Her Devilish Marquess (2 page)

“
I don’t understand why this
means so much to you.”

“
Because I want you to be
happy.”

“
I am happy.” When Regan
shook her head, Danette asked, “When have I ever said I wasn’t
happy?”

“
You’ve never said
it.”

“
There you go.”

“
But I see the longing in
your eyes when you watch couples dance and when you see children at
the park. Danette, you didn’t say yes to those gentlemen’s
proposals because you wanted to be a spinster. You said yes because
you wanted to be married.”

Danette closed her eyes and willed herself
to calm down. It wouldn’t do to wake her mother from her nap in the
other room. When she opened her eyes, she asked, “If I agree to let
the duchess arrange a marriage and,” she quickly added before Regan
could yell for joy, “if this engagement ends as horribly as the
others, will you never speak of marriage again?”

After a moment, Regan nodded. “Yes. I
promise. If this time doesn’t work, you may remain a spinster for
the rest of your life, and I won’t say a single thing about
it.”

Sure she was going to regret it, Danette
relented. “All right. I’ll see the duchess.”

“
Oh good!” Regan clapped her
hands.

Unable to believe the extent of her friend’s
enthusiasm, Danette picked her cup back up. “It’s always better
when you bring your son over for a visit.”

“
Is it?”

“
Yes. He interrupts you
enough so you don’t have a chance to become annoying.” Noting her
friend’s gasp, Danette smiled and took a sip of her
drink.

***

Three days later, Derek stood outside the
door to the Duchess of Ashbourne’s townhouse, the heavy weight of
his impending title pressing down on his shoulders. If he wasn’t so
sure his brother was ready to die, he’d wait it out, but he’d seen
too many people die over the years. They always had the same
resigned expression on their faces. Maybe not right away, but
eventually, they gave into the inevitable. And his brother was
making his peace with the world.

Of all the things Derek had done in his
life, this was the one he was going to regret. God help the lady
who ended up with him. Taking a deep breath, he knocked on the door
then clasped his hands behind his back.

The footman opened the door, and Derek said,
“Greetings. I’m Dr. Westward. I have an appointment with Her
Grace.”

“
Yes. I was told to expect
you.” The footman stepped aside and waved him in. “I’ll tell her
you’re here.”

“
Thank you.”

Feeling more like a gentleman about to go to
war than one about to take a bride, Derek entered the townhouse. He
followed the footman to the drawing room where two ladies were
sitting on the settee and laughing. One of them, Chloe Emmett, the
Lady of Reddington, whose son he’d just delivered in May, glanced
up at him and rose to her feet.

“
Dr. Westward,” Chloe said,
coming over to him, “I didn’t think you wanted to get married. In
fact, when I asked about it, you said no lady in her right mind
would marry you.”

“
Let’s just hope there’s a
lady in London who isn’t in her right mind,” he replied, unable to
stop himself from making the joke.

She giggled and turned to her friend. “What
did I tell you, Melissa? He has a marvelous sense of humor, doesn’t
he?”

Melissa chuckled and nodded. “Indeed, he
does. What brings you here if you don’t think a lady will be better
off married to you?”

“
Duty,” he replied. “My
brother will pass on to the next life in a matter of days, and
since I’m next in line for the title, it’s up to me to have an
heir. I only hope there’s a lady out there who wants a child badly
enough she’s willing to overlook my reputation.”

“
Oh, you have more to offer
a lady than you think,” Chloe told him. “Any lady would be
fortunate to be married to you.”

“
You better not let your
husband hear you say that,” Melissa quipped.

“
Orlando knows there will
never be another but him in my life,” Chloe said. “I’m speaking of
other ladies.”

“
Hmm… If I were to tell
Orlando, would he believe it?” Melissa asked with a sparkle in her
eye.

Chloe lifted her chin indignantly. “Of
course, he would. He knows my affections are only for him.”

“
Are you two fighting
again?” came a female voice.

Derek turned in time to see the duchess come
into the room, her hand on her pregnant belly. “I didn’t realize
you were in a delicate condition,” he told her. “If you’re tired, I
can come back at another time.”

“
Oh, I’m fine,” the duchess
assured him. “It’s nice to make your acquaintance, Dr. Westward.
I’m the Duchess of Ashbourne, but you may call me
Helena.”

“
And you may refer to me as
Derek.”

“
But he’ll be the Marquess
of Dodsworth soon,” Chloe interjected, her gaze going to
Helena.

“
Yes,” he told Helena.
“That’s what prompted me to come here today.” Noting her pale
complexion, he asked, “Are you sure you’re feeling all
right?”

“
Yes. My condition has
nothing to do with the baby. It’s lack of sleep. When I lie down at
night, sometimes it feels as if my food wants to come back up. It
leaves a burning sensation in my throat. I actually prefer to be
busy. It helps me not to dwell on it.”

“
Ah.” He nodded. “This
doesn’t happen to all ladies who are with child, but some do
experience this. It’s nothing to worry about. Take a small handful
of almonds the moment you notice any discomfort.”

“
Almonds?”

“
Do you ever eat
them?”

“
Well, yes, from time to
time.”

“
Good. Then you have some on
hand. Almonds have oil in them, and this oil suppresses the acid in
the stomach. Just make sure you don’t eat so much of your dinner
that you get full. Eat until you’re comfortable. Then you’ll have
room for the almonds.”

“
Thank you,” she said. “I’ll
try it.” She gestured to the chair. “Shall we get
started?”

