Chapter 10
Please come to see me this afternoon if you are available.
No greeting, no signature. The only reason Joseph knew that it came from Catriona was because the footman she’d sent had stated as much.
He stared at the small note with a frown, his trepidation slowly increasing with every second that ticked by.
Something was wrong. Catriona was not very adept at hiding her emotions—or perhaps he had gotten good at reading her—so he could tell that something was bothering her when they’d returned to the ballroom last night.
He’d assumed that it was because of what the ladies had said to her and had mentally debated whether he should attempt to console her once more or leave her to work through it herself.
But now that he’d gotten this note, he couldn’t help but wonder if it was still weighing on her mind.
“Are you listening to me, Daddy?”
Joseph immediately tossed the note onto the nearby end table and nodded at Dorothea, who was scowling adorably sitting across from him. “Of course, I am,” he lied with ease.
“What did I say?”
Joseph inclined his head to the side. “Excuse me?”
Dorothea did the same thing. “What did I say just now, Daddy?”
She was like him in far too many ways. Sometimes, he saw her mother, before she’d succumbed to her melancholy, when she smiled and laughed. But when she scowled, when she was upset, Dorothea was made in her father’s image.
He loved it about her. He even encouraged her at times to challenge him if she truly believed it prudent.
He simply wanted to make sure that she maintained propriety at all times, knowing how valued that was in ladies in society.
And since she did not have a female figure to guide her, he didn’t want to take any chances.
When they were home, however, Dorothea let her true self shine, and Joseph welcomed it. And because he knew that he had backed himself into a corner, he broke, rubbing his hand over his jaw as he said, “Very well, I will admit that my mind was elsewhere.”
Dorothea sighed like a woman three times her age. “Well, I suppose I will just have to start over then. Please listen, Daddy. This one is quite important.”
Joseph couldn’t fathom which one of Lord Byron’s poems could ever be seen as ‘important’ but he was happy to indulge her. Dorothea had come to his office half an hour ago to ask him if he wished to listen to her read poems, and Joseph had gladly pushed his work aside to indulge her.
“And wilt thou weep when I am low?” Dorothea began again. Joseph managed to focus through the first few lines before his mind wandered to Catriona again.
Why did she wanted to see him? The pointed nature of the note brought on a sense of urgency, bolstered by his need to know if she was still thinking about what the ladies had said to her.
He’d only overheard the last bit about her dress, but judging by the scene he’d come upon, he knew that nothing they were saying had been nice.
And she’d broken in front of him. She’d tried to hide it, to pretend that she was fine, but he saw a piece of her that he never thought he’d see.
He wondered if anyone had ever witnessed it before.
“Daddy!” Dorothea’s frustration spilled over. She got to her feet and shut her book with a huff. “I don’t like being ignored.”
Joseph shook his head, reaching out a hand. She hesitated but then she took it, allowing him to guide her to his side. “I wasn’t ignoring you on purpose,” he assured her. “I simply had something weighing on my mind.”
“What is it?” she asked.
Joseph hesitated. Should he tell her about Catriona? He’d informed her about the fact that he would be marrying Catriona, but Dorothea hadn’t reacted much to the news. “Miss Wallace sent me a note asking me to see her. And I cannot help but wonder if something was wrong.”
“Oh. So, you wish to go and see her then.”
Joseph nodded.
“May I come with you?”
He shook his head, and her abject disappointment surprised him. “Perhaps another time,” he assured her.
She nodded, but it wasn’t enough to hide her dismay. “How long will you be gone for?”
“Perhaps a few hours at most. As I’m not sure why she needs me, I cannot be certain.”
“You must come back quickly,” Dorothea said. “Before supper, at least.”
Joseph chuckled. “Very well. I will.”
She nodded at that, accepting his agreement. “I’m going to the gardens to continue reading. You should go to Miss Wallace soon, Daddy, or else she might get mad at you.”
Considering that that was a likely chance, Joseph easily agreed. “I will be back soon, all right?”
Dorothea nodded as he stood. She immediately took his hand, and he knew she wouldn’t let go until it was time to part ways.
She didn’t like being alone for long, he knew, which was a rather sad state of affairs considering the fact that she was an only child and that he was often busy.
