Chapter 2

CHAPTER2

“Oh goodness, oh goodness,” Katherine Barker mumbled under her breath as she limped away from the strange yet handsome man she had just encountered.

She silently prayed that no one had spotted their interaction. If someone had, it could mean her ruination. If someone had spotted her nearly kissing the stranger in a dark garden, she would never be able to marry the man her parents had chosen for her.

“Mama.” Katherine curtsied as she returned to her mother. “I apologize for my late arrival.”

“No matter, we are still attempting to spot the Duke amongst the crowd,” Prudence Barker, the Countess of Hemingway, replied without making an effort to look at her daughter. Her eyes were scanning the crowd, in search of the man she had planned to marry Katherine off to.

“Beatrice married after her first Season, Isabella as well, and Fiona after her second. And at last, you would be marrying, too,” Katherine’s father, Peter Barker, said as he ticked each of his daughter’s successes off his fingers. “If only we are to find him.”

“Yes, Papa,” was all Katherine replied. She found it unfitting to voice her hesitation on the matter.

She needed to obey her parents now, she had no other options. And obeying meant not refusing the hand of the duke she barely knew.

“He has quite a tall stature. I find it odd that we are unable to find him.” Prudence sighed as she stood on her tiptoes, trying to get a broader view of the crowd.

“Ah! There he is,” Peter said to his wife.

Katherine felt a bit strange, so oddly removed from the situation that it felt like it was her parents planning to marry the Duke. It felt like they had forgotten that she was standing right beside them, the one who was actually destined to be the bride.

Yet, as she reluctantly turned her head to face the man her father was pointing at, she felt her heart lurch and drop to her feet.

Was that the man she had nearly kissed in the garden?

She rubbed her eyes a couple of times to make sure she wasn’t imagining things, but she wasn’t. It was the very same man who had stumbled into her.

The Duke was visibly shocked to see her as well, but they both attempted to maintain their composure and feign complete ignorance.

“Your Grace!” Peter called cheerily as the Duke approached them.

Katherine bobbed a curtsy after her mother but nearly stumbled from the shock of the realization.

“My Lord,” the Duke replied, bowing to Peter. “And, My Ladies.”

“Your Grace,” Katherine mumbled, still a bit startled and flushed.

Her mother shot her a displeased look, unhappy with how she had failed to make a proper introduction already.

“Your Grace, this is my daughter, Katherine Barker,” Peter said as he placed a hand on Katherine’s back, trying to unsuspiciously push her closer to the Duke. “And this, Katherine, is Gerald Chambers, the Duke of Powell.”

“Pleasure to meet you, My Lady,” Gerald replied.

Katherine was a bit shocked by his blunt tone. He surely had recognized her, but she was unsure if she recognized him anymore. In the garden, he was a flirtatious man with plenty of jokes, but now he was a broody man whose tone sent chills up her spine.

“Pleasure to meet you as well, Your Grace,” Katherine returned.

She stood perfectly still in an attempt to hide her limp. She didn’t want to chase him away any more than she already had. She needed this arrangement to work. If not for herself, then for her parents.

“Only daughter, Lord Hemingway?” Gerald asked, turning back to the Earl.

Katherine looked at him with a hint of displeasure, upset that he had so quickly excluded her from the conversation.

“Oh, no, Your Grace. She’s one of four daughters, but the other three are already married.” Peter chuckled a bit uncomfortably.

The Duke nodded his head in response.

Katherine couldn’t help but wonder if he had been hoping to marry one of her sisters rather than herself.

“Might I offer you a dance, Lady Kaherine?” he asked after a rather lengthy pause. He held out his arm for her.

“It’ll be a pleasure, Your Grace,” she replied, linking her arm with his. She could feel the eyes of her parents bore into her back as they wandered off.

Katherine remained quiet as they made their way to the dance floor. She looked around her as several other couples took to the dance floor when the music started once again. She waited for the Duke to be the first to say something, but she was unsure if he planned to do so.

“So, My Lady,” Gerald began, trying his best to suppress achuckle.

