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They kissed with joy.
And then they smiled into each other’s eyes as though they were the ones who had discovered it. Joy, that was. Love ever after.
“Are you quite sure,” he asked her, “that you are willing to sacrifice your title simply for the pleasure of marrying me, Duchess?”
“To be simply Mrs. Huxtable?” she said. “At least you will have to call me Ha
“Or Countess,” he said.
She looked blankly at him.
“That would be a little absurd,” she said.
“Not really,” he told her. “The king sent two royal proclamations after your visit to him, you know. Or perhaps you do not know. The one was Jess’s pardon.”
She sat upright on his lap when he did not continue and frowned down at him.
“And the other?” she asked.
“You have just agreed to marry Constantine Huxtable, first Earl of Ainsley,” he said. “The title was awarded for extraordinary service to the poorest and dearest of His Majesty’s loyal subjects. I believe I have quoted him more or less accurately.”
Her jaw dropped.
And then she threw back her head and laughed.
The new Earl of Ainsley laughed with her.
THE EARL AND COUNTESS of Merton were hosting a ball at Merton House the following evening on the occasion of the a
They had invited family members to dine with them before the ball—Stephen’s three sisters and their spouses, and Cassandra’s brother, Sir Wesley Young, and his fiancée, Miss Julia Winsmore. They had also invited Constantine since he was Stephen’s cousin. And the Duchess of Dunbarton, who was no relative at all.
“I really hoped,” Cassandra said as she and Stephen awaited the arrival of their di
“Why should it?” he asked. “The duchess has become your friend, and it is perfectly acceptable to invite one’s friend to dine. We intend to a
“That scene in the park,” she said. “Meg described it so amusingly and Kate so romantically. And everyone has talked about it ad nauseam ever since. And yet—nothing has happened.”
“We don’t know that,” he said. “Nothing has been a
She sighed.
“We were all so horrified,” she said, “when Con began his affair with her. Not that we were supposed to know about it, of course. Such affairs are always supposed to be secret. She seemed so unsuitable for him. So …”
“Arrogant?” he suggested.
She frowned.
“Well, she did,” she said. “But people are not always what they seem to be, are they? I ought to know that better than most. Perhaps she has always been … well, someone warm and full of fun, someone I very much want as a friend. Someone good. Why are she and Con not affianced?”
Stephen stepped up close to her and kissed her on the mouth.
“Perhaps,” he said, “you can ask each of them as soon as they arrive. Perhaps you can make it a topic of conversation at the di
She laughed and punched him lightly on the arm.
“It would be a lovely opening line,” she said, “as soon as each walks in—why are you not betrothed? I am not a matchmaker, Stephen, but Con is such a lonely man, and Ha
“And therefore,” he said, “they must belong together.”
“Therefore nothing,” she said tartly. “They do belong together. Anyone who was at Copeland with the two of them would have had to be both blind and stupid not to see it.”
They were saved from further conversation on the subject by the arrival of Vanessa and Elliott and Wesley and Julia almost simultaneously, and then by the appearance of Katherine and Jasper and Margaret and Duncan soon after.
“Is Con coming?” Elliott asked while they were all sipping their drinks.
“He said he was,” Stephen said.
“And Ha
And they were at it again.
“Mama says they have no choice but to marry,” Julia Winsmore said, “after the way he kissed her in the park. I saw it with my own eyes. It was really quite shocking.”
She blushed.
“And very romantic too, Jule,” Sir Wesley said. “That is what you told me at the time, anyway.”
“I do not believe,” Elliott said, “the duchess would ever be moved by the argument that she has no choice but to do a particular thing.”
“She clearly loves Constantine,” Katherine said. “She will torture him before saying yes.”
Her husband exchanged a pained glance with Duncan over this blatant example of feminine logic.
“Or no,” Margaret said.
“Con is no one’s fool,” Stephen said. “He dances to no one’s tune.”
“But he is in love,” Cassandra pointed out.
And that stifled the conversation. There was silence for a few moments.
The butler appeared and murmured to Cassandra that di
And then the remaining two guests arrived—together and a little more than five minutes late.
Both were looking quite radiant enough to send expectations soaring—at least among the ladies gathered in the drawing room. And to cause Cassandra to forgive them instantly for putting her on the outs with her cook.
The Duchess of Dunbarton was looking resplendent in soft turquoise with very little jewelry. None was necessary. She was going to be drawing all eyes her way all evening without them. The sparkle and luster that was usually on the outside of her person was glowing from the inside of her person tonight.
“If we are late,” she said before any greetings could be exchanged, “the fault is entirely mine. I was all ready long before I expected Constantine, but just as I heard his knock at the door I decided that I did not want to wear my favorite white ball gown after all—or all the diamonds that went with it. So I changed while he kicked his heels and ground his teeth down in the hall.”
She smiled dazzlingly about her.
“I never grind my teeth,” Constantine said mildly. “I would have them ground down to stumps if I did it every time you are late, Ha
And so all questions were answered without any having to be asked.
And di
“Though plain Mrs. Constantine Huxtable would have suited me admirably too,” she added with another of her radiant smiles.
And her eyes sparkled with unshed tears, and she bit her lower lip, and Constantine set one arm about her shoulders—and Cassandra suggested that they proceed to the dining room before her cook resigned on the spot.