Dominic (57 page)

“Sit with me a while, my love,” he said drawi
n
g her to sit be
s
ide him, “and tell
m
e what it is that
tro
u
bles yo
u
. There
is
no
need
to
look
so
anxiously
at
m
e,
I
can
read your countenance and I know all is not well. Tell
m
e!”

“I
cannot,”
she
said,
atte
m
pting
to
pull
away,
but
he held her fast to his side.

“Then
there
i
s
so
m
ething
a
m
iss,”
he
stated.
“Do
you not
desire to go through with the
m
arriage?
Has so
m
ething occurred to change your
m
i
nd
?
”

“I
cannot
say,
Do
m
i
nic,
it
would
seem
so
ungrateful,”
she
replied, tears sta
r
ting in her
eyes
.

“
W
hat is it?”
he de
m
anded, holding her away from h
i
m the better to exa
m
ine her features.

“Of
course
I
wish
to
m
arry
you,
it
is
the
one
thing
I
desire above all else but...”

“
W
hat
is this
bu
t
,”
he
asked
curtly,
atte
m
pting
to
m
ake her
look
at
him as
she
dropped
her
head.
“There
is definitely so
m
ething not sitting right with you.”

“I am
terrified of the wedding.”

“Of
me
?
” he
asked
inc
r
edulously,
m
i
staking
her
m
eaning, “For I can assure you...”

“No,” she chuckled
through her tears.
“Certainly
not you,” and she caressed his cheek
w
ith her hand. “It is the wedding
it
s
elf and
the
m
agni
f
i
cence
the
a
ff
air
will
be accorded.
A
lthough I have been introduced into society, I am still not com
f
ortable when in their
m
i
dst. I am not used to
so
m
uch
notice
and
I
quail
at
the
thought.
Now
if
I could go as Jack...”

“You could go as anyone you like, rogue,” he said, s
m
iling
with
relief
and
quickly
catching
her
to
h
i
m
.
“I care
not
who
you
find
it
necess
a
ry
to
be,
but
m
arry
m
e you will, be it as Sophie or Jac
k
.” And he found it necessary,
so
very
necessary,
to
once
m
ore
assure
her
of his devotion lest she should be in any doubt of it.

*****

Early the next
m
orning, before the duke and d
uchess had
descended
for
breakfast, Vale stood outside Sophie’s door
and
knocked
quietly.
Upon
the
door
being
opened
he
whispered, “Co
m
e with
m
e, my love.”

Closing the door silently behind her, Sophie placed
her hand
in
his
and
allowed
him to
lead
her
along
the
corridor and down the stairs before eventually asking, “Where are we going, Do
m
i
nic, and at this hour?”

“Have
patience,
m
y
love,”
he
grinned.
“Trust
m
e
and
all will be
w
ell.”

*****

Arriving in the still e
m
pty parlor a s
h
ort while l
a
ter, the d
uke
and
d
uchess
ordered their
breakfast,
the
d
uke
showing no small amount of irritation at his son’s
tar
d
iness.

“If we are to start our return journey this
m
orning, he could
have
at
least
m
ade
so
m
e eff
o
rt
to remo
v
e
himse
l
f from his
bed
at
a
reasonable
hour,”
he
co
m
plained
to
his wife. “Should you not see if all is well with
S
ophie?
She too
needs to prepare
for
the journey.
I
will
not
have
our start delayed
because they sleep too long
.
”

The
d
uchess
repaired
to
Sophie’s
room
i
m
m
e
diately but
on
finding
it
e
m
pty
returned to
the
parlor.
“She
is
not there, Marcel,” she infor
m
ed her husband. “Her bag has been packed but there is no sign of her.”

“Don’t
tell
m
e
the
chit
has found
it
necessary
to
run away again,” groaned the d
uke, putting his hand to his head.

“There
is
nothing
to
suggest
she
has
run
a
w
ay,
my dear,
m
erely that
she
is
not
in
her
roo
m
.
Perhaps
she
has taken it upon herself to take so
m
e air, to go for a walk.”

“Did you try the boy
?
”

“There was no reply from his room
either.”

“
W
hat
the
deuce
are
they
up to
now
?
”
expostulated
the d
uke.
“Surely
it
is
not
too
m
uch
to
ask
of
them that
they should
be
prepared
to
leave
at
a
rea
s
onable
hour. I
will
not allow
t
h
is
n
eed
t
h
ey
m
u
st
h
a
ve to be always involved
in so
m
e scape.”

“They
will return soon,” soothed the d
uchess, pouri
n
g her husband’s coffee.

“The
question
is,
when
?
”
replied
the
d
uke,
attacking
his sirloin.

*****

The
m
orning passed, the d
uke beco
m
i
ng increasingly incensed
at
his
son’s
c
o
ntinued
a
b
sence.
“I
ha
v
e checked the
sta
b
les
a
nd
his
cattle are
still
th
e
re,”
he
in
f
o
r
m
ed
his wife. “
W
he
r
ever they
ha
ve
f
ound it
n
e
cessary to go cannot be too far.
I’m out of all patience with the
m
.”

“B
e still, my love,” cajoled the d
uchess, patting the settle invitingly
at her sid
e
.
“Not
hi
ng
will
b
e
gained
by allowing
y
o
urself
to be
c
o
m
e
so
agitated.
They
will
ret
ur
n when they
s
ee fit.”

No sooner had the d
uke taken the seat beside his wife than
the
parlor
door was uncere
m
oniously flung
open to reveal Sophie and the e
arl standing hand in hand.

“
W
here the devil have you been
?
” de
m
anded the d
uke, starting up from
his seat and co
m
i
ng forward.