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“Rushed.”

“Strange,” he corrected. “But my intentions are pure. I am not trying to trick you, if that is what you think. Which, based on your reaction, I think it is.”

Diana still had no idea what to think. Her first inclination was to say no. After years of courtship, of meeting dozens of men, of turning them all away, it felt presumptuous of the duke to turn up like this and just expect her to say yes. That stubborn nature of hers almost wanted to say no on principal alone.

Yet in the back of her mind, she could not escape the feeling that this offer... that she would be a fool to turn it down. At this moment, her mother was speaking to Lord Herrod, a conversation which she did not need to guess at its purpose. The man was insatiable! A real pest. And he would not take a simple no for an answer.

“I see that you still need some convincing,” the duke sighed. “I will be honest with you, Miss Goldsmith, for I feel that you deserve it. You may not know this about me, but I have only recently inherited my title upon the death of my brother. Until most recently, in fact, I had no desire to marry whatsoever.”

“So, I am what? A trophy, because as a duke you simply must have a bride?”

He laughed. “Far from it. When my brother died, he left behind his two children. Girls of eight and ten. They are wonderful little creatures, and I love them dearly, but they need more than a father to raise them. They need a mother-figure.

“A mother?” she squawked.

“Not a mother,” he corrected. “A mother figure. I am their uncle, and the only family they have left in the world. But girls require a woman in their life to guide them in the ways that are expected. Ways I cannot possibly provide. If it was up to me, I would go about this process properly – spending the Season meeting with eligible young women, creating connections. But time is not something that I have and if I wish for them to be raised properly, as they deserve, then I must put my own needs aside and think about them.”

“You...” She blinked. “You wish for me to help raise your nieces? Why not hire a governess?”

“I do not want a governess. These girls need a family.” He sighed. “What I am suggesting is a marriage of convenience, nothing more. You will come to live with me. You will be both a wife to me and an aunt to the girls. Apart from that, I will not expect anything from you that you do not wish to give. Your life will be your own. Miss Goldsmith...” He took her hand suddenly and Diana felt a pulse radiate up her arm from his touch. “I do not ask this lightly. This was not an impulse. I truly do think you would be well suited to the role. All I ask is that you consider it.”

She was beginning to feel hot. Flustered. Was that the pressure of the situation she had been put in? Or was it the way that the duke was looking at her? Diana wasn’t sure.

A marriage of convenience. She had heard of such things, of course. Times were, she might have wanted one. As much as she wished to fall in love with the man whom she wed, Diana was beginning to understand how futile that dream was. How unlikely.

“What is that look?” he asked her, noting the way she was staring.

Her eyes turned wide. “Look? There is no look.”

He chuckled. “You are not thinking of attacking me again, are you?”

“As I said, that was an accident,” she snapped, glaring at him now. He matched her glare with a smirk, held it, refused to blink and that tension she had been feeling from earlier began to grow.

Oh, he annoyed her. So much that it almost seemed on purpose. And where she should have hated how much he did, for reasons that she did not understand, she enjoyed it. Dammit, she almost coveted it.

But marriage? Surely, such a thing could not work. Even if the thought of being married to the duke, all of a sudden, wasn’t the worst idea she had ever heard…

And then, as if to emphasize the point, her mother returned from dealing with the messenger sent by the marquess. Seeing her sweep into the room, the hardened look on her face, reminded Diana who she was dealing with – her mother, was her meaning. How insistent she had been. How persistent. The very real fact that if she did not choose a mate soon her mother would choose one for her. And that could only mean one thing.

“Yes,” Diana said quickly, before she could stop herself.

“Excuse me?” the duke asked.

“Yes,” she said, forcing herself to look up at him. Even forcing a smile. “To your offer. My answer...” She glanced at her mother who was frowning at the two holding hands. “My answer is yes.”

ChapterFour

“Istill cannot believe it,” Evelyn said for what had to be the hundredth time in the last five days. “You. Engaged. To a duke! It defies belief.”

“I am glad you find the fact that I have found a husband so unbelievable. How comforting.”

“Oh, I do not mean it like that, Diana. And you know it.” Evelyn held tightly into Diana’s arm as the two ladies walked together. “I am simply surprised, is all.”

“Yes, you have said that.”

“Not to be taken negatively,” she hurried to explain. “It is just... well, it is all rather sudden! Surely, you can see that.”

“It has been five days, Evelyn,” Diana said rightly. “At what point will it begin to feel less sudden?”