One
“The Duke Hunt? Will you line them up like ducks at a shooting gallery to see who will fall first?” A corner of Dominic’s mouth turned upward, almost in a smile, as he and his grandmother walked through the park of Greystone Manor. “I admit, it’s an amusing thought.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Cassandra Archdall, Dowager Duchess of Greystone, said as they turned a corner on the path and reached the big, open space in the park, where servants were busy placing decorations for the so-called Duke Hunt. “This party will be like any other. However, the goal of this particular gathering will be to encourage love matches.”
“With dukes being the prize? I wish you luck in getting enough dukes willing to be prey for bloodthirsty debutantes and their mothers. I’m sure you will not find enough for a proper hunt.”
His grandmother rolled her eyes. “I merely named it that for dramatic effect. Dukes are not being hunted down for sport. Ifthey were, then I would have specified that the ladies should wear red so that the blood splatters wouldn’t show.”
Dominic almost chuckled at that. If he told anyone that his grandmother could tell such dark jokes, they would never believe him. She was always the picture of propriety and grace when she wasn’t around family.
She looked sideways at him and smiled. She always seemed to know when he was on the verge of smiling himself, even though it felt like ages since he had last done so. At least not since…
No need to think about that dreadful day now.
His grandmother continued talking as she inspected the outdoor tables, decorated with white tablecloths and floral centerpieces. “I do not know why you are talking as if you are not going to be one of the dukes present at the party.”
He looked at her, indignant at such an assumption. “Absolutely not. Just because the gathering is happening on the grounds of my home does not mean it requires my presence. I will stay in my study until it is over.”
She turned to him and placed her hands on her hips. Despite being half a head shorter than him, she could still look imposing when she wanted to. “Irequire your presence.”
“If the goal of the evening is to create a love match, then it is best if I keep to myself. I will only impede that goal for everyone else.”He shook his head in annoyance and started walking back to the manor.
He should have known his grandmother would throw a party to try to lure him into an engagement. As if his first marriage hadn’t ended disastrously. “I have no interest in socializing with debutantes and their ambitious mothers for an entire night.”
“It’s not like the usual Diamond of the Season gatherings,” the dowager said. “Love matches don’t happen only with young debutantes, you should know. I’m inviting unmarried ladies of all ages and backgrounds. Perhaps with a little more variety, one of them will catch your eye.”
He stopped walking and turned to her. “Are you trying to get me to marry a ruined spinster?”
She gave him a steely look. “Being married to a proper lady certainly did not bring you any happiness.”
“I admit my first marriage was a disaster, but I wouldn’t change my past for the world because it gave me Percy.” His son was the only good thing to come out of his first marriage.
He looked to his left. In the distance, Percy was sitting in front of the gazebo with his nanny. The woman had a book in her hands and was reading aloud to him animatedly, but he didn’t seem to be paying attention. Instead, he stared off into space, his expression devoid of emotion. “It’s too soon,” he said. “It’s only been a year since my wife’s… incident.”
“It’s also been a year since Percy last spoke,” she said quietly.
He grimaced, knowing she was right. He missed the sound of his son’s voice. But he detested the thought of taking another wife. “If I marry again, it could be hard on Percy,” he said.
“Percy is exactly why you need to find a new wife. He needs a mother.” She sighed, sadness flickering across her face. “Perhaps the right woman will be able to help him find his voice again.”
A lump formed in Dominic’s throat. He swallowed and looked away, willing not to let his emotions show on his face, even around his grandmother. “Nothing good will come out of me marrying,” he said. “If I marry again, only for my new wife to ignore him or treat him coldly, just because he isn’t of her flesh and blood…” he took a deep breath. “I can’t put him through that.”
“The boy has already been through so much,” his grandmother said softly. “That is precisely why he needs a mother and not one nanny after another. If you wish for him to speak again, then you must marry.”
Dominic clenched his jaw. His son hadn’t uttered a single word in over a year, and Dominic would give anything to hear him speak again. But he doubted any good would come from another marriage of convenience.
“Selina!”
Selina grinned as her younger sister, Christine, rushed out of Gillray Manor and to the manor’s gates. She swept her up into a hug.
“I’ve missed you so much!” Selina said, feeling tears sting her eyes. “And look how you have grown!” She pulled back to look at Christine.
In the five years since they had last seen each other, Christine had grown into a beautiful young woman. At eighteen, she was now a little taller than Selina. Her blonde hair, which she used to wear in loose, messy curls around her shoulders, was now pulled into a simple upsweep. Even though her hair was lighter than Selina’s brunette waves, they had the same green-dove eyes.
“I cannot believe you are finally here,” Christine said, tears shining in her eyes. “Letters are simply not the same as seeing you in person.”
“They are certainly not.” Selina reached out and grabbed her sister’s hands, squeezing them. She could not stop herself from being overwhelmed with emotion. It had been far too long since she had last been allowed to see her sister. Selina was sorry to have not been present for the last few years of Christine’s childhood, even if it had been out of her control.
