“I feel as if I will sacrifice my ideals if I become a duchess,” Hannah ground out as she started to rub her fingers together again. “Oh, why did Eoin have to be a bloody duke?”
“But think of the good you could do as a duchess!” Sophia grabbed Hannah’s twisting hands. “Eoin is clearly inclined to champion reforms. You’ve already told your parents and me how he plans to help his tenants. What if you were his North Star, helping to guide him on that path? Imagine what such aduchess would have meant to our grandparents and fathers? Their lives would have taken an entirely different trajectory. And Eoin will sit in the House of Lords with your cousin. He and Alexander have the opportunity to accomplish more if they work together, especially if you are there helping Eoin to devise laws that will benefit folks like our customers!”
“I… I never thought of it that way,” Hannah said as a kind of peace started to flow through her.
“Do you love Eoin?” Sophia asked her.
“Yes,” Hannah said without a moment’s hesitation. “We… we just fit together. I am not sure if I can explain it more than that. When we argued, I felt a loss, even though I could still feel that connection.”
“That is how it is with Matthew and me,” Charlotte told her.
“Do you picture yourself married to him? In a partnership with him?” Sophia continued to press.
“If he wasn’t a duke, then I most certainly can. I can see him coming to the Black Sheep and us finding a small place of our own nearby. We would sup together and tell each other about our days,” Hannah said, finally admitting to the daydreams that she’d worked so hard not to envision.
“Try envisioning living on one of his estates,” Charlotte prompted.
“I suppose I imagine us going over his ledgers. I really enjoyed when we reviewed accounts together, and he was exceedingly happy with my assistance,” Hannah said. “I know nothing of agriculture, but I wouldn’t mind learning if he would let me implement my ideas.”
“I will not lie to you.” Sophia held her gaze, her golden brown eyes somber. “Your life will change. Even if you work at the Black Sheep when you are in London, there are many times when you will need to travel to Eoin’s holdings. But that doesnot mean that you will not embrace your new circumstances. You, my cousin, will shine wherever you go.”
Guilt stabbed Hannah. “But that means leaving you alone to run the coffeehouse.”
Sophia grinned. “I’m perfectly capable of operating it myself. But do not forget that I have Charlotte’s help now.”
“I’m happy to take over the accounts and your hostess duties,” Charlotte said. “It is time that we officially announce my part ownership.”
“You would both do that for me?” Hannah asked as a happy warmth filled her. She was blessed with her family.
“And for the Black Sheep.” Sophia gave Hannah a gentle nudge.
“And for myself,” Charlotte added. “I don’t want to remain in the shadows. I am a noble who chooses to operate a business.”
And Hannah could be too. After all, so had her mother. It would not be easy entering the rarefied world of the aristocracy, but Eoin was worth it.
Just then a knock sounded on the door. Excitement and joy fluttered through Hannah.
“I think it is time for Charlotte and me to retire to our quarters upstairs.” Sophia immediately started to leave the room, but she did pause long enough to address the parrot. “Come along now, Pan. Hannah doesn’t need a feathered chaperone.”
“Beast with two backs! Beast with two backs!” The bird screeched out the words, but remarkably, he complied. As soon as Pan landed on Sophia’s shoulder, Hannah swore that the little imp sent her a wink.
But she had no time to consider the antics of a parrot. She needed to prepare herself for when she opened the door.
As she strode across the familiar, creaky floorboards, anticipation crackled through her, prickling her flesh. She wishedshe could steady her heart or, at the very least, her breathing. But both were terribly erratic.
What if Eoin had come to say good-bye? Had it been presumptuous of her to think that he’d make her—a proprietress of a coffeehouse—his duchess? Yet he had already proposed to her. But then she’d gone and nearly smashed his heart apart. And he’d had time to reconsider his unorthodox decision.
Oh, she was an utter mess.
Before her trepidation could overtake her, she flipped the latch and yanked back the door. Eoin stood before her—his face alive with emotion. His stoicism had utterly vanished, and Hannah had no trouble reading his anxiousness. After all, it mirrored her own.
But Eoin’s nervousness wasn’t what held Hannah in thrall. It was the softness in his blue-green eyes. It was not the visage of a fellow about to cast a sweetheart aside. It was exactly how Eoin looked before a kiss.
Relief flooded Hannah, along with utter joy. Eoin wasn’t here for an ending, but for a new beginning—a beginning that Hannah absolutely wanted to embark upon.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
It hadn’t taken Eoin very long to conclude that he needed Hannah Wick in his life—preferably on a permanent basis. All it had taken was walking into his London townhome and realizing that she wasn’t coming back. She’d brought so much light into the grim, overbearing mansion.
