“Do you, Lord Alexander Dunham, take this woman to be your wife?” the priest asked.
“I will,” Alexander replied, the words catching in his throat.
“By the power vested in me, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride,” the priest said, his eyes widening as he realized what he had just said. “I—I mean—”
But Alexander didn’t hesitate. He leaned forward, took Beatrice’s hand in his, and placed a gentle kiss on the back of her knuckles.
It might not be the wedding kiss most girls dreamed of, but it was all he was capable of at the moment.
“Thank you,” he said quietly.
“You're welcome,” she replied, a solemn smile gracing her face.
And just like that, with the simple exchange of vows and a quiet moment between them, their lives were bound together, forever altered by the vows they had taken and the uncertain path they were about to walk.
Chapter five
Beatrice
Beatrice allowed her husbandto lead her toward the dining room, where he said Mrs. Jenkins had prepared a wedding meal for them.
The priest was staying to enjoy the meal, so Beatrice would not be alone with her new husband just yet, but he was leading her across the house, her hand resting on his arm, and she had never felt this way before.
She wasn’t even sure she could describe how she felt, only that her stomach felt a little odd, and she wasn’t sure if she would be able to eat any of the dinner that had been so carefully prepared for them in celebration of their wedding.
She had a husband now, and once the papers were sent to Riyel, she would officially be Lady Beatrice Dunham of Eldenwilde. Her throat felt tight. What would her father and her friends say?
Her father probably wouldn’t even notice, except that she wouldn’t be there to cook a meal for him when he was in the Northlands.
But Dietrich and his mother and Thea were sure to have opinions on the matter, and she wasn’t sure what their opinions would be.
On one hand, she could see Thea being excited for her, and on the other hand, she could see Thea being appalled that she had married a man she barely knew.
As for Dietrich, well, he was likely to be upset that she’d gotten married without him there, and his mother would also be sad about that. The fact that Danise and Dietrich had missed her wedding hurt more than she had expected it to, but perhaps someday she would be able to have a simple ceremony with Lord Dunham that their loved ones could attend.
Although he didn’t have any loved ones, so perhaps it was selfish of her to want a ceremony for her loved ones to witness. He had to have friends, though, right? It wasn’t as if he’d been entirely alone for the past fifteen years or so since his parents had passed.
She couldn’t remember exactly how long it had been. She had only been maybe ten years old, and the death of two nobles was not something that affected her life much at that point. She might have remembered more about it had she known that someday Lord Dunham would hire her…or that one day she would be his wife.
They turned into the dining room, and he pulled out a chair for her. The heavy skirts of the new dress were more than she was used to, and she was grateful for the help. As she slipped into the chair and adjusted her skirt, Lord Dunham’s hand brushed against her shoulder as he pushed the chair in, and she had to stop herself from jumping.
It would take time to get used to him being so close to her.
“Lady Beatrice,” the priest said, suddenly drawing her attention from across the way. “I hope that you are well and that your library has been doing well?”
“It has been,” she said kindly. The library did not have much in the way of religious texts, so the priest was not often a visitor, though occasionally he came in for one of the tomes on gardening. He had been a staunch advocate for the library when it first began and many in town were unsure of how they felt about it, and she appreciated the support.
“What will happen to the library now?” he asked, glancing between the two of them.
“I would like Lady Dunham to appoint her successor,” Lord Dunham said as he settled into his own chair at the opposite end of the very long table. “I don’t suppose you’ve thought about it yet?” he asked, looking at her.
“I am hopeful that Eugenia may be interested in the role,” Beatrice said.
The priest nodded. “Yes, she would be well-suited to the task,” he said. “It would not take her from anything she’s currently doing, and she does enjoy seeing everyone in town.”
“It would require her to stay in one place for more than a few minutes,” Beatrice said with a grin, “which might be difficult for her.”
“That is true,” the priest said. “However, if we can convince her that enough people will come to her, that might do the trick.”
