A knock sounded on his door just as he turned a page and Morgan looked up to see his grandmother standing at the entrance of the study. He smiled up at her ax he began to stand.
“Hello, grandmother,” he greeted and motioned for her to enter.
“Oh, I see that you are busy. I do not mean to take you away from your work,” she said, returning his smile as she walked in.
“Yes, I am busy but I certainly have time to talk if that is what you wish.”
Grace waved her hands in front of her as if to dismiss his words. “It is nothing that should take much of your time. I simply wanted to invite you to a garden party.”
Morgan froze as he stared at her. Had he heard her right? Had she really invited him to a garden party? Surely, she knew what happened whenever he was in public places and he was not ready for any of that again.
“Oh, I’m sorry, grandmother, but I am quite busy. You appear to have caught me at a bad time as there is much work to be done before I can offer you my-”
“Don’t even think about it, Morgan,” his grandmother cut off his rambling and desperate attempt for an excuse. Her brows raised and her eyes showed that she had no interest in whatever excuse he had to give.
“Don’t even try to make any excuses.” Grace moved deeper into the room as Morgan followed her with his eyes.
“I know that you do not attend many social events and I understand your reasons. However, you are a Dukeandan eligible bachelor at that.”
Morgan’s eyes widened and he groaned. He should have known that this was where she was heading but somehow, he had been blindsided by her invitation to the garden party.
They had had this conversation a few times over the years. The Dowager Duchess was getting older and her one wish was to see that her grandson was happily married and her granddaughter secured in a home where her sister-in-law loved and cared for her.
The Duke was and had been an eligible bachelor for years now and in not one of those years had he sought to find a wife. It was a problem that brought his grandmother much sorrow.
Morgan knew she was not wrong and he did not begrudge her for pushing him to search for a wife. However, it was simply one of the things in a long list of things he had yet to do. It also did not help him that every woman he came near always looked for the nearest exit out of his presence.
It had stung that he could not seem to find a woman who would look past his physical appearance but it was not long that Morgan got over the pain of it. At least he had hid it so far away that it mattered not what happened.
“Do not groan at me, young man. It is time for you to find a wife and how are you to do so when you are locked up in your study all day with your head bent over the books?” his grandmother asked him, a tone of exasperation in her voice.
Morgan did not like to upset her, but he could not do much for her in that area. He would not be finding a wife the moment he stepped out of the study. He would not be able to find a woman who could stand to be near him.
Resolved, he sat back down and looked up at grandmother, whose hands pressed firmly on the table, staring him down as she tried to convince him.
“I am sorry grandmother, but I have so much work to tend to. There is so much in my life that I have to take care of right now that I really do not have the time and effort it would take me to look for a woman who would make a good wife for me and that I could court and show that I will make a good husband.”
He shook his head when she opened her mouth to argue her point.
“You have to consider, grandmother, that I am not just looking for a woman who is to be my wife. I am also looking for a woman who would be a good influence on Barbara and I cannot rush that. I will not rush that. So, until I have the time to do so, I truly cannot give you what you want.”
He sighed and stood up, walking around to stand in front of her. He placed his hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. He could see the despair and devastation and it pained him that he had been the one to put it there although it was not his desire to do so.
“When I have done all that I need to do and there is not much else to take my time, I will begin my search for a wife. Until then, marriage can wait.”
“I suppose I shall have to reconcile myself to the fact that soon you will be the oldest bachelor the ton has ever seen.”
“That is a bit of an exaggeration, grandmother.”
Morgan rolled his eyes as he looked at the small smile playing on the corner of her lips. He was grateful that she was so understanding although he knew that if he did not soon complete his long list of tasks and begin to seek a wife, she would broach the topic again.
“Remember that much like all of these,” she said as she moved her hands over the books on the table. “Marriage is also your responsibility and you will not be able to fulfill that responsibility if you make yourself scarce in the ton.”
“It is not just about me not attending these parties, grandmother. I have constantly tried and often failed to hold conversations and socialize with these people. You remember that oftentimes people run away from me, right?” he queried, bringing up his major concern.
“Ah, yes… that,” Grace responded, her voice deepening in irritation and her tone betraying how she felt about that.
“Remember the time when I tried to speak to Lady Cosgrove but she ran from me so quickly that she managed to spill her wine on her clothes and slip quite dramatically until she fell and broke her arm?”
