Chapter 5
“He did what?” Fiona gasped as she leaned towards Harriet from the sofa opposite.
It was two days since Harriet had visited Irondale Hall. Two days since the Duke had asked her to be his Duchess—and the proposal seemed no less mad to Harriet now than it had done then.
She felt as though the whole thing had been a dream, as though she had watched some other woman who looked like her live the sort of life she could never live.
Fiona, Louisa and Catherine peered at each other. They were sitting in the drawing room of Devonmere Manor, a forgotten plate of biscuits and rapidly cooling tea between them.
“He asked me to be his duchess,” Harriet repeated, grateful that her cheeks did not redden as her friends stared at her. “I… Well… He found some of my drawings and-”
“- what do you mean he found some of your drawings? What drawings?” Fiona’s brow furrowed.
Harriet felt her cheeks redden. She mentally kicked herself.
She would have to admit the truth to her friends.
No doubt they will think I am mad. “I um… well… I like to sketch, you know that. It helps calm me… and so I have been leaving the odd sketch in books in different libraries. I always use my own paper, of course, it seems rude to just take such things from other estates.”
“Is that what you do when you sneak away from balls?” Louisa’s eyes widened.
“It is just a silly little thing, I do not even know why I started it and I certainly did not expect it to lead to anything like this. The whole thing feels utterly surreal.” She felt like her face was on fire, and wondered if it was possible to die of embarrassment.
If you think so little of your own drawings, why do you leave them dotted around in libraries throughout the land?
The Duke’s words echoed around her head as though he had whispered them into her ear. Unconsciously, she massaged the nape of her neck, feeling the prickle of gooseflesh that made her hairs stand on end.
“I think it is rather fantastic. Like something out of a novel.” Fiona’s voice jerked her back to the present. “The dark, dangerous Duke who had his heart stolen by a mystery artist. Though, I will admit I am rather surprised to find the man has a heart to steal.”
“It is his niece’s heart, not his.” The furrow deepened on Louisa’s forehead, and Harriet hastened to explain.
“It is not that he does not appreciate the aesthetic value of my work. He was actually quite complimentary. But his proposal was for her not him. My drawings seem to speak to her in a way nothing else has.”
Harriet remembered the way the girl had shrunk back from her uncle, the way her face had lit up when she had seen Harriet.
She thought of the emptiness of the castle and her chest ached.
“Phoebe seems a rather sweet girl. Apparently, she does not usually react to strangers as she reacted to me. The Duke wants someone to bring her out of her shell, and I seem to be the one to do it, so he asked me to be his Duchess.”
Louisa’s eyes narrowed. “That sounds rather like he is looking for a nanny, not a wife. I do not like it.”
“There are worse reasons a man might choose a wife.” Fiona pointed out, stroking her chin thoughtfully. “And surely it is a good sign that he cares so deeply for his niece?”
“Or perhaps he simply wants to rid himself of the responsibility,” Louisa added darkly before taking Harriet’s hand in hers. “Tell me you are not considering it.”
Harriet hesitated, but before she could answer, Fiona said, “And why should she not?”
“Fi, you cannot really want Hettie to marry a man who is little more than marble brought to life. What about love? Do you not think she deserves to find such a thing?” Louisa gaped at Fiona.
Harriet opened her mouth to defend the Duke, and frowned, unsure where the urge had come from.
“Accepting his proposal does not mean she will not. Look at Alaric and me.” Catherine sipped from her cup, tapping an elegant finger against her lips thoughtfully.
“That does not mean this is the same thing, Kitty. Besides, that was not without its hiccups, or do you think the Duke of Irondale will also lose his memories and rediscover himself in the process?” Louisa arched an eyebrow at Catherine and Harriet nervously tapped her fingers on the sofa, fearing that the two might fight and wondering how she could stop it.
“I am not saying it would be easy—and I rather hope that Irondale does not have a madwoman trying to kill him. All I am pointing out is that marrying the man does not mean love is off the table,” Catherine replied smoothly.
“I am worried – I do not want her to lose herself for the sake of a child. I know you love Oliver, we all do, but there is every chance things could have worked out differently.” Louisa looked between them all.
“I suppose it is really about what Harriet wants.” Fiona looked between the two women. “Do you want to accept his offer? Even if it might mean losing your chance at love?”
