Chapter 3
Chapter Three
“Marry you?” she repeated, hoping hearing the words would have him recoiling in horror at the prospect.
Jessamine stared at the Duke of Knightford as though he had lost his mind. Perhaps he had. Or perhaps she had, which would explain why she had hallucinated this duke asking her to marry him as though it were the most reasonable solution in the world.
But he merely nodded. “Yes, Lady Jessamine. I believe it solves both our predicaments.”
“I will not marry you! I hardly know you. And moreover, I don’t trust you.”
If she had expected him to be offended by this pronouncement, she was disappointed. Not a flicker of emotion crossed his face; it was as if he cared nothing for her opinion, and that only infuriated her more.
How dare he ask for her hand in marriage when he clearly had so little regard for her?
“I understand this was not part of your original plan,” he said calmly.
“However, I do think it is for the best. Regardless of your agreement, William needs a home where he is protected and legitimate. I can provide that. You wish to be part of his life, and this facilitates that. I could, I suppose, hire you to be his nursemaid, but that would be an insult to both of us.”
“Perhaps, then, you could just give me your blessing,” Jessamine said, but she already knew she was fighting a losing battle.
If he had intended to give William up, he would already have done so. The fact he had offered her marriage proved he was taking the situation seriously.
“I have explained why I cannot do that,” the duke said with a hint of irritation.
“You cannot protect him from scandal as an unmarried lady, and you would destroy your reputation along with it. Rebecca, I know, would not have wanted her child’s guardian to be ruined.
” His lips thinned. “Fear not, Lady Jessamine; this is no sentimental suggestion. I am aware that now I’m duke, marriage is an expected inevitability, and with William to care for now, a practical necessity.
Your wish to care for him makes you an ideal candidate. This is the only clean solution.”
Her brows knitted together as she took in his words.
The Duke’s face hardened. “If you force my hand, I will wrench the child from you and carry him away from here. I’m reluctant to stoop so low, but if the situation calls for it, then I will.”
“Surely, you must see how absurd this is,” Jessamine said, although an uneasy feeling erupted in her gut.
He meant every word he said: he would prize William from her arms if she refused him.
“It’s highly irregular,” Henry said, “but the Duke’s argument is not without sense, Jessamine. It would be prudent to consider it.”
Jessamine looked at her sister, but Irene merely nodded her head, though she looked uneasy. “I agree. Marriage is a drastic solution, but… but if you wish to stay with William, Jessie, I see no other way of doing so. The duke has a higher claim.”
Jessamine looked down at the baby in her arms, still sleeping. He cared nothing for law or reputation or whose claim was greater. He cared only for safety and love, and he was safe here with her.
For now.
“There is also the advantage to you,” the Duke of Knightford continued calmly. “You would have a title, status, protection. You would want for nothing. And in return, William would have everything he is entitled to as my heir.”
Jessamine glanced around at everyone in the room, but Henry and Irene studiously avoided her gaze.
She was alone in this. Only the duke met her eyes, steady and sure, calm as the ocean on a clear day.
The ice in his eyes had not melted, but it seemed smoother now.
Clearer. Something that a careful woman might navigate.
“Tell me,” she said, “what sort of marriage you’re offering.”
“I need a woman who will care for William and be the mother he clearly requires. If not you, then I will need to find someone else for the role. However, I can see how much you care for him already, which is why I offer to make this union happen. For William’s sake.
The marriage is for my second cousin and for him alone. ”
A marriage of convenience where her husband had no designs on her. A large house and a safe place where she could raise William.
The offer could certainly be worse.
William’s tiny hand curled instinctively around her finger as he slept. If she refused, she would not be allowed to keep him, and even if she did, she risked bringing Henry and Irene into this mess.
There was nothing else for it.
She drew herself up as tall as she could go. “In that case, thank you, Your Grace. I accept. For William’s sake,” she added, in case that was not already clear.
“Very good,” Andrew said with a small nod.
Almost immediately, he moved to the practical considerations.
“We must make the arrangement properly. I will make an announcement in the paper to declare our engagement, and we will be married as soon as I can arrange it. I’ll speak with my solicitor and ensure that William is named directly as my heir and given my name.
” He looked her and William over. “You may… keep the boy until we are married. Since he’s grown so accustomed to you,” he said, with the air of making a difficult concession.
