Merely the Groom by Hagan Lee Rebecca

Author:Hagan Lee, Rebecca
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: regency romance, marriage of convenience, duke romance
Publisher: Teresa Medeiros

Chapter Sixteen

“Wisely and slow; they stumble that run fast.”

—William Shakespeare, 1564-1616

Romeo and Juliet

“May I offer you our most sincere felicitations on your wedding, Lady Grantham?”

Gillian looked up as the Duke of Avon bowed over her hand. “Thank you for coming, Your Grace. I’m honored that you and Her Grace stood up for us.”

Gillian greeted guests in the huge dining room of her parents’ town house as they arrived for the wedding breakfast. When they’d entered the dining room and begun welcoming guests, Colin had been right beside her, but now he stood a few feet away, surrounded by late arrivals. Although the wedding party was quite small and the guests limited to immediate family and friends, the baron and Lady Davies had issued a greater number of invitations to the wedding breakfast. And it seemed that everyone who had been invited had decided to attend.

The dining table, large enough to seat thirty people, had been moved from the center of the room to one wall, draped in yards of white satin and lace, and loaded with a buffet of fine foods—from thick juicy roasts to delicate seafood. Smaller tables had been set up in the center of the dining room for the bride and groom, their families, and members of the wedding party.

Gillian nervously fidgeted with the skirts of her wedding dress and readjusted her veil. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other and waited impatiently for the trial by fire to begin. She glanced at her new husband, wishing she appeared as relaxed as he did. Although she told herself everything would be fine, Gillian dreaded the scrutiny and the comments of the guests. The staff had worked long and hard in order to arrange such an impressive breakfast on incredibly short notice, and they had managed beautifully, but rumors about her still abounded, and her sudden marriage to Lord Grantham was certain to add a bit of fuel to that flame. It was only a matter of time before one of the wedding guests forgot their manners long enough to mention it.

Fortunately, marriage to Lord Grantham came with a few bonuses—none the least of which was the fact that the Duke and Duchess of Avon had not only attended the wedding but had participated, serving as best man and matron of honor for the bride and groom. The duke and duchess’s parents had also accepted invitations to the wedding breakfast, and now, Gillian’s father—a baron who had previously only dreamed of moving in such imposing circles—was playing host to the Duke and Duchess of Avon, the Dowager Duchess of Sussex, the Marchioness of St. Germaine and the Dowager Marchioness of St. Germaine, the Earl and Countess of McElreath, the Earl and Countess of Weymouth, the Earl and Countess of Tressingham, as well as Viscount and Lady Harralson and a half-dozen other prominent London hostesses and businessmen who had all come at Lord Grantham’s invitation. She didn’t know quite how he had managed it or why

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