seat opposite her granddaughter with a great deal of effort. "It was simple back then. I told him that I loved him, and he told me that he loved me. We got married and had your father. I don't know why things always have to be so complicated all the time." She shook her head.

"That is when you told each other Grandma, but I want to know when you knew it was love and not just a marriage of convenience." Marie couldn't help but smile at her grandmother's sarcasm.

Her grandmother narrowed her eyes at her. "You're a fool if you think that anything is convenient in marriage. Marriage and love is all about give and take. You won't always get your way, and he won't always get his way. And if one is getting their own way all the time, then that is not love, that is tyranny. As for your question about how you know, it isn't one moment where you can turn around and say that is the exact second I knew that I loved that person. It is a gradual feeling that can cause you a great deal of pain and longing if nothing comes to fruition."

Her pulse raced as Marie let out a deep breath. She had seen it so many times with the matches she had made in the past. There was a great deal of heartache, questioning, and longing when it came to matters of the heart.

Is that not exactly what I am experiencing?

Elaine's expression softened as she reached across the table and took Marie's hand in hers. "I know that you must be going through a great deal of doubt regarding your feelings, but let me reassure you.

I know that the Duke does not want children, but things can change in that regard and often do change. Even if he still doesn't want children after you marry, love will be enough to keep you going for the rest of your lives. As long as you have one or the other, the rest doesn't matter."

But what if there isn't love either?

Marie's heart ached at the thought of entering into a marriage with no love or even the prospect of children. She would have wanted both in an ideal world, but she could settle for one if the other was absent. She already knew that the Duke didn't want children, so the only question that remained was if he loved her.