Chapter 8

"Sit still, Maddie," Sarah chided, placing another pin into her sister's hair.

"I would if you stop pricking me with all these pins," Madeline complained. "Ow!"

Arabella laughed at the familiar scene. "Oh, Maddie, you're such a harridan!"

Madeline stuck out her tongue, earning herself a flick on the forehead.

Arabella shook her head and lounged back in the bath that had been drawn for her. She'd had always thought that if she ever got married, her wedding morning would start off magical, with fresh morning light streaming through her windows and birds singing harmoniously in the background, but her reality was a far cry from what she was currently experiencing.

First, her sisters had woken her early before the sun began to peek through the clouds to soak in a hot bath with rosemary, lavender and rose petals sprinkled in while they bickered about Madeline's hair.

"I really don't see why you woke me up at an ungodly hour just to soak in a bath," she groaned. "You could have given me an extra hour of sleep."

"Nonsense," Sarah had rebutted. "You want to look your best, and you definitely want to smell your best on your wedding day. You only get married once, you know."

Her tone left no room for argument, so Arabella sat back and let herself be pampered. Her hair had been washed and oiled with fragrantly spiced oils, then brushed and arranged in an elaborate style that had her giggling.

By the time her hair was done, the sun was peeking through the clouds, the bright light telling her that even if it wasn't exactly the wedding every girl dreamed of, it was still a beautiful day.

"'Tis a beautiful day," Hannah, her handmaid, commented as if hearing her thoughts.

"Indeed," Arabella affirmed, smiling brightly.

She was dressed in her mother's wedding dress, which had been altered to fit her with accents of pearls and crystals sewn over the bodice and in floral patterns around the flowing skirt to give it a more modern feel.

"The Duke won't be able to keep his eyes off you in this dress," Sarah gushed as her sister was laced into her wedding dress.

"Or his hands," Madeline whispered.

"Maddie!" Arabella and Sarah gasped simultaneously at her crude words.

"Whereever did you learn to speak so crudely?" Sarah scolded, swatting her youngest sister's bum with the hairbrush.

"Ow!" Madeline complained. "It's not like there'll be anything wrong with that, seeing that they'll be married."

"Maddie!" Sarah gasped again.

Arabella felt a hot blush creep up her neck and cheeks at the thought of her and Edward sharing a marriage bed.

Yes, she'd asked him to give her a night of passion, but now that it would be his right to take his pleasure from her, she couldn't help but fear if he'd be satisfied with her, considering she didn't know much about the marriage bed despite Sarah's best attempts to educate her.

The lecture had been awkward and had changed the way she'd look at cucumbers forever.

"Are you ladies ready in there?" Leonard's gruff voice came through the door.

The sisters rolled their eyes at his fatherly tone and opened the door.

If Arabella hadn't been feeling guilty about lying to her family before now, his awestruck expression made her feel worse than she had in the last few days as they rushed the wedding preparations.

"You look… too beautiful for words, Sister." He smiled at last. "The Duke is a lucky man."

Arabella smiled through the tears pooling in her eyes and rushed into his arms. She really hoped she wouldn't spend the entire day crying. That might do the opposite of convincing them that she was actually in love with her husband-to-be.

"I never believed this day would come so quickly. I—" Leonard broke off once she pulled away from him. "Are you sure this is what you want, Sister? You don't have to go through with this."

Love filled her as she looked at her brother's concerned expression. Even though he feigned being tough and unfeeling, he'd always been the sweetest even when they were just children. It was he who'd taught her the names of flowers and birds. It was he who had calmed her when she fell and hurt her knees in the gardens. It was her big brother who had stayed up all night, raging on her behalf when she'd wept over the Duke of Green.

"I've never been more sure, Brother." She smiled, squeezing his hand.

He nodded and took her hand in his. "Come, let's go downstairs," he said. "It isn't proper to keep a duke waiting, especially on his wedding day."

They slowly went down the steps of the childhood home she realized she was going to miss once she moved to the Soulden estate.

Most of her things had been packed and sent ahead to the Duke's castle. The rest would go with them as they rode to his home as man and wife.

An uneasy feeling settled into her stomach as she wondered if she'd do well as the lady of her own home now. She hadn't forgotten the comment he'd made in anger about managing the affairs of his estate.

Would she be of any use to him besides warming his bed?

Even then, would he even come to her bed?

She bit her lip as she was helped into the waiting carriage to take her to the chapel where the wedding ceremony would be held.

Her breath hitched in her chest when she was helped out of the carriage. This was it. She was going to get married.

Sweat beaded on her forehead as her heart beat a frantic rhythm. Was this how all brides felt?

She wondered if it was because hers was a sham marriage that she had such jitters.

She spotted her husband-to-be's carriage down the line of parked vehicles, the noise of footmen unloading her trunks and loading them into his fading in the background.

God. Could she really go through with this?

"You ready?" Leonard's hand in hers drew her out of her nervous thoughts.

She nodded, swallowing her fear.

The wedding march sounded, and the oakwood double doors opened to let them in. Once again, she found herself short of breath as she spotted Edward standing at the altar, astonishingly handsome in a dark suit, with his dark hair slicked back with gel.

