Page 74 of Wedded to the Scottish Duke

“They’ve read it, haven’t they?” she asked the butler, watching as he trembled, lifting a hand to his mouth and half covering his pale cheeks.

Hurriedly, he nodded.

Celia marched away. She could hear voices coming from the drawing room and rushed toward them.

Violet was sitting down, her shoulders slumped as she stared at the ceiling. In her hands was a crumpled scandal sheet. Behind her, their mother was pacing up and down, muttering to herself.

“Celia?” Violet declared in surprise. She straightened up and stuffed the sheet under her legs, trying to hide it.

“It’s a bit late now, isn’t it?” Celia said, gesturing to her sister. “I have been on a promenade where everyone was only too delighted to point, stare, and enlighten me as to what sort of woman I now am—disgraced.”

Her eyes flicked to her mother. Marianne couldn’t even look her in the eye.

“Have you nothing to say, Mother?” Celia asked, her stomach twisting into tight knots.

Marianne stopped her pacing but still didn’t look at her.

“I shouldn’t be surprised, should I?” Marianne managed to stammer out. “It’s you. It’s more of a wonder that this hasn’t happened before now.”

“Ma!” Violet snapped, leaping to her feet.

“She’s wild enough,” Marianne said, her breath coming in short gasps. “I suppose it’s a relief it has taken so long for her reputation to be so completely destroyed. And that man… he won’t marry her.” She pointed a finger at the door. “What possible reason could he have to marry her?”

“Man? What man?” Celia looked around, half expecting to see someone standing in the doorway.

“The Duke of Hardbridge is here,” Violet explained in a rush.

Celia didn’t bother to talk anymore. All her fears about her mother’s reaction vanished as her mind was consumed by a new thought.

He’s here? Why has he come?

She walked out of the room fast. She didn’t need to ask where he was in the house. If he was here for the reason she surmised, then he would no doubt be deep in conversation with her father, and that meant they’d be in his study.

“Celia? Celia!” Marianne called after her, though she gave no sign of having heard her mother. “Haven’t you disgraced yourself enough without walking in on a private conversation in your father’s study?”

“According to your own words, it would not be possible to fall much lower,” Celia tossed back over her shoulder.

As she reached the door, she pushed it open.

Inside was a sight she had not been expecting. Perhaps she thought she would find her father behind his desk and the Duke of Hardbridge sitting on the other side.

Instead, they were sitting on the same side, with the Duke leaning toward her father. Jonathan was sipping from a brandy glass as the Duke sat back down slowly, his eyes flicking to Celia.

Something inside of her jolted as their eyes met.

It was maddening to her, that even after a scandal about the pair of them had broken, she was still attracted to him. Shouldn’t shedetest the very sight of him? Shouldn’t she hate everything she had ever done with him?

Yet, she could not.

As she stared at him, she thought instead of the strong arms beneath his shirt. She thought of how they had explored one another in that dressing room, of the way he had moaned, practically growling out her name in the most animalistic and thrilling way.

Any other time, she might have longed to hear that sound again.

“What are you doing here?” She managed to voice her thoughts, at last.

“What do ye think, lass?”

To hear him call her that now only hurt. She stepped into the room and closed the door sharply.