Page 25 of A Simple Marriage (Millionaires of Mayfair #2)
THE NEXT MONTH
Ardeerton House
Pippa peeked into the formal salon of Ardeerton House. Everything faded as her focus centered on the most handsome man in the room, her husband…well, her future husband. She grinned as Hugh stood before the vicar and jovially chatted with Marcus, the Earl of Trafford.
“Marcus looks good enough to eat,” Honoria whispered in Pippa’s ear. “Your betrothed is candy for the eyes as well.”
“Indeed,” Pippa answered with a sigh. She already felt married. She and Hugh spent almost every hour of the day together except at night. However, they’d found other ways to be together at night at her dress shop. Though her brother had never said a word about her nighttime rendezvous, Pippa suspected he knew. When she returned early in the morning before the sun rose, her brother waited for her at the servant’s entrance where he insisted she share breakfast with him. He’d always use the excuse that they didn’t have many mornings together and wanted her all to himself.
So, it was no wonder that when Hugh came to call shortly after she arrived home, Pelham would make him wait until after they finished breaking their fast. It was her brother’s way of keeping her close.
Grace came to her side and wrapped an arm around her waist. “You’re a beautiful bride.”
“Ravenscroft won’t be able to take his gaze off you. You’re stunning,” Honoria said as she kissed her cheek. “Are you ready?”
“More than ready,” Pippa confided. She and Hugh had decided to wait a month so Hugh’s mother and great aunt could participate in the wedding plans as they basked in the ton’s twittering about the wedding of the Season.
Grace took a step back when Dane walked to their sides. He nodded once at Grace, then turned to smile at his sisters. “Ready, darling?”
Pippa recognized that look. Her brother’s stoic face was his way of hiding his unease.
“We’ll be over all the time, Dane.” She stood on tiptoe and pressed a kiss to his cheek.
“I’m still losing a sister,” he said glumly.
Honoria took his hand and squeezed. “Look at their wedding as you’re gaining a brother.”
His eyes looked like liquid glass as the day's significance washed over all of them. No longer would Pippa be living under her brother’s roof.
“Shall we?” He extended his arm to Pippa.
Honoria smiled and pressed a kiss to her sister’s cheek. “The next time we speak, you’ll be a married woman.”
“Unless I kidnap her,” Pelham murmured.
Grace frowned. “You wouldn’t dare.”
“Don’t tempt me,” he growled softly.
As soon as Honoria and Grace entered the salon, her brother turned in her direction and took both her hands with his. “I’m not sad, Pippa. I’m happy for you.” He gently squeezed her hand. “But I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you I’ll miss you terribly.”
“Dane, I’ll miss you.” Tears flooded her eyes. “I wouldn’t be here today without you and the love you’ve always given me. You’ve been my North Star. No matter how lost I was, you always comforted me. You were my home.” She stole another gaze at Hugh. “Because of you, I learned to love, and now, I’m ready to take my place beside my husband.” She squeezed his arm. “Thank you.”
Dane brushed a tear away from her cheek. “What’s this? No crying on your wedding day.”
“They’re happy tears. We’re expanding our family.” She leaned near and lowered her voice. “You should consider marrying. Grace?—”
“Darling,” he laughed as he tugged her forward. “We can discuss this later.” He motioned toward Hugh. “Your bridegroom is getting anxious.”
“What the devil is Pelham doing with her?” Hugh murmured to Trafford, who stood beside him. “Trying to talk her out of marrying me?”
As the vicar looked on, Trafford laughed. He motioned toward the guests who had taken their seats. “I believe your great-aunt would tackle him before he took three steps.”
Hugh nodded, then grinned as he gazed about the audience. His mother, brother, and Great-aunt Edith sat on the front row. Hugh didn’t miss the smug smile that his aunt wore. She still believed that she was the driving force behind him marrying Pippa. He shook his head. If anything, it was Stanhope who happened to be sitting between Hugh’s great-aunt and Lady Stanhope. Hugh and Pippa had insisted that they come.
Trafford nodded toward Stanhope. “It’s good that you invited him.”
“We need to get him to the Jolly Rooster sometime,” Hugh acknowledged. “I wouldn’t mind taking some of that young pup’s money.”
Just then, the vicar cleared his throat. “My lord, your bride is entering the room.”
Hugh’s attention turned toward the door, and his heart tripped at the most beautiful sight he’d ever seen. His wife, his betrothed, his Pippa walked toward him with a look of love that made him want to fall to his knees before her. How he ever won her affection was a miracle, one that he would thank the heavens every day for.
She wore a golden silk and gauze gown that turned her into an ethereal being. He’d never seen her look so beautiful and so confident. He couldn’t wait to start their life together. When Pelham stood before him and placed Pippa’s hand in his, Hugh smiled through his tears, but his gaze never left hers.