Katherine raised an eyebrow at him. “Yes, Your Grace?” she prompted.

They started twirling around the dance floor. This was nerve-wracking for Katherine, as she knew her limp would worsen if she made too many fast-paced movements. Yet, she pushed through.

“We can’t be nearly kissing one another in gardens after we are married. I believe that tendency has to stop,” the Duke said.

Katherine thought this was another one of his poor jokes, but as she looked up at him, the expression on his face remained rather somber.

“I wasn’t going to kiss you, Your Grace,” she huffed in embarrassment, the memory of her lips nearly touching his replaying in her mind.

“Of course, you weren’t, My Lady.” He arched his eyebrows in sarcasm. “You left all your kisses for the ‘horrible man’ you are going to marry.”

Katherine felt her cheeks turn red, and this time, it wasn’t due to embarrassment. She was starting to get angry at him and his strange remarks. Yet, she didn’t have anything to say back to him. She merely averted her eyes and tried to keep a proper stance during the dance. A stance that was growing increasingly difficult to maintain due to her limp.

“My Lady, that was a joke,” Gerald scoffed as if she was unable to understand any statement he was making.

Katherine shot him a rather sour look. “I assumed so, Your Grace,” she said whilst still averting her gaze. She was looking to the left, but she started to stumble as she took a wrong step.

Gerald quickly lifted her with strong arms, causing her to let out a small gasp as she rose back up. The movement had been so fleeting, and Gerald had acted so quickly, that she doubted that anyone had noticed her stumble.

“Sorry, Your Grace, my leg—” Katherine mumbled in embarrassment as he continued to hold her throughout the dance, lifting her weight off her limp.

“It’s no worry,” Gerald interrupted. He moved swiftly with a stoic expression, as if nothing had truly happened. “How did you come to have a limp, My Lady?” he asked.

“A couple of years ago, I was on a walk,” Katherine started, but then quickly paused. She was surprised at the openness with which she was discussing the matter with him, as the tale was largely unknown.

“I was walking near a riverbed. The rain had stopped minutes before, thus it was quite muddy outside. I slipped and attempted to grab onto a nearby bush. The bush had several thorns, so in pain, I pulled away and fell into the river. The fall was unfortunate and painful, leaving me with a limp ever since.”

“Oh, that’s a rather unfortunate injury, My Lady,” the Duke said calmly.

Katherine was a bit surprised by his subtle lack of sympathy, but she preferred it nonetheless. She despised every moment that someone would fawn over her injury only to tease her about it anyway. She preferred the Duke’s almost emotionless acknowledgment.

“I learned to live with it, anyway,” Katherine muttered more to herself than to him, and it appeared that he thought the same, as he remained quiet.

After the dance, they returned to her parents. Katherine did so to seek some sort of approval for her actions thus far.

As the Duke and Peter fell into conversation, prudence turned ever so slightly to her daughter. “You danced well,” she whispered.

Katherine broke out into a smile. Truthfully, she hadn’t danced well—her limp prevented her from doing so. But the Duke’s strong arms had lifted most of her weight off her feet that her limp had been barely noticeable.

“Thank you, Mama,” Katherine replied as she stood a few steps closer to her mother, which caused her to be slightly displeased.

“Make an effort to get to know your future husband,” Prudence whispered behind her fan.

Katherine hesitantly started to make her way back toward the Duke.

“Would you like a drink?” Gerald asked, his demeanor instantly shifting in the presence of her parents. She made a mental note to tease him about it once they were alone. “I find myself quite parched.”

“That’ll be lovely,” Katherine replied, once again linking her arm with his as they walked toward the refreshments table.

Katherine could only imagine the discussion between her parents. She was certain they were talking about how relieved they were that she had finally found a suitor, though it was arranged. How they had finally achieved their goal of having all four of their daughters marry high-ranking men in Society.

“I see you attempt to sweeten my parents up,” Katherine commented as they walked to the punch bowl.

She wanted to leave her teasing for a later moment but found the chance of teasing him back irresistible.