“Oh.” Jessamine had not expected this at all. “Thank you.”
“Once we are married, you and William will be moved into my house, and the boy will be raised there. But until then, I will send a nursemaid I’ve personally approved and some of my own personal staff to keep an eye on you both.”
Jessamine bristled at this high-handed management. “There is already a nursemaid installed here,” she said tightly. “And she is doing perfectly well. What is more, the larger the household, the more people will attract attention to the house.”
“Then you may dismiss all your previous staff, if you’re worried about drawing too much attention,” the duke said with that same arrogant authority in his voice. “I am allowing you to keep William, but I will not compromise his safety.”
Jessamine looked at Henry, who, in the process of this discussion been heartily insulted about the trustworthiness of his staff, but he only nodded.
“I’ll bring my people out,” he said. “Once yours arrive, Knightford.”
The Duke nodded. “I will begin the legal work at once to ensure everything is done properly and quickly. Expect an announcement tomorrow morning. As for the wedding, I expect it to take place within the week.”
So soon.
Then again, given the situation, this ought to be what she hoped for.
“Thank you, Your Grace,” Jessamine forced herself to say, though she did not think herself particularly thankful at all.
This was better than some alternatives, but she had been forced into a corner, and she did not appreciate it in the slightest.
The duke’s gaze dropped to William in her arms. “May I?” he asked, gesturing to the sleeping child.
Jessamine hesitated.
Irene nodded at her. “Let him see his second cousin, dearest.”
Her legs moved before her mind gave them permission to, and before she knew what she was doing, she was standing before the Duke. He gazed down at the baby, the harsh lines of his face softening. What had started as austere handsomeness turned into something entirely more… human.
Almost beguiling. The way his eyes softened, the soft part of his lips. His hand reached out, as though he longed to touch William’s downy head, but after a moment, he stepped back. All softness left his expression, and his ducal personality returned.
“I will reach out once I have acquired the special license,” he said. “And we will begin the wedding preparations.”
“Yes, Your Grace.” Jessamine didn’t drop into a curtsy, and hoped that holding William was enough of an excuse.
If he thought anything of it, he said nothing as he left, bidding a quick goodbye to Henry and Irene.
As soon as he was gone, Jessamine’s shoulder slumped.
Irene’s face twisted with contrition. “You know there was no other solution, Jessie. What was he supposed to do? You know you cannot raise William here like this forever.”
“Being Knightford’s ward is the best solution for William,” Henry said. “And you make a far better mother for the lad than any other lady Knightford would marry out of a sense of duty.”
Jessamine knew they were right. She knew this was the best for the baby.
But marriage… She wanted to protest.
This was no small thing, marrying a man such as that. A man new to his title, seeking to establish himself in the world, and with a new ward he intended to make his heir.
At least he did intend to make William his heir.
“You will learn to be happy,” Irene said, pulling her into a sideways hug. “Marrying Knightford may not be such a bad experience, after all.”
“Do you truly believe that, sister?” Jessamine asked mournfully.
“He is not so bad, I fancy,” Henry said bracingly. “And besides, he said it was a marriage of convenience, and he will make William his heir. What more could you ask for, Jessamine?”
What she wanted was the freedom to choose—the freedom to choose no one at all, if no one met her standards—not have the choice forced upon her by some high-handed man who thought he knew better.
What she had always wanted was a family of her own. One done right—not the way her father had created a family, with idle carelessness, discarding his wives as he so chose. Poor Percy. Her heart contracted at the thought. And her life with Irene had been denied her.
Given the choice, she would marry for love—something her father never truly did—and raise a family the way she chose. So they might be happy and together.
The moment she’d taken William into her care, she knew her dreams had grown to encompass him, too. They had just not grown to encompass a stern, brooding, autocratic duke.
Still, she could keep William. That would have to be enough, and it was better than she had ever thought she could get.
“I will keep you safe,” she said as she cradled the infant and her friends prepared to leave. “No matter what, you will be safe with me.”
And perhaps even safe with the duke.
She had not thought so at first, but she could not shake the softness in his eyes when he’d looked at the infant. He did not seem a man naturally given to kindness, but he could perhaps know love eventually, given time. When it came to William, he seemed to have an inclination toward it.
Jessamine would do everything in her power to foster that affection and make it grow until the duke became the father William deserved.