“Is that why people say the castle is haunted?” I asked, just above a whisper.
“Yes.”
“And because the first duchess roams the moors at night, crying out for vengeance?”
He gave me a look. “I’ve never heard her.”
“Because you’re not one of the duchesses. Only the duchesses hear her wailing. Did your mother ever hear her?”
The duke was silent as he stared at me.
My eyes opened wide. “She did?”
“I do not speak of my mother.” His jaw clenched again.
We circled the room, and I gathered my courage to ask him another question. “Did you see the newspapers today?”
“I did.”
“And does it bother you that I’m not Mrs. Hill’s niece?”
“You are her heir, correct?”
“Yes.”
“That’s all that matters.”
His words pierced my heart this time. All he cared about was the money. Of course.
But before the dance ended, I decided to ask the last burning question on my mind. “What makes you think your story will be any different from the previous dukes’?”
As the music ended and we came to a stop, he stared down at me. “I’ve accepted my fate. I am the 5th Duke of Severton, chosen by God to bear the title and all that comes with it.”
“And what of my fate?”
“That is in your own hands.”
A shiver ran up my spine as he gave me a bow and turned away.
Alec approached as I stared at the back of the duke.
Wasmy fate in my own hands?
21
The two days following Lady Randolph Churchill’s ball were chaotic at 7 Buckingham Gate. Aunt Maude insisted that she and I oversee every detail of the dinner, and she had changed her mind several times, which always meant more work for everyone.
Lady Mandeville had sent word the morning after the Churchills’ ball that the prince still intended to dine with us, and word of that had quickly spread throughout town. We had not received any notes of regret from the others who had previously responded that they were coming, and Aunt Maude was confident that all would continue as we hoped.
I wasn’t so sure. I couldn’t shake the unsettled feeling in my stomach about the duke.
And worse, no matter how much I tried not to think about Alec, he was always on my mind. He was the first thought I had each morning and the last thought I had before I fell asleep. I searched for him whenever I entered a room and was disappointed if he wasn’t there.
Even when I slept, my dreams had been full of him.
What would I do when he left?
I’d accepted that it would be better to just get married to the duke and be done with it. The sooner it was over, the sooner I could put Alec behind me and face the inevitable future at Pickering Castle, ghosts and all.