I have already given up on that. Harriet did not voice the thought aloud; she knew what her friends would say and she had no idea how to explain that it was a good thing, not a bad thing.
She was a wallflower; love was not the sort of thing that found people like her. Not that she even wanted it to.
“I had not really given the subject much thought. Love, I mean.” Harriet shifted the conversation into safer waters. “Though I have been considering the Duke’s proposal. It seems only sensible.”
“What do you mean?” Catherine asked, frowning.
“My father thinks I should be married,” Harriet said, the words tumbling from her mouth. “The day I returned from the Duke’s estate, he mentioned that he had begun serious talks about such an arrangement.”
In her mind’s eye, she could see her father looking at her, a sad but worried expression on his face. It had made Harriet feel even more trapped.
“What?” Louisa and Fiona both leapt to their feet, hands balled into fists.
“I am not going to let him force you into this. I thought Lord Devonmere was not that sort of man.” Louisa growled.
“Please, calm yourselves.” Harriet pulled them both down onto the sofa, touched and exasperated by their concern.
“He is not doing this out of malice, he is worried about me and he will not force me into anything I do not want. He does not want me to end up alone and vulnerable without anyone to protect me.”
“You will never be alone. You have us.” Fiona stuck her chin out. “We will never let anything happen to you.”
“I know.” Harriet smiled at her friends, but felt her heart twist. “But perhaps he has a point. As much as I had accepted, even looked forward to spinsterhood, it is not the most stable of futures.”
“So marry an old man on death’s door and enjoy being a widow. All the freedom of spinsterhood with none of the risk.” Fiona grinned.
“Fiona, do not be so vulgar.” Louisa swatted Fiona, glaring. “Besides, Hettie has scruples. And who knows how long it might take such a man to die?”
“Then you think I should marry the Duke?” Harriet felt her blood run cold, the sensation of a trap tightening around her only intensified.
Louisa shook her head vehemently. “That is not what I said at all. Let him sort out his own problems, you have your own life to lead.”
Harriet wished the words felt reassuring, but when she thought of turning the duke down, guilt filled her chest. “But what about Phoebe?”
“Hettie, you have a good heart, but you should not sacrifice yourself to a man like the Duke simply for the sake of a child. Besides, there is every chance she might find another person to care for her. Whom she can care for.” Something of Harriet’s hurt must have shown on her face, for Louisa added “Not that I am saying you would not do so or that your drawings do not mean a great deal, simply that this is a lot of pressure to put on you. It is a lot of expectation to put on anyone for that matter.”
Harriet chewed on her bottom lip. “I suppose so.”
She tapped her fingers against the smooth velvet of the sofa, thinking of the way the little girl’s face had lit up. Her heart swelled as she thought of her, and unbidden, the image of the Duke’s mouth quirking upwards sprang to mind. It made her frown.
This was about his niece, not him.
“I just… I suppose I see her and him, and it seems so obvious that something is missing but…” Harriet looked down at the floor. “I just wish I understood why the girl was so drawn to me.”
“In my experience, children often see the truth far before adults do.” Catherine took Harriet’s hands in hers and squeezed it gently. “Oliver understood the truth of things far before I did.”
“But that is different.” Louisa insisted. “There was a heart beneath the cold facade your husband put on.”
“And who is to say that the same is not also true of Irondale?” Catherine countered.
“If he was truly a beast, why would he be so determined to find someone to help his niece? Why would it matter so much to him? He would just let her waste away or ship her off to some school far away in the country.”
“Perhaps he is ashamed of her. After all, I did not even know the man had a niece until Harriet told me.” Louisa popped a biscuit in her mouth.
“I do not think he is,” Harriet said without thinking. Please. His voice had been soft, as though he were a man running out of options – the realization hit her as her next words came tumbling out. “I think he is scared of losing her. He cares for her, Louisa, I am certain of it.”
Louisa looked uncertain, but she said nothing, and Harriet was relieved. Fiona poured them all another cup of tea. “What exactly did he propose?”
“He said I would want for nothing.” Harriet bit her lip. And he is the only man to have asked me.
Something of her thoughts must have shown on her face, because Louisa shook her head and gave her a small, sad smile. “You do not have to accept the first proposal that comes your way, Hettie. Just because he is the first, does not mean he will be the only one.”