Chapter 14

CHAPTER 14

Why Does The Duke Visit?

Prevost Manor, London

Three Days Later

"O h, isn't this exciting?" Augusta asked. She could barely stand still and paced back and forth across the drawing room carpet.

"Mother, will you please sit down?" Leah asked. "You are making me nervous, and I don't need to be any more nervous than I already am."

"Why are you nervous?" Bridget asked, looking up from her needlework.

"Well, I have not seen His Grace for a long time since we left his estate. That is a good enough reason, isn't it? You must get nervous when you have not seen Frederick for some time."

"Oh, no! I never do!" Bridget placed the scratched fabric down on the floor by her feet. "No, I never feel nervous seeing him again. I only feel excited."

"Well, I am glad for you," Leah replied. "Mother! Will you please stop pacing? You will wear out a patch in the carpet, and you don't want His Grace to see that, do you?"

"Oh, my!" Augusta placed a hand on her chest. "Marcy!"

A young maid scampered into the room.

"Marcy, will you take a look at the carpet and make sure it is not worn out?"

"Of course, my Lady," Marcy replied. She stood where she was by the door and glanced over the room.

"Here!" Augusta exclaimed, pointing to the floor. "Here, where I have been walking."

Marcy nodded and ran to the Baroness, getting down on her knees and checking the carpet closely.

Leah looked across at Bridget and rolled her eyes, and Bridget returned a tight smile.

"I can see you both," their mother warned. "It is good to be nervous. If you are nervous, it means there are feelings there."

Bridget didn't reply. She didn't know what feelings were there. She ached to see the Duke again, to feel what she did when they were pretending to be a couple and what he invoked in her when they were alone. None of it was real, and the more she felt it, the more she wanted it to be real. And the more she thought about that, the more she wanted to wed someone else.

I thought I could do this to make other people happy, but what if that is not enough?

"Oh, here he comes!" Augusta exclaimed. "I see his coach." Augusta turned from the window and clasped her hands before her chest. "Marcy! Go and have the dinner service started. Oh, my goodness! A Duke in my home. Can you believe that?" Augusta didn't give her daughter time to answer. "Ernest!" she shouted. "Ernest, he is here!"

"I know," Ernest shouted back from his study. "I heard your shouting."

"Let me take a look at you," Augusta said to Leah. She strode quickly to the chair like a wild animal cornering its prey. Augusta took her daughter's arm and lifted her to her feet. "Yes, you will do."

"I will do?" Leah asked.

Augusta straightened the neck of Leah's dress and pushed her shoulders back.

"Stand up straight when you meet him," Augusta told her daughter.

"Mother, this is not the first time I have met His Grace. We spent a lot of time together on his estate."

"Yes, but every time should feel like the first time."

"The marriage is set," Leah reminded her mother.

"So, you should not try to make a good impression on your future husband?" Augusta scolded.

Leah rolled her eyes again. "I will do my best, Mother."

"Good girl," Augusta said. She spun quickly and walked toward the door. "Ernest! He is here!"

"I heard you the first time!" Ernest shouted.

Bridget walked over to her sister and pushed a small lock of hair behind Leah's ear. Leah tried to bat her sister's hand away, but Bridget was too quick.

Bridget grinned at her sister and followed their mother out of the room. Leah went to the window and looked out to see the Duke's carriage approach. Her mind went back to when they first met. Leah and her family had arrived at his estate, and he had not been there to meet her, but he had watched from an upper window. She found herself in a compromising position with him soon after.

Leah felt the butterflies in her stomach. She wanted that excitement in her life, but the thought of seeing him again only brought dread. She had spent almost a week apart from him, and her feelings on the upcoming marriage were no clearer.

"Leah!" Ernest called from the foyer.

Leah quickly left the drawing room and joined her family. The butler held the door open, and they all went outside to greet the Duke and his accompanying staff.

