“The roses are already beginning to bloom.” He’d noticed earlier that the late viscountess’s gardens were flourishing. “Perhaps we could hold the ceremony there later this month.”
“This month?” His mother was clearly appalled that they would act so soon, but then she sighed. “I suppose it’s going to be an intimate affair, so this month isn’t out of the question. Just leave it to me.”
He nodded. “I trust that you’ll use your best judgement, Mother.”
They migrated back to the furniture and talked for a while longer. By the time Nicholas took Sophie’s hand and led her to his bedchamber, he was reasonably confident that everything would work out for the best.
For the first time in his life, he wasn’t afraid to hope.
CHAPTER 30
“Thankyou for designing a gown that’s absolutely perfect for me,” Sophie said to Kate as Betsy helped her into her wedding dress. The maid cinched the waist tight and set to work tying the laces.
Kate smiled radiantly. “You’re welcome. I’m so glad you like it.”
Sophie laughed. “How could I not?”
The gown was undeniably beautiful. Even though it would only be their family present, Kate had created something meant to be seen and appreciated.
The dress was the same shade of blue as Sophie’s eyes and had delicate sleeves that wrapped around her upper arms and shoulders while the skirt cascaded to midcalf, at which point layers of white lace fell to the floor. Tiny white roses had been fashioned out of silk and sewn onto the skirt immediately above the lace.
Betsy finished tying the dress and helped Sophie into a pair of white gloves that reached her elbows. They’d already dressed her hair, and it was curled around her face with a white rose in the back to match the roses on her dress.
Kate had been particularly excited about making the roses part of the wedding because apparently Theo’s late wife had planted the rose gardens, and she wanted to involve Elizabeth and honor her in whatever way she could.
Sophie didn’t know much about Elizabeth, but she liked roses, so as far as she was concerned, that was all there was to it.
Lastly, Betsy helped Sophie into her white silk slippers. She’d protested the practicality of wearing white on her feet when the ceremony was going to be outside and they would no doubt get dirty, but Kate and the dowager viscountess had overruled her, and if they wanted to ruin a perfectly good pair of shoes, that was their prerogative
“I mean it,” Sophie said. “Thank you.”
Kate arched her eyebrow. "You’re my very best friend—my sister—so it’s not as if I could allow anyone else to design it.”
“A matter of pride, is it?”
“Maybe so.” Kate glanced at the door just as Lord and Lady Carlisle appeared in the frame. “I’ll give you a moment with your parents.”
Kate nodded respectfully to Sophie’s mother and father and slipped past them and out into the corridor.
“Congratulations, Sophie,” her father exclaimed, crossing over to her and giving her a quick hug. He wasn’t much for physical affection. “Blackwell is a good man. You chose well. Of course, we’d have preferred if you didn’t elope, but….”
Lady Carlisle swatted his arm. “We’re pleased you found someone who makes you happy, even if you went about the entire thing quite unconventionally.” Her lips twisted in bemusement. “Honestly, I should have expected something like this from you. You always did things a little differently. Not at all like Violet, who I never expected to run off with a man.”
“At least I didn’t jilt a duke,” Sophie pointed out.
“Touché, my dear.” Lady Carlisle smirked. “And I suppose I don’t need to give you the talk about the marital act, since you’re already married.”
Sophie’s cheeks burned, and she wished she could erase the phrase “marital act” from her mental vocabulary. “Quite. Rest assured, we are well-versed in that area.”
Her father groaned. “Don’t say that where the people who raised you can hear. Good Lord, what did I do to deserve three daughters?”
“You love us,” Sophie said, though she did know her father would have liked an heir as well.
“Well, of course. You’re my girls. Speaking of which, your mother and I have a gift for you.”
Her curiosity was piqued. “Oh?”
He withdrew a box from his jacket pocket and offered it to her. She took it, noting the emblem of a popular London jeweler on the top. Carefully, she opened it and removed a thin layer of fabric.