“Take care of her,” Pelham growled softly. “She’s a treasure.”
“I will, my friend,” Hugh answered. “Every day of my life, I’ll do my damnedest to prove to her how much I love and cherish her.”
The vicar cleared his throat at Hugh’s curse. “Shall we, my lord?”
Hugh nodded.
As the vicar droned on and on, Hugh leaned close to Pippa. “I never thought this day would come. Thank you for marrying me.”
“Thank you,” she answered. The unabashed love in her eyes humbled him.
After their vows and the sharing of their rings, the ceremony finally ended as the vicar announced, “I now pronounce you husband and wife.”
As the cheers rang out, Hugh took his darling Pippa into his arms. For the first time in his life, he felt as if he were whole.
And it was all because of the woman who’d agreed to this simple marriage.
Dane stood next to Honoria, Trafford, and Grace on the Ardeerton House entry steps as they waved goodbye to the retreating carriage containing the newlyweds Pippa and Ravenscroft. He’d never seen Pippa so happy. She practically vibrated with joy.
While he was happy for her and his best friend, this increasing loneliness wouldn’t leave him. Dane rubbed the middle of his chest without realizing what he was doing. An ache had resided there all morning and hadn’t diminished as the day wore on. As he dressed for the wedding, he had wondered if he was suffering from an apoplexy or perhaps angina when his heart had raced and threatened to burst through his chest.
Mayhap it was all in his mind. He hadn’t felt this desolate in ages.
“Dane,” Honoria murmured as she kissed his cheek. “Dine with us this evening. I’ve invited Grace too. Marcus and I want you to join us.”
He nodded. Trafford clapped him on the back. “Congratulations. They make a beautiful couple. I know that Ravenscroft will treat her like a queen.” He pulled Honoria to his side and kissed her temple. “The Ardeerton sisters certainly have taken London by storm, along with two lucky bachelors who won their hands in marriage.”
When Honoria blushed at her husband’s effusive words, Dane found himself smiling. There was no doubt in his mind that his best friends were fortunate in their choice of wives. His sisters were the type of women that any man would be fortunate to call their better half.
“I’ll be over this evening,” Dane murmured as his eldest sister and her husband descended the steps for their carriage. After the coachman stepped into the drive box and took the reins, the carriage lurched into motion. That left only Dane and Grace waiting outside.
“Would you care to come in?” He rocked back slightly on his heels. Whether it was a defensive move or not, he didn’t want to contemplate its meaning. Yet, he found himself anxious for her agreement.
“I shouldn’t,” Grace said as she pointed to the sky. “It looks to be about mid-morning. I should return home and prepare for callers.”
“You mean clients?” Dane didn’t hide his disapproval or disappointment that she wouldn’t join him. Another stab of pain hit his chest.
Grace smiled sheepishly. “Sometimes. And sometimes they’re friends.”
“The art of matrimony is a constant in your life, isn’t it?” He took a step near and inhaled her orange blossom scent. How he’d missed it over the years. To think that he and this woman used to be intimate. For the love of heaven, they almost married. Now, she helped people with near-hopeless causes such as finding a perfect spouse or resurrecting a ruined reputation.
She tilted her head back and laughed softly. The movement revealed her long neck. He still considered the sight to be one of the most erotic things he’d ever seen. A slight smirk tilted the corner of his lips. It was also one of the most erotic things he’d ever tasted as well. The urge to lean and press his lips to the pulse at the bottom of her neck became nigh near impossible to ignore.
He shook his head slightly.
“The art of matrimony and romance are constants in my life.” She leaned near as if divulging her greatest secrets. “Along with ruined reputations, spoiled adults who think they’re the ton’s favorites, and, of course, simple scandals.”
Once upon a time, she would have shared all her secrets with him. But that was their past, and they had no future with each other.
“Is any scandal simple?” he murmured.
She didn’t deem the question worth an answer as her attention turned to her simple black carriage arriving to convey her home. “Thank you for everything.”
As she descended the steps, Dane fisted a hand to keep himself from racing after her. “Grace?”
She stopped and turned his way.
“Why do you do it? It sounds like a horrid existence.”
She shrugged slightly, then lowered her voice so no one could overhear. “It pays my bills.” She smiled slightly, but there was no humor in her eyes.
One of his footmen helped her into her small carriage. It had to be older than any grand dame that tottered around London. Why didn’t he notice the state of her finances before? Where was the dowry that her father had set aside for her?
With Grace’s beauty, elegance, and demeanor, she should have been married with a gaggle of children surrounding her.
Perhaps her services for the wayward members of the ton weren’t as valuable as he’d been led to believe. Then and there, he made his decision. There was only one way to find out.
He’d call upon her this afternoon and retain her services. Perhaps it was finally time for him to marry.
Who better to find him a dutiful wife than the hellcat who had broken his heart all those years ago?