“If not a trap, then what is it?” she asked, folding her arms as a shield against his indifference.
He met her gaze. “When James arranged my marriage to Margaret all those years ago, I was stifled. I tried so hard to develop feelings for her. Any passion of any kind. But it was a failure. For both of us.”
Adelaide thought of Meg. She’d said something similar, and none of it made sense to Adelaide. “How could she kiss you and feel nothing?” she mused, almost more to herself than to him.
He jerked his head up and met her gaze. “I never kissed her.”
Adelaide stared at him, a mixture of disbelief and pure pleasure boiling in her chest. “No?”
He shook his head. “I never…wantedto. I couldn’t picture that future, even in the slightest. So that marriage would have been a horrible trap for both of us. But with you, it is different.”
“How so?” she squeaked out, for suddenly his words seemed far less unromantic.
He reached for her hand. “I want you, Adelaide. In a powerful way that I never understood before I kissed you.”
She stiffened. “You want Lydia,” she corrected.
“No,” he said, his jaw tightening. “I’m not talking about Lydia. I told you last night, it’syou. When I saw Lydia return as we went into the theatre earlier today, I wasn’t happy to see her.”
“But you told me you were torn between Lydia and me,” she whispered. “That was what brought you such trouble, wasn’t it?”
He nodded. “But now I know why you created Lydia: to hide. She was a shield against trouble, a barrier between yourself and unhappiness. She was a corner you were forced into. And yes, I cared for her. But what I’ve come to realize is that everything wonderful about her are all the things that are best aboutyou. The real you. Not the spinster wallflower, not the bold actress.You. I didn’t tell Lydia Ford my secrets. I toldyou. And you are who I want. My Adelaide. The woman who knows me and whose secrets I will protect with my life. The woman who would do the same for me.Thatis who I want. So we will marry, Adelaide.”
This was no declaration of love, certainly. And she still ached for that because her own love for this man was so strong and so powerful. But what he offered was still magical. A future with him. And she could see it stretching out in front of her, happy, if she could make it so. If she could accept what he could give and what he couldn’t.
In that moment, she hoped she could.
“Are you asking me or are you telling me?” she said with a half-smile for him.
He grinned in response, and that rare and bright expression lit up the whole carriage. “Asking,” he said. “Though I’ll tell you I won’t take no for an answer.”
She bent her head. She would have safety. She would have passion, at least until he bored of her. She would have stability because he would ensure it.
And she found herself nodding. “Yes. I will marry you, Graham.”
He crossed the carriage in one smooth motion and his mouth was on hers, hard and heavy and filled with passion. She lifted into him, her arms around his neck, her body molded to his as she accepted this offer with everything she was.
He pulled away as the carriage slowed and turned into James and Emma’s drive. “I have much to prepare for Melinda and Toby,” he said. “And a few things to ready for us, as well. But I’ll come back here for supper.”
She nodded as the footman opened the door. “I look forward to it.”
He kissed her hand and then allowed her to exit. She turned to watch him go, torn between joy and disappointment. Her whole life she had never expected a love match. And now she had it, at least on her side, and it wasn’t enough.
She entered the foyer and was greeted by Grimble. “Is the duchess available?” Adelaide asked as he took her gloves.
“The duke and duchess have taken an afternoon rest,” Grimble explained. “The duke was very clear that Her Grace was not to be disturbed until supper.”
Adelaide smiled. “After this morning’s upset, that is likely best for her and the child.”
She looked around. This house was a good home for Emma, but it wasn’t Adelaide’s home. She thought of her aunt, so devastated by Adelaide’s choices. She was the only guardian Adelaide had known since the death of her parents. The only person who had taken care of her. And shehadtaken care of Adelaide. She remembered moments of tenderness between them though they were long ago, when she was still a child.
It was only as she grew older that Opal’s anger increased. That her anxiety and accusations were born. But perhaps an engagement to a powerful duke would assuage her. Perhaps there was still some way to maintain a relationship of some kind with the only family she’d ever known.
“Is there something I can do for you, my lady?” Grimble asked.
Adelaide blinked, realizing she had been standing in the foyer beside the poor man, drifting off into fantasy. “I’m sorry, Grimble, I was woolgathering. But do you think you might arrange for a carriage to be brought round for me?”
Grimble nodded. “Of course, Lady Adelaide. What direction should I give to the driver?”
