Page 11 of A Marriage of Necessity

Chapter Three

Anne half wished she’d insisted upon meeting her future husband at the church rather than agree to wait at Lady Peddington’s for his carriage. Whether he picked up her and her family from Lady Peddington’s and rode with them to the church, or met them at the church, there was no turning back.

Her sister fidgeted beside her on the couch in the parlor, and her mother sat in the chair to their right, gripping a handkerchief, as they awaited the viscount’s carriage.

“You look so terribly pale,” Anne’s sister said.

Anne gave Louisa a smile. “Nerves, nothing more. Once the ceremony is over and we’re all settled into our new life, things will be just fine.”

“I know it makes no difference, but I still want to say once more that I wish you hadn’t done this,” Louisa said. “We would have found another way. That nice Mr. Allen has been courting Mama. A marriage proposal is sure to come any day.”

“Mr. Allen is a nice man,” their mother said, “but he has no money to speak of.”

“Between us three and him, we could have found a way,” Louisa insisted.

Anne smiled. The determination and hope of youth. Only a year ago, she had been full of that same optimism.

“I’ve made a good match,” Anne said. “He’s the heir to an earldom—a very wealthy earldom. We need never again worry about money.”

“Only if he gives ye enough money to help us keep Dover Hall running,” Louisa said. “Not to mention, Castle Dòmnallach.”

“Two years from now, the estates will be self-sufficient,” Anne said. She would see to that. “You and Mama need never worry about having a home. You will have time to make a good match, Louisa, and Mama can marry whomever she likes, whether or not he has the skills necessary to run the estates. We shall stay in control of our property.”

“Dover Hall will go to your son,” Louisa said.

“Only upon my death,” Anne said. But Castle Dòmnallach will remain yours.”

At the thump of boot falls in the corridor, Anne snapped her attention toward the parlor door. Her heart began to pound.

Steady, she told herself. Mama and Louisa are here. You do not want them to see you frightened.

The boot falls came closer. Her mother’s and sister’s attentions were also fixed on the open door. Closer. He would be here any second.

Anne tore her gaze from the doorway, reached for Louisa’s hand and squeezed gently. Louisa’s head snapped in her direction.

“Remember,” Anne whispered, “this man will be your new brother. We must not make him uncomfortable.”

Louisa nodded, but worry furrowed her brow. From the corner of her eye, Anne glimpsed movement in the doorway.

“Viscount Buchanan is here to see you, my lady,” the butler announced.

Louisa’s eyes widened. Their mother started to rise. Anne, still holding her sister’s hand, pushed to her feet, pulling her sister up with her, and faced her future husband.

The butler stepped aside and Anne stared. In all her wildest dreams, she wouldn’t have guessed that the man she was betrothed to was— “You,” she whispered.

“Bloody hell,” he muttered.

Their mother dropped into a courtesy. Louisa curtsied, pulling Anne down into a curtsy with her.

Anne straightened and extended her hand toward him. “It is a pleasure to meet you at last, my Lord.”

Something flickered in his eyes. She realized she’d miscalculated, but didn’t know how. He approached, grasped her hand with long fingers, and brushed his lips against her knuckles.

“I cannot tell ye how pleased I am to meet you, my lady.”

He still gripped her hand. She tugged harder than she should’ve had to in order to free herself. She turned slightly. “May I present my sister, Lady Louisa, and my mother, the dowager viscountess.”

The viscount bowed over both their hands, then said, “It is a pleasure to meet you.”