The butterflies in Leah's stomach fluttered more furiously as the front coach came to a halt. The Duke's driver alighted the coach and went to the door, opening it for the Duke.

Solomon stepped out with a welcome smile on his face. Leah had forgotten just how impressive he was, or perhaps she had become used to it in their time together.

He was large and broad, tall and powerful, but it was more than that. The clothing he wore was more elegant than that of other lords, and he wore it better. All lords with wealth could afford a personal tailor, but the Duke must have had the best tailor in London all to himself, for he wore his attire better than anyone else could.

When Solomon caught Leah's gaze and smiled, all she could think about was being in his arms.

Christianna exited the coach after the Duke. She would debut soon, and it had been arranged for her to come to London to experience it in a safe environment before she was shown to the world.

Solomon went to Ernest first and shook his hand, thanking him for inviting him and his sister into Ernest's home. He went to Leah next.

"My dear, it is a pleasure to see you again." He took her hand and kissed the back of it, lingering for a while.

Leah gave a small courtesy as the Duke held her hand. "The pleasure is all mine, Your Grace—Solomon."

The Duke kissed her hand again.

"Dinner shall be served soon, Your Grace," Augusta said. "Perhaps Leah can give you a tour of our house."

"Mother, there is not much to see, especially compared to the Duke's residence."

"Leah, your father has worked hard to provide this life for you. I am sure His Grace would love a tour. I mean, Your Grace, I don't want to force you into doing anything you don't want to?—"

Solomon held up his hand. "It is quite alright. I would love to tour your home. Christianna can accompany us, and then she will see the house too. That will ensure neither of us will get lost. We would not want that."

He looked at Leah as he said the last part, and she could tell he was also thinking of their first meeting.

"Leah, don't be long," her father instructed. "Supper shall be served soon, and I am sure His Grace is hungry after his trip."

"Ravenous," the Duke told her.

"Right this way," Leah told him. She found herself falling back into the warm banter that came before a more intimate meeting—she was unable to stop herself.

"There is not all that much to see," Leah told the Duke and his sister once they were inside. "This is not the house I was born in; we moved here when I was six, and I lived here since then. I owed point out the features of our home, but they all pale in comparison to your estate, Solomon."

"I find the house cute," Christianna commented.

"I don't mean to play my house down; it is only that your home is so grand that there is not much I can show you that will impress you," Leah said.

"I am sure that is not true," the Duke replied.

Leah smiled and felt her dimples appear. She knew none of it was real, but she still enjoyed his words.

"Ah, there you are, Your Grace," Ernest said, finding them on the second floor. "Might you appreciate an aperitif before supper in ten minutes?"

"I would very much like that," the Duke replied.

"Good," Ernest said. "I have been saving some of my best cognac for a special occasion, and I can think of no better occasion than having you in our home. You cannot get this cognac anywhere in England."

"Then I very much look forward to it," the Duke said. "Christianna, will you be fine with Leah?"

"Yes, I will," she replied.

"We can walk slowly toward the dining room," Leah suggested.

She walked with Christianna after the Duke and her father had left, and it felt a little tense. Christianna and Bridget had spoken a lot about debuting, but Leah had not spent a lot of time with the Duke's sister and did not know what to say.

"I, um," Christianna said as they descended the stairs. "I want to apologize to you, Miss Moore."

"Apologize?" Leah asked. "You have nothing to apologize for."

"No, but I do," Christianna replied. "I did not mean to be so cold toward you when you first arrived, but I was worried about my brother."

"I will treat him with the respect he deserves," Leah said.

They reached the bottom of the stairs and started the slow walk along the long corridor to the dining room. The aroma of the roast partridges wafted down the corridor, and Leah's mouth began to water. Her father did not usually attract the most powerful and influential men to his house, but they had the Duke for supper, and her father had money to spend. The Duke would be treated to a grand meal.

