He lifted his chin, spine straight. “Well said. I will not stand in the way of true love. The betrothal is over. Congratulations,ma cherie.”
He bowed to Harriet, smiling warmly. Harriet stood, beaming and holding Jeremy's hands. She looked to her brother, who was still glaring at Jeremy.
“Ralph, there is much that we need to explain to you. But what you need to know at this moment is that I love him as I will love no other. He is not the man you think he is.”
“I knowpreciselythe kind of man he is,” Ralph seethed. “I have known him my entire life. A man does not change, Harriet.”
“Youdid,” she said, simply, “when the Earldom required it of you. You rose to the challenge.”
“As shall I,” Jeremy put in smoothly, “to be the best man I can be for Harriet.”
Ralph looked from one to the other wildly. He ran a hand through his hair.
“Don't be an oaf, Ralph!” Reuben Ridlington cried out from his place on the bride's side of the church.
“You will need to prove yourself worthy of my sister. I do not know that you can do it. I do not know what proof would satisfy me. I know too much about you,” Ralph muttered, spreading his glare across Jeremy, Reuben, and Nash, who sat next to him.
Another voice spoke up. From the rearmost pews on the bride's side of the church, a man rose. Harriet recognized Doctor March, her brother's Harley Street physician, and clearly a friend enough to be invited to his sister's wedding.
“I believe I may be able to provide something of a character reference,” March said, blushing furiously at the attention that was suddenly focused on him.
“You see, I am undertaking a charitable project to bring medical care to those who cannot afford to pay for a physician's time. But I could not finance it on my own. I sought royal patronage, funding from Parliament, and every member of the Lords. None were willing to see their money thrown away to help the poor. All wanted a return on their investment, which I could not provide. Except that man.”
He pointed at Jeremy.
“I know now that his own plans were scuppered because of the money he gave to me. Investments that would doubtless have made him rich were ended so that my profitless but noble cause could be paid for out of his own pocket. He has more nobility in him than the entire aristocracy of England.”
His words ran out across a suddenly silent church. Harriet gaped at Jeremy, who gazed back at her coyly.
“Hear, hear!” Henri cried out, “Ralph, I will be offended greatly if you continue in your opposition to this man, as will my father!”
Ralph was looking at Jeremy as if seeing him for the first time. He shook his head.
“I would never have believed it,” he whispered. “I… I cannot have any objections to you marrying my sister, Jeremy. I wish both of you happiness.”
Harriet threw her arms about her brother, crying with happiness.
EPILOGUE
Four weeks later
“I’ll say this for the Duke—he only teared up a little.”
Jane’s voice carried just enough for it to be heard over the silverware. “Which is more than I can say for my Philip, who wept all through the vows like a maiden aunt.”
“I did not,” said Philip, looking long-suffering. “There was a draft. It affected my sinuses.”
Harriet smiled down at her plate from next to her husband, her fingers curled lightly around her spoon. The syllabub was untouched.
The wedding breakfast was small, and better for it. Not more than a few dozen guests were seated in the long drawing room at Penhaligon Manor, sunlight slanting over white linens and pink-ribboned place cards. Wildflowers had been tied into thebacks of the chairs. The scent of roses came in through the open windows, heavy and sweet.
It had been hours since the wedding, and already it felt like a dream. The cathedral in Marylebone had filled to the arches with family, society friends, and the few political allies Ralph could not bring himself to exclude, including Henri de Rouvroy, who had insisted on remaining in England until after the wedding ceremony. There had been bells, and solemn words, and the press of Jeremy’s hand against hers when the ring slipped into place.
It had been glorious. And somehow also a blur.
Now they were here. Back at Penhaligon. Married.
And she could not breathe.
