Page 11 of Stolen and Seduced By the Duke

Pierce did not even look at him. He looked only at Margaret.

Then, in a voice that left no room for doubt, he said, "Lady Margaret Wilmore belongs to me."

CHAPTER 4

Pierce stood in the church and watched the confusion spread. He had interrupted the ceremony before a single vow had been exchanged, precisely as he had intended, and he felt no guilt whatsoever.

His sole concern was Hugh.

My child needs a mother, and I need a woman who would accept an arrangement without demanding love, tenderness, or any of the other sentimental nonsense I had spent most of my life avoiding.

As fate would have it, he knew exactly where and when to find such a woman, and she was presently standing at an altar beside a man she desperately wished to escape.

"What is the meaning of this?" Geoffrey demanded, stepping towards Pierce with a furious expression. "This is a private wedding, and you have no right to interrupt it."

Pierce regarded him calmly before reaching inside his coat and producing a folded document. "I am the Duke of Ravenfield, and I believe you will find that I have every right," he replied, handing the paper to the vicar.

The vicar accepted it with visible uncertainty and carefully examined the special licence, reading every line before lifting his eyes towards Pierce with an expression of growing astonishment.

Geoffrey's face darkened. "Whatever that document says, it cannot invalidate my contract with the Wilmore family."

Pierce turned his attention towards him, his expression remaining cold. "The contract does not give you the right to marry a woman who does not consent," he said evenly. "Nor does it give you ownership of Lady Margaret."

Geoffrey opened his mouth to respond, but Margaret spoke first, finding courage in the interruption that had suddenly given her a moment she had desperately needed.

"I do not consent," she declared, stepping forward. Her voice trembled slightly, but she did not retreat. "The contract was signed before I was born. I never agreed to it, and I want no part in it."

Bernard's expression tightened with relief, while Iris and Camelia exchanged startled glances.

Geoffrey stared at Margaret as though she had committed some unforgivable betrayal.

"You are bound by the agreement," Geoffrey snapped.

"I am not," Margaret replied, lifting her chin. "And I shall not pretend otherwise merely because you say so."

Pierce watched her with a flicker of admiration. She was frightened, but she was fighting, and that mattered. He had expected resistance from Harrowby, but Margaret's courage was the more interesting discovery.

He stepped forward and placed himself beside her. "Fortunately," he said calmly, "there is another agreement."

Margaret turned towards him.

Pierce looked directly at the vicar. "Lady Margaret is promised to me instead."

Bernard made a strangled sound, Iris whispered something sharply to Camelia, Blais looked as though he had forgotten how to blink, and Raph actually stood from his seat.

Margaret stared at Pierce in complete disbelief, while Geoffrey's face became so red that Pierce briefly wondered whether the man might actually explode.

"You cannot simply announce that!" Geoffrey shouted.

Pierce glanced at him. "It appears I can."

"This is madness!"

"Quite possibly."

The vicar raised both hands in an attempt to restore order. "Gentlemen, please." He looked from Geoffrey to Pierce, then towards Margaret, whose expression suggested she had no idea whether to laugh or scream.

"I cannot proceed with this ceremony while the bride's right to marry remains in dispute. Until the matter is settled, there will be no wedding today."