So, when they got the chance to spend time with each other, Joseph often indulged her, and Dorothea was always reluctant to go her separate way.
Things would be different when he was married, he told himself. If his marriage to Catriona served no other purpose, at least Dorothea would have one more person in the house to spend time with.
Her sisters had left the house together, and her uncle was locked up in his office, so there was no one around to notice Catriona’s restlessness. Except Nina, of course, who watched Catriona drift back and forth with concern steeped in her doggy eyes.
“Do you think he will come, Nina?” Catriona asked. Nina gave no response, but when she glanced at her loyal pet, she could have sworn she saw a flash of humanly pity in her eyes.
Catriona couldn’t blame her if that were the case.
She’d been like this for the past hour now, waiting to see some sign that Joseph had gotten her note and heeded her call.
A part of her had hoped that he would come racing to Heaton Manor on horseback, barely dismounting properly in his haste to get to her.
It was a foolish thought but one that pressed on the back of her mind every time she glanced out the window of the drawing room.
Frustrated with herself, Catriona threw herself into the chaise lounge and picked up the embroidery she had been working on before the fine idea to send a note to Joseph had struck her. She managed it for two seconds before she was on her feet again. Nina let out a sigh.
“Don’t judge me too much, Nina,” Catriona said as she went back to the window. Sadly, there was no Joseph alighting carelessly from his horse. There was no carriage either. “If you had been at the ball yesterday, you would understand why I am acting this way.”
She hated to admit it to herself, but Cassandra and Belinda’s words had gotten to her.
Now, she truly wondered if she was cut out for the life she was about to walk into.
What did she know about being a duchess?
How could she possibly live up to such standards when she’d spent most of her life without expectations in Scotland and the last three years expecting to become a spinster?
She was doing this for Ava and Maisie, she knew. But did they truly need her connection to the Duke? Wouldn’t they be able to fare well enough on their uncle’s influence?
The sound of horses interrupted her train of thought.
Catriona’s breath caught in her throat as Joseph’s carriage pulled into the driveway.
She waited until she saw his door open and saw his head of dark hair appear before she went back to the chaise lounge to pretend she hadn’t been watching for his arrival all this time.
Francis’ announcement of the Duke’s arrival was met with cool indifference, a far cry from what she actually felt.
But when he walked into the room, brows already knitted together, she lost her grip on her facade.
He marched right over to where she was, not giving her enough time to get up, before he asked, “What’s the matter? ”
Catriona’s heart tripped over itself as she studied the look on his face. Was he concerned about her?
“I’d wondered how long it would take you to come,” she admitted without thought. She immediately wished she could take back the words, especially when his brows lifted.
“I hope you did not purposely make your note cryptic just to test me,” he said.
“I didn’t. I was in a state of urgency, you see. Though I suppose I could have taken the time to address you properly. I had simply assumed that you would know that it was me.” She hesitated. “And what it was about.”
Joseph studied her for a moment before he said, “Last night?”
Catriona nodded. “I wish for another lesson. A proper one. One that will truly prepare me for the life I will embark on when we marry tomorrow.”
He was quiet for a few seconds, so Catriona braced herself for the rejection or at the very least, for his annoyance at being called from his home for a reason such as this.
“You were the one who said you would teach me,” she reminded him when he took too long to answer.
“I recall quite clearly. But such teachings were meant to be given throughout the course of our marriage. I don’t expect you to know everything in one day.”
“You’d be surprised how quickly I learn.”
“I don’t doubt it for a second.” He looked as if he wanted to say more but then decided against it. Instead, he stood, helping her to a stand. “Very well then. Let us begin.”
Suddenly nervous, Catriona took his hand, ignoring the spark of heat that seized her stomach at the simple touch.
She had to get used to this, she told herself.
Even if they lived a loveless marriage, she would be expected to touch her husband once in a while.
She couldn’t very well react like this every time their skins brushed.
“Let us do a bit of role play,” he said as he led her to the center of the room. When he released his hand, the chill that washed over her was a little alarming. She schooled her face into submission.
“Not what I was expecting, but I’ll indulge.”