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The Duke of Sin, to be exact. The Defiler of Innocents. The man who purportedly seduced half of London.

A man who left a trail of broken hearts in his wake.

But she would not be one of them.

Just as she told Alice and their friends, she had married him to spare her parents the humiliation of her actions, but she would never give him her heart.

It was the last of her freedoms. The one thing that was hers and no one else’s. She would protect it with every breath she had left in her.

When she spoke her vows before the vicar, she made another one to herself.

The Duke of Sin would never be able to break her or her heart.

CHAPTER 10

Being a duchess is far more excruciating than I ever gave Alice and Evie credit for.

It had not been two hours since the ceremony and Phoebe was already eager to retreat to the peace and quiet of her rooms.

However, there were guests that needed tending to, and congratulations that she must receive. The endless stream of good wishes and not-so-subtle hints about her wedding night nearly had her in tears.

Now that she was married, they seemed to be all too eager to offer her unsolicited advice on… private matters.

There will be no wedding or bedding night, she told herself firmly as Lady Penrose tittered endlessly at her side.Absolutely not.

“You are so fortunate, my dear. So very fortunate.” The buxom Countess grinned at her. “With a husband like that”—she nodded in Ethan’s direction—“why, I would be loath to rise from my bed for a good week at least.”

Goodness gracious.

“—not to mention his stamina!”

The bevy of married women burst into knowing giggles, while Phoebe could only duck her head and feign embarrassment at their innuendoes. They could very well have been discussing horses from all this talk of riding and stamina.

“Ladies, please. There is no need to embarrass my darling wife with such mischief.”

The tittering immediately died down, and Phoebe looked up to find Ethan casually walking towards them, wearing his usual cheerful smile. She felt his arm snake around her waist, drawing her closer to his side.

“Can you not see how uncomfortable the Duchess is?” he pleaded with a coaxing tone. “Do spare her today, at least.”

“Oh, you!” Lady Weatherby huffed, but she was smiling widely at him.

Much too widely for Phoebe’s taste.

“Well, we can see that we have overstayed our welcome…”

Phoebe viciously suppressed the urge to roll her eyes.

Lady Haversham, it is almost time for luncheon. It is well past the ‘breakfast’ of wedding breakfasts already.

“Nonsense!” Ethan scoffed. “I am simply eager to be with my beautiful bride and must retire now. You must forgive my ill manners as your host.”

The ladies all nodded knowingly and, with a little more bustle and small talk, managed to effectively shepherd themselves en masse through the door as Phoebe politely waved them goodbye.

“I suppose that means we should be off as well.” Evie laughed as she reached out to Phoebe for a brief hug. “Ethan seems especially eager to be rid of us now.”

“We do thank you for attending, butmy Duchessand I should like to retire now,” Ethan declared.

“Andmy Dukewould do well not to speak on my behalf in the future,” Phoebe muttered under her breath, shooting him a reproachful look.