Chloe hurried to sit next to Melissa, and
the duchess chose to sit at the desk. “Dr. Westward knows what he’s
talking about when it comes to things that ail us,” Chloe told
Helena. “He does wonders for my brother.”

“
Then Alexander’s health has
improved?” Derek asked.

She smiled. “Yes. He barely coughs
anymore.”

“
Splendid.” He sat in a
chair and folded his hands over his stomach. “Now that we have the
formalities done, I suppose I should get to the reason for this
appointment. I need a wife, and I’d like her to be one who doesn’t
mind my reputation.”

“
Oh, you’re not that bad,”
Helena told him. “There are gentlemen much worse.”

“
But I mock the Ton,” he
said. “That makes me less...deserving…of a wife.”

Helena smiled in a way that indicated she
thought he was being too hard on himself. “Since I can’t change
your mind, we’ll get to it. Why don’t we start with something
easy?” She picked up her quill and dipped it in the inkwell. “What
type of lady would you like?”

“
Someone who can stand the
thought of spending the rest of her life with me,” he said, not
sure how else he could better explain it.

“
No. I mean her personality.
Her interests. Her looks. If you could have the lady of your
dreams, who would she be?”

The question was simple. Really, it was. But
for the life of him, his mind drew a blank.

After a long moment of silence, Helena said,
“Do you prefer a brunette, a blonde, or a redhead?”

Again, a simple question. And again, he
wasn’t sure how to answer it.

“
What about eye color?”
Helena pressed. “Her figure? Her height or lack
thereof?”

At long last, he shook his head. “There’s
beauty in every lady. I’d say as long as she doesn’t have two heads
and three arms, I won’t have any problem being attracted to
her.”

“
You’re not making this easy
for me.” Though Helena shook her head, there was a hint of pleasure
in her tone.

“
What about money or her
father’s business connections?” Melissa asked.

“
I have enough money, and as
for business.” Derek shrugged. “I prefer to stick to what I love
most: tending to my patients. The best wife I could have is one
who’s not particular about the gentleman she weds. If she can
accept me as I am, I don’t anticipate there being any
problems.”

Helena tapped the edge of her quill on the
parchment for a few seconds before smiling. “All right. We won’t
worry so much about the lady then. Let’s talk about you. We’ll
start with your interests and work from there.”

Relaxing, he answered the rest of her
questions. It was much easier to describe himself anyway. Perhaps
the ladies Helena talked to would have a vision of their perfect
husband. Granted, he wouldn’t fit that description, not with his
past. But, perhaps one would be willing to settle for someone like
him. At least that was his hope in doing this. Only the future
would tell him if there really was a lady somewhere, out there, for
him.

Chapter Two

D
anette turned away from the front door of the Duchess of
Ashbourne’s townhouse. “I can’t do it,” she told Regan.

Regan stopped her before she could run down
the steps. “Nonsense. You’ll be fine.”

“
The duchess will think I’m
pathetic.” Even now, Danette could see the lady’s beautiful face
forming a look of pity. Who else had endured the shame of two
failed engagements?

“
She’ll think nothing of the
sort.” Regan steered her back to the front door and knocked on it.
“I’m with you. You don’t have to go through this alone.”

Danette clutched her stomach. She was going
to be sick. She just knew it!

The door opened, and the footman gestured
for them to enter.

Regan had to practically drag Danette into
the hallway. “Everything will be all right,” Regan whispered.
“Relax.”

“
I can’t,” Danette whispered
back.

“
Try.”

“
I can’t.” In fact, trying
only made her stomach roil. “I’m a horrible match for anyone.
That’s why those gentlemen didn’t marry me.”

Danette made another attempt to turn on her
heel so she could leave, but Regan wrapped her arm around her
shoulders and kept her facing forward. Danette groaned. “Why do you
have to be so demanding?”

“
This is for your own good,”
Regan assured her. “You’ll thank me when you’re happily
married.”

The butler came over to them, a concerned
expression on his face. “You look faint,” he told Danette. “Would
you like me to escort you to the drawing room?”

“
She’s a tad bit shy,” Regan
told him. “She’ll be all right once she sits and has some
tea.”

Though he didn’t seem convinced, he nodded.
“Very well. What would you like to drink?” he asked Danette.

“
Something wet,” Danette
blurted out before she had time to consider how silly those words
sounded.

Regan chuckled. “She’s got a wonderful sense
of humor.”

The butler relaxed and laughed. “That’s a
good joke. You mind if I use it some time?”

Relieved Regan had been quick on her feet to
save her from further embarrassment, Danette smiled. “No, I don’t
mind.”

“
Miss Everson’s favorite
drink is green tea,” Regan told him.

“
I’ll bring that at once,”
he replied then headed down the hall.

“
There,” Regan whispered.
“That wasn’t so bad, was it?” Without waiting for a response, Regan
led her into the drawing room. “Oh, good. They’re all here.” In a
louder voice, she called out a greeting to the three ladies, who
were gathered around the settee. “Danette, you recognize the
duchess, of course. She’s Helena. Then there’s Lady Reddington, who
goes by the name Chloe. And last, but not least, this is my
sister-in-law, Melissa, also known as Lady Toplyn.”

Danette knew all of them, of course, from
having seen them at the balls. They’d all danced with gentlemen,
except for Helena, who’d been busy instructing her protégés on how
to attract a member of the opposite sex.

“
Come and sit,” Helena
urged, patting a spot on the settee next to her. “You’re among
friends here. There’s no need to be scared of us.”