Beguiling the Duke by Darcy Burke

Author:Darcy Burke [Burke, Darcy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781637261057
Publisher: Zealous Quill Press

Following the Grand Picnic, Law had returned to Fieldstone with the intent of bathing and then joining Sadie at the gardens that evening. She’d remained in town with the other maidens fair to prepare for the evening. It was tradition for them to gather at the New Inn, the largest and oldest lodging in Marrywell, which also served as the unofficial headquarters of the May Court, to ready themselves between events. However, after indulging in a tea tray following his bath, Law began to feel unwell and had collapsed into bed. He hadn’t stirred until that morning. If he didn’t know better, he would have thought he’d taken laudanum.

This morning, he was completely recovered and keen to find Sadie so that he could explain his absence. He also wanted to find out how her evening went. Most of all, he was eager to speak with her about the kiss they’d shared yesterday afternoon. He’d awakened thinking of that delightful encounter, his body thick with desire.

A disturbing sense of betrayal lingered at the back of his mind—because of his impending meeting with the Earl of Gillingham and the man’s daughter. With each day that Law spent at Fieldstone, he became less and less interested in fulfilling his father’s dying demand. And now that he’d kissed Sadie, things had most definitely shifted. He couldn’t very well carry on with her—or long for her—when he had this potential betrothal hanging over his head.

He knew in that moment that he didn’t even want to meet Lady Frederica. He wanted to be right here at Fieldstone, continuing to get to know Sadie. If he could find a messenger, he would send word to Gillingham notifying him that he wouldn’t be able to meet his daughter after all.

The conclusion of the festival brought its own worries. If things went according to plan, Sadie would be betrothed—and not to him. This result was growing more and more distasteful. If Law was having trouble watching her dancing with other gentlemen, how could he see her wed one of them?

It seemed he had some decisions to make regarding courtship and perhaps even marriage. The thought of that was both dizzyingly exciting and somewhat terrifying. He’d only just met Sadie, and yet he was genuinely considering if she’d want to be his duchess. Would she want that? Was he certain he wanted that?

He nearly walked past a narrow open cupboard on his way to the stairs, but caught sight of Sadie inside organizing linens. He stepped into the doorway. “Good morning.”

She startled, her shoulders jerking as she turned to face him with slightly widened eyes. “Law, I didn’t hear you. Good morning.” She smiled warmly as she tucked some linens onto a shelf. Facing him, she asked, “How are you feeling? Papa said you didn’t come last night because you were ill. I hope it wasn’t anything terrible. You seemed fine at the picnic.”

He realized he was blocking the light from the corridor and moved into the cupboard to the left side.

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