Then he stepped back and rose to his full height. He was adjusting his cufflink as if nothing had happened while Arabella stood in the middle of an emotional wasteland.
“Miss Arabella,” the Duke didn’t even bother to hide the sarcasm. “I would love to see you try.”
He turned his back and left the room unceremoniously. The door clicked shut, leaving Arabella alone with a terrible realization. She was in real, serious trouble.
CHAPTER 4
Cuddly Nights
That night, the dinner was the most awkward one in the Marriott family’s history, and if Arabella cared to look for such reports, she was sure she would find evidence that this dinner was the most awkward in all the Lambourne lineage.
Her father, her sister, and she were simply constantly rearranging the contents of their plate either in deliberate or random order. Peas transmigrated, potatoes joined them, and the meat was dissected far too many times.
So much so that the cook, who had been with their family way before even Bridget was born and had never been faced with any kind of complaint, came out to the dining room to ask if there was something wrong with the food that she had cooked.
Since it would be kind of difficult to explain the reason that the whole family had lost its appetite, they merely dismissed her and did their best to consume at least a conservative amount to keep the cooks‘ feelings from being hurt. The reality was that the appetite of the family was devoured by the Duke of Albury.
Arabella thought that prolonging the silence made the overthinking all that much worse, so she decided to speak.
“I am going to Gunther’s tomorrow with the Duke.”
If lightning were to pierce through the ceiling to heat the very center of the table, it would have caused less of a shock. Her father’s fork, which had finally picked a piece of meat, stilled mid-air, while Bridget’s was dropped on her plate.
“You are going where and with whom?” Her father said, placing all his bets on disbelief.
“I…” Arabella decided this was a good time to lie a little, “The Duke and I thought it would be prudent to get to know each other before the wedding. So, we are meeting at Gunther’s.”
Prudent, Arabella thought that the word sounded respectable. Oswald looked at his daughter with a combination of admiration and concern. Arabella was, of course, going to marry Duke, an upgrade that none of the other Lambournes had managed to achieve. But said Duke was dubbed the Cruel Duke, and all three of them had gotten a good taste this morning on how he came upon such a flattering epithet.
Oswald was many things and lacked in more, but he truly loved both her and Bridget. He had agreed to the marriage for a reason that still remained locked in his study, but that didn‘t mean he was not concerned for the safety of his youngest daughter.
“Arabella, I must warn you. While you’re out with the Duke, you need to behave yourself according to our status. I do not have to tell you anything more; your manners are always impeccable.”
Oswald looked at both his children, and his face relaxed, and his eyes misted. Arabella knew that their father was reminiscing about his girls growing up since he practically had to raise them himself after their mother’s death. He was seeing two small girls who once fit between his shoulders when he lifted them both at once.
“Do not worry, Father,” Arabella felt the need to reassure him. “The tea house is a safe space. Plus, you know I love ice cream, and we really need to get to know each other.”
Her father smiled at her reassuringly, and she returned her most relaxed, easy smile. Underneath, though, a battle was waging. Sure. Her sister and her father had concerns about the appearance of the Cruel Duke in their house. She was on the same book of their concerns but on a completely different chapter.
Absentmindedly, her fingers travelled to the spot he had kissed. Her body was still, as if burning there, the memory of his lips grazing against the skin as if imprinted into her being. The soft hardness of it all, the intensity, the hot breath against her.And most importantly, how that kiss had made her body feel. The way her body reacted was… awakening. Almost like a door unlocking. She hasn’t opened the door yet, but she is well aware that it is now unlocked.
The exact opposite was happening to her father, who felt suddenly that a weight had been lifted off him. He started eating a bit more, and he smiled as he turned to Bridget.
“You see, Bridget?” Oswald said. “Even the great Cruel Duke can be tamed with the right attitude.”
Tamed?Arabella thought that this was a very strong word, and it certainly didn’t apply to the Duke of Albury, but she wasn’t ready to share that with her father since it might lead to questions about closed doors of drawing rooms.
“If you were to be more pleasant, Bridget,” Oswald said.
His tone was that of fatherly love, genuinely worried about his eldest daughter. But his words were not helpful, only burdening her sister more to change something that was not easily changed, if ever.
“If you just smiled more, spoke a little to others. You read so many books, I am sure you have so many interesting things to say,” her father continued. “Just being in the background like you do is not a good strategy. You are a pretty girl too, if you just as much as smiled, then you would see that suitors would flock to you.”
“I will try, Father,” Bridget finally spoke, for the first time since dinner started.
“You say that all the time, but you never really try. Time passes, Bridget, and unless you want to end up an unhappy spinster…”
“Pardon me,” Arabella felt the need to intervene, “but Lady Truggleton is a spinster, and I have yet to see a happier person. The other day, she was playing whist at the charity event, and she made the whole table shake with her jokes.”