Heat flooded her as his hot gaze landed on her. She could feel it even through her veil. A hot blush crept up her cheeks.

When Leonard handed her over to him, even through the gloves she wore, the heat of his palm seeped into her fingers.

"We gather here today to…"

When the priest started the sermon, her heart started thudding heavily in her chest.

Her reasons for getting married were nothing like what the priest had mentioned. Even the thought of children chilled her to the bone.

Edward was a duke and was expected to have heirs to continue the line. Wouldn't he want to have children?

But children meant her not having freedom to live her life the way she'd always dreamed of.

She didn't mind the process of creating the children. If anything, she knew she'd find the process interesting. The tension that simmered in her skin every time Edward touched her let her know that it would be good with them. At least on his part. He was a famed rake, so he would surely know how to pleasure a woman. She would just have to learn his likes and dislikes in the six months they'd stay together.

"You may now kiss the bride." The priest's words caused her to stiffen as Edward turned to face her.

She remembered the one kiss they'd shared and how her skin had been set aflame.

But the chaste kiss and the blank expression on his face killed that thought and left a sick feeling in her stomach, even after they were pronounced man and wife and hurried into their carriage.

"We have a long journey ahead of us, and if we're going to make it to Soulden by nightfall, we need to leave now," was the only explanation he'd given her when she'd asked why the rush.

She'd only had a few minutes to say goodbye to her family, holding back tears when her sisters started crying.

"I'll see you all at Christmas," she'd promised them, taking her husband's hand as he helped her into the carriage.

The tears fell as she heard Leonard extract a promise out of him to take care of her.

An uneasy silence fell over them as the carriage doors were closed and the carriage was prepped to take her to her new home.

The carriage suddenly lurched forward, throwing her at the man sitting across from her.

"Apologies," she muttered, righting herself in her seat.

"It's all right," he answered gruffly, looking away from her.

She wondered then if this was to be her life for the next six months. Stilted replies and near-cold indifference. She thought they'd gone past this, but it appeared he still had some adjustments to make. Ones she didn't intend to help him with.

She folded her arms over her chest, regretting she hadn't brought anything to keep her busy, looking out the window at the sprawling countryside dotted with shrubs boasting wildflowers in an array of colors.

She smiled, excited that she was finally getting to explore England outside the home she'd been raised in, but she still missed the familiar woods surrounding her childhood home.

"We're here."

Edward's voice startled her awake, and it took her a minute to realize that her head was on his shoulder.

How did that happen?

She wiped her face, hoping she hadn't drooled on him, flushing at the thought that he'd seen her in a less-than-perfect state.

"Are you ready?" he asked again, his voice laced with concern.

In the dimness of the carriage, she couldn't make out his expression.

Had she really slept that long?

Night had fallen around them all too quickly. She was rather grateful she had been asleep, or it would have made for a dreadfully boring trip with the uneasy silence that had hovered between them.

"I am," she said when she realized he was still waiting for an answer.

She faintly saw him nod in the darkness, and then he opened the carriage door, stepping out to help her down.

Her eyes took in the castle that was to be her new home. Even shrouded in moonlight, she had to admit it was beautiful, with flower-lined stone paths leading up to large double doors.

It was almost intimidating to think she'd be the lady of all this soon and the responsibility of managing his household would be on her shoulders.

She bit her lip and looked away from the castle to her husband, who stood patiently beside her as she took in his home. His eyebrows were raised in question, as though he wanted to know if she was ready to go inside.

She nodded, before letting him lead her to the front doors.

The butler opened the door and immediately greeted Edward, not sparing her a glance.

"Your Grace, would you be wanting a hot bath?" he asked.

"No, but my wife would surely." At the word wife, the butler's eyebrows rose, disappearing into his hairline. "Have one drawn for her in my chambers."

Arabella blushed when she realized that taking a bath in front of her husband was something normal for married couples.

"Y-yes, Your Grace," the butler stammered out, before scuttling off, no doubt to inform the rest of the staff.

She ignored his behavior and wondered then if her husband had even informed his family of his marriage.

"Edward—"

"Let's go," Edward interrupted, as if knowing what she intended to ask.

Arabella followed him inside, taking in the floral arrangements and fresh rushes lining the halls. Those were a woman's touch. She wondered if perhaps his mother lived there and how she'd take the news that her son was now married.

Once they were safely behind her chamber doors, she turned to him.

"Why did your butler have no knowledge of my arrival, Edward?" she asked, trying to keep the accusation out of her voice. But upon seeing his guilty expression, she frowned. "You said your family would be too busy to attend the wedding. Did you even tell them you were getting married?"

When he hadn't answered after a long minute, she shrank back, not knowing how to feel.

Their marriage had been founded on lies that just kept piling up. Was this to be her future?

Not only would she have a loveless marriage but one based on lies and deception.

"Edward…"

She held her peace until the bath had been filled.

"That will be all," he told the maids. "Thank you."

Hot tears pricked her eyes.

"Why did you marry me?"