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Jenny took a few breaths to steady her breathing and calm her racing heart. He’d already talked to Thomas. A nervous laugh bubbled up her throat and escaped her lips.

To think she was concerned about him professing his love in front of strangers. This wasn’t a love match, she needed to remind herself.

She felt a small tug on her hand and looked down into Elizabeth’s eyes. Blue eyes, not green. They’ll never be green.

She raised her eyes and found Harry waiting for an answer. With a swallow, she squared her shoulders and lifted her head.

Go on, Jenny. This is what you wanted.

“I agree. Let’s make it official.”

Harry whooped and pulled her in his arms, once again surprising her with his behavior.

He quickly remembered where they were and backed away, looking embarrassed. “Please forgive my outburst, I am very glad to hear you accept. Let’s go back to your home and tell your brother the good news.”

Jenny’s heart sank. If anything, his show of emotion softened her towards him. But just as quickly as his more emotional side showed, he locked it back up behind a wall of propriety and decorum.

Harry took Elizabeth’s other hand, and together they walked back to Jenny’s house.

With each step, Jenny walked towards a new life. One that didn’t hold grand gestures or sweeping emotions, but one that was solidified by saying, “I agree.”

CHAPTER 16

“Ican’t believe the library is finally done. I was beginning to think the renovations would never end,” Nora said from the settee in front of the window overlooking the small back garden.

“If my husband had any more say in the matter, that would have been a possibility.” Frances stood next to the fireplace, rocking a now-sleeping Simon in her arms.

Jenny sat in a chair opposite the empty fireplace, watching Frances whisper sweet nothings to her child. Her mood seemed to sink further with each sway of her sister-in-law’s skirts.

She could have children with Harry. It could be her one day rocking her own child in her husband’s house. The thought should fill her with joy. Instead, she rubbed her chest where an unrelenting ache had settled in and refused to leave.

She sank back into her chair and tried to refocus on the tea she was having with her sister-in-law and Nora.

“Frannie, Simon is just adorable. But I must ask, how is your husband dealing with fatherhood?” Nora asked as she reached for another biscuit.

Frances handed the sleeping baby over to her maid. “He’s doing as well as you’d expect. He’s madly in love with Simon but is still learning that his life is now controlled by a tiny tyrant who can’t speak,” she said with a laugh.

“It’s true,” Jenny chimed in. “Just the other day, he was about to have a meeting with Frannie’s father when Simon started to cry. He was so confused. ‘Doesn’t he know I have a meeting?’ he barked. As if poor Simon could plan his cries around his father’s schedule.”

The women burst into fits of giggles.

“Yes, he’s still learning the ins and outs of fatherhood. But…” Frances leaned in and whispered, “Don’t tell anyone I said this, but he is a big softy when it comes to his son. I’ve found him singing Simon to sleep a few times.” She brought a hand to her heart. “It stole my breath.”

The love in Frances’s eyes was apparent to anyone who looked at her, and while she’d never begrudge her sister-in-law any amount of happiness, just looking at her made Jenny feel ill.

Her wedding to Harry was just a few days away. The closer the day came, the more she thought of David. No matter how many times she and Frances, along with Nora, met with the modiste or talked about flowers and banquet food, her mind would drift back to the one man who had rejected her.

Nora and Frances continued to talk about motherhood while Jenny’s mind wandered back to the unattainable Duke.

She recounted their nights together so many times that it felt like they happened recently and not a month ago. She was told heartache got better with time, but in her experience, the wound just grew and festered.

As her wedding day neared, she didn’t feel relief that her dreams were coming true. Instead, she felt increasing anxiety and the need to run.

“I’m so glad the Duke found someone, but did they really need to elope to Gretna Green?” Nora’s voice broke through Jenny’s reverie.

“The Duke? What duke?” Jenny snapped. Her heart started to pound as the sound of rushing water echoed in her ears.

They couldn’t be talking about David, could they?