The Marquis by Denise Patrick

Author:Denise Patrick
Language: ron
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

*

Over dinner, Felicia told Tina and Jon about the village church and the vicar.

“It’s a beautiful little church and the vicar was so nice. Just perfect for a small wedding.”

Tina giggled. “By that you mean, perfect for me, but not for you.”

“Of course,” Felicia agreed. “One does not marry a duke in a country church.”

Jon nearly choked on his wine. “What duke?” he demanded.

“The one I’m going to marry,” Felicia replied smugly.

Jay, who was fast learning how Felicia’s mind worked, asked, “And is there such a person on the horizon?”

“Not yet, but there will be by the time I’m eighteen,” she answered breezily.

Jay leaned back in his chair and eyed her thoughtfully. “And if there isn’t?”

Tina erupted into laughter. “Oh, Jay, don’t encourage her. You’ll only make it worse.”

“I’m only trying to determine whether I should be out scouring the countryside for appropriate candidates to bring to heel—or if she already has someone in mind. Dukes are quite hard to find these days. Especially ones who are not already married.” He turned back to Felicia. “Will an heir do—or must he have already acquired the title?”

Felicia thought for a moment. “I suppose an heir will do.”

“Very well. I will keep my eyes open.”

Tina was disconcerted. “You should not make promises you cannot keep, my lord,” she told him. “And, Felicia, you cannot possibly intend…”

“Of course, I do,” Felicia cut in. “But, it’s at least two years away—who knows what will happen in two years.”

“Who knows, indeed,” Jay concurred, thoughtfully.

After dinner, the men followed the ladies into the drawing room, insisting there was nothing they needed to discuss that couldn’t be put off until tomorrow. When the tea trolley was brought in, Jon excused himself, returning a short time later.

“I almost forgot,” he told Felicia, handing her an envelope. “This is for you.” Dropping into a chair across from her, he watched her open the missive. “It’s from the Duchess of Westover.”

As Felicia opened the missive and began to read, Jon and Jay exchanged glances. Jay stood, drawing Tina to her feet as well. Although curious as to the contents of Felicia’s letter, she allowed Jay to lead her from the room and into the library. Seating her on the settee in front of the fireplace, he lit two lamps on nearby tables, then crossed the room to the desk in front of the windows. Retrieving something from inside the desk, he returned to sit beside her.

“I asked Jon to stop and pick this up on his way here. I thought it would suit you.”

He opened his hand to reveal an elegant ring. The slim gold band was topped by a large diamond surrounded by smaller emeralds, which were in turn, surrounded by sapphires.

“It’s beautiful,” she whispered.

He picked up her left hand and slid the ring on the third finger. A tingling coursed through her fingers and up her arms.

She stared down at the ring in wonder, then lifted luminous eyes to his face. “It fits,” she said in surprise.

His smile appeared and she was mesmerized.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.