“I’m merely behaving as a proper gentleman should in the presence of others,” Gerald replied as he started to pour them each a glass of punch.

Katherine looked back at him with a hurt expression but felt unsure whether to address what was left unspoken.

“And in my presence, Your Grace?” she asked reluctantly, fearing she might anger him.

She hadn’t, as he calmly handed her a glass and stepped back from the table.

“You and I would be sharing a home soon, My Lady, correct?” he asked instead of replying.

Katherine shifted uncomfortably. “Why, I suppose so, Your Grace,” she mumbled while tracing a single finger over the brim of her glass.

“Indeed, we are. Thus, I won’t change my personality in front of you. The way I act now is the way I’ll always act. I find it best not to put up a show in front of the one I am to marry,” he replied before taking a sip from his glass.

Katherine looked up at him, unsure of what she thought of his statement. She supposed she was happy that he wouldn’t put on a facade in front of her, but why was his true self so blunt in comparison to what he offered her parents? She shook her head in an attempt to banish the thought.

“I don’t enjoy balls,” she tried to change the topic—an attempt to get to know the man she was to marry, as her mother had asked of her. “There are far too many people packed in one area.”

“Then move out of it,” Gerald said.

During their exchange since they had stepped away from her parents, he hadn’t once looked her in the eye. Instead, he looked over at the crowd whenever he responded.

Katherine started to bite the inside of her cheek anxiously and irritatedly. She was unsure how she would be able to converse with the Duke further. Even more, she was unsure how she might converse with him for the rest of her life.

“Anything on your mind, Your Grace?” she probed, giving him a pointed look.

“Why would you think I have something on my mind, My Lady?” Gerald tilted his head silghtly to face her.

“You are rather silent, so I was wondering if you might be deep in thought,” Katherine said, taking another sip from her glass.

Gerald gave her an annoyed look. “One doesn’t have to be deep in thought to be silent. If one can’t be comfortable in their own silence, I see it as a symbol of insecurity. I don’t find myself to be quite insecure, My Lady,” he muttered, downing his glass and moving to place it down. Katherine followed him.

“I was merely asking a question, Your Grace. I see no reason for you to be rude,” she said, angered by both the conversation as well as Gerald himself.

He placed his glass down before blissfully turning around once again. Katherine could tell that he was aware of the fact that she would follow him. Thus, she lingered behind for a bit, hoping to urge him to stop.

He didn’t, unfortunately. She scoffed loudly and hurried to catch up to him.

“What a gentleman you are, Your Grace,” she commented sarcastically, hoping to rile him up.

“Why, thank you, My Lady,” Gerald replied, his hands neatly folded behind his back, not a worry in his mind.

Katherine flushed red, angry that the man could be so nonchalant.

“I was being sarcastic, Your Grace. I believe it best for me to go,” she huffed as she turned to leave.

Now Gerald had decided to follow her. The two walked in silence, her pace eventually growing slower, but she was no less angry.

“I believe our carriage might be here,” she muttered, her mouth a bit dry from not having spoken in a long while.

“I’ll walk you to it, My Lady,” Gerald offered.

Katherine had already forgotten the timbre of his voice, but hearing it again made her start.

“Thank you for the kind gesture, Your Grace,” she said bluntly as they both started to move away from the dreadful cacophony of laughter, gossip and secrets. “And thank you for the dance tonight,” she added, attempting to end the night on a high note with the man she was to marry.

She found it in her best interest to put up a kind face as they approached her parents. Instead, Gerald was quick to turn her kind attempts rather serious—even slightly frightful, in a strange sense.

“If we are to marry, it won’t be fun and games, and I want to inform you of that early, My Lady,” he warned.

Katherine turned toward him in concern. “I would be busy with my duties mostly, and I expect no interruptions. But, when you do marry, I want you to be well aware of the fact that you are mine, and only mine,” he continued. His tone sent a strange shiver up Katherine’s spine.

“Of course, Your Grace.” She nodded with a blank stare, but deep inside, she wished to explain to him that she had no other choice in the matter.

This was the last path that led to a secure future for her. He was the only option she had.