The Prince of Knightstone Castle: Sweet Regency Romance by D.K. Quinn

Author:D.K. Quinn [Quinn, D.K.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-01-17T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

It was fair to say that Edward was not the most reliable of churchgoers. He went when his mother requested, and on important holy days, but it was not a particularly regular occurrence.

But on the Sunday after the new baby boy, who was still yet unnamed, was born, Aunt Agnes insisted the whole household (with the exception of the Duchess, of course) attended the local service to give thanks for the safe arrival of the baby boy.

They walked, for the day was fine, and the Duke had insisted upon staying at home with his wife, so there was no real need to take a carriage. The Dowager Duchess, with Edward at her side, led the way, with Henrietta and Miss Eaves following behind. There was an assortment of other servants in their wake, but Edward was rather embarrassed to realise he knew very few of their names. His own staff had been with him for so long that it had never been an issue to learn their names. It was something he had grown up with.

The vicar was old and his voice did not carry well across the church, which Edward imagined was far busier than it usually was. His mind wandered after thanks had been given for the safe arrival of the heir to the Duke of Coldingham. Rachel had said her brother was a vicar, had she not? And her father too, he thought. He wondered what the path had been for her from being a vicar's daughter to a lady's maid. Abandoned by her brothers after her parents’ deaths, it seemed. He did not dare to ask his aunt or cousin about Miss Eaves, for they already appeared to have ideas about his feelings in that direction.

Feelings he very much needed to ignore.

When they had spoken on the ride into the village, Rachel had said her father was very strict. He wondered what was meant by that. His own father was not so much strict as absent – too often entertaining the many women he had fallen in love with around the country. He knew many fathers were strict. But had Miss Eaves’s father been cruel? Edward had not liked the look on Rachel's face when she had spoken of him.

Aunt Agnes nudged him sharply in the ribs, and he realised that his daydreaming and wondering had stopped him from responding appropriately to the prayers being said. He bowed his head, hoping he could pass off his lack of attention with a bout of devotion.

He doubted that he had convinced his aunt, but he hoped she would be happy enough that he had attended church as she had requested.

◆◆◆

Rachel avoided church generally. It was not that she did not have a strong faith, for she did – but the church building itself reminded her too much of her father and the terror he had made her feel, both in his sermons and with his belt.

She knew it was not the church's fault, but it was hard to divorce the two ideas in her mind.

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