"I know you will, but that is not the problem," Christianna said. "There is no problem save for one of my own invention, and I can see that it is not a problem. My gosh, I am mixing myself up now."

"We have time," Leah assured her. "Say whatever it is you wish to say."

"Thank you," Christianna replied. "You have always acted with such grace, even when you might not have felt entirely welcome. You see, my father has been talking for years about me making my debut and finding a husband, but he passed a few months ago. As soon as I came of age, my oldest brother suddenly found a woman to wed, and it all felt so sudden. I am ashamed to say that I believed he did so for me. I thought he was doing it out of necessity so he would not be an unwed Duke finding a suitor for his younger sister."

Christianna stopped walking and faced the wall, placing the back of her hand on her head theatrically. She spun back around to face Leah and continued her impassioned speech.

"I thought he had chosen the first woman he could find and did not care who she was—who you were. I did not want him to do that for me, but I know I would not be able to talk him out of it."

"I—" Leah began.

"No, I must say all of this while I have the courage," Christianna interrupted. "Then, I saw the two of you together, and you were both distant at first, which I expected as two people meeting each other for the first time, but as you spent time together, I could see the love grow between the two of you, and when you left our estate, I knew you were perfect for each other."

"Oh," was all Leah could manage.

"I suppose what I really want to say is… welcome to the family, Leah." Christianna lunged forward and wrapped her arms around Leah. "I have two brothers, and that comes with its own problems. Now, I finally have a sister, and I can't wait to get to know you better. When you come to live at the estate, we will take walks together, and we can paint, and enjoy lemonade on the verandah. You will be my older sister, and I will learn a lot from you. It will be wonderful."

"Yes, it will," Leah said as she wrapped her arms around her new sister. "Yes, it will."

And another lock has been added to the cage. A welcome one, nonetheless, but another lock to keep me in the cage.

"Come," Leah said. "We must get to the dining room before we are late."

Christianna broke the embrace and beamed at Leah. Leah saw the same joy that Bridget had when she had watched Leah and the Duke pretend they had feelings. The more joy Leah saw in others, the more it reflected her own sadness.

Leah led Christianna to the dining room, where the rest of her family and the Duke were waiting.

"Finally," Ernest said.

"I saved you a seat by me, Leah," the Duke said, patting the chair beside him.

Leah rounded the table and sat by Solomon while Christianna took the free chair beside Bridget. Ernest gestured to the staff, and the first course was served: cream of leek soup.

"Your Grace, I must thank you again for paying us a visit to our home and staying with us for these days," Ernest said.

"Yes, we have all been very excited to have you," Augusta admitted. "Especially Leah."

"The pleasure is all mine," the Duke said. "I am glad to have such a welcoming home while I am here. It has been some time since I visited London, and I could not be in the city and not stay in the family home of my betrothed." He reached down and took Leah's hand, bringing it to his lips to kiss.

Leah had forgotten that they still needed to pretend around her family and the Duke's sister, but he had fallen back into it easily. She smiled when he kissed her hand in case anyone was watching her.

"And what is it that brings you to London, Your Grace? You did not mention it in your correspondence," Ernest said.

The Duke continued to hold Leah's hand at the dinner table. "I have a dear friend in the city, Lord Bertram. He was a friend of my father's, and I like to pay him a visit from time to time to ensure he is still healthy. I was not due to visit him for another few months, but with Leah being here, I thought it the perfect opportunity to see her and her family again. The heart can only take so much separation."

Leah stared at the Duke as he spoke, marveling at how easily he could lie to everyone around him.

"You pay us a great compliment, Your Grace," Ernest said.

Leah froze, and she had to be quick to keep the pleasant smile on her face.

You lie so easily!

She had not known him long, but she did know him, and she could hear the lies in his voice. He was lying about wanting to pay Leah and her family a visit, of course. It was merely a means to an end. Yet, it was more than that. He was lying about visiting his friend in the city.

Now, why would you lie about that?