Page 15 of A Bride for the Devilish Duke (Marriage by Midnight #2)
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
D amien strode through the front door, removing his top hat and coat, and holding them out for a servant to take.
“Eastwick! Are you about?” he called irritably.
The head of his family of house guests appeared from the direction of the billiard room.
“Your Grace, I trust your business with your solicitor went well?”
“It did. But I received word from a disgruntled Madame Rousseau that she has not been able to measure Lady Emma for the gowns I have commissioned,” Damien said, impatiently, “that every time she makes an appointment to come here and measure, Emma is out. It was three days ago that she should have been measured along with her sisters. Where is she presently?”
“I thought she was here. I have not seen her leave the house.” Duncan turned to the stairwell, “Elsie! Elsie !”
Presently, Emma’s maid appeared. She curtsied to both men as she descended.
“Yes, my lords?”
“Have Emma come down, will you?” Duncan said.
“She has gone out, your lordship,” Elsie replied.
“What do you mean she has gone out?” Damien demanded.
“She went out for a walk, Your Grace,” Elsie added meekly.
She kept her head down but peeked up at the Duke and the Earl of Eastwick with surreptitious but angry glances.
“Eastwick, I have the services of Madame Rousseau one day longer and have arranged that she works on nothing but Emma’s dresses so that at least her wedding gown is ready come the following week. She is very much in demand and already tells me there will only be time to make it for the nuptials if she begins today. I don't need to tell you how important these preparations are.”
“I had no idea, Your Grace. I was busy with business matters relating to extricating my family from our old house, Sedgewick, as I suppose I must call it now.”
Damien paced the room.
“This marriage is for the sole purpose of restoring my reputation, Eastwick. I have been very candid with you and with your daughter on that score. It becomes an exercise in futility if your family is as chaotic as it seems to be, however,” he seethed.
“I shall have you know, Your Grace, that my family are not given to chaos,” Duncan replied testily. “Emma, furthermore, is a most responsible girl who has always put the needs of her family before her own. It is not like her to flit about like this.”
Damien glared out of the tall windows of the library, to which Elsie had been summoned for any information on where her mistress might have gone.
“I am sure that she will return in an hour or so. Perhaps we should discuss the matters we had planned to engage in while we wait?” Duncan suggested.
“Not right now,” Damien waved dismissively—a ball of tense nerves. “If I do not get Emma to Madame Rousseau today, there shall not be another opportunity. The date of the wedding has been announced and the Regent will expect to see both Emma and myself at our best to give his blessing. Time is short.”
Why would she do this? To sabotage the wedding?
“Where has she gone, Elsie?” Duncan pressed once more, “Did she give any hints?”
Elsie glanced up and Damien saw her determination, barely hidden behind a facade of meekness. When it came to her mistress, she would stand up to a King if need be. Very laudable, but damnably inconvenient at the moment.
“It is important. For her as well as myself,” Damien coaxed, forcing gentleness into his voice, “she deserves this moment of beauty despite her modesty.”
Elsie’s face finally untwisted from a glare to a frown. She eventually sighed. “If I had to guess, I’d believe she will be exploring Hyde Park, Your Grace. She had said how pretty it looks, and how impressive. On a day like this, I think that is where she will be. She always did prefer nature to the bustle of towns.”
Damien inclined his head to her. “Thank you,” he said gratefully. Then he looked to Duncan. “Eastwick, I think we have more chance of finding her if we are many. Myself, yourself, and Rosie and Josie should be able to scout Hyde Park for her rather swiftly. I have told Madame Rousseau that I will bring Emma to her studio for the measurements. Provided we can get them done today, there will still be a wedding to look forward to a week from now.”