Page 14 of A Virgin for the Duke of Depravity (Ton’s Beasts #2)

“I would like to see this very much,” Leo said with a tight smile. “But I do believe it is my turn to give chase.”

The girls’ eyes grew round at the idea of their uncle playing with them, but Margaret only laughed. “Catch me if you can.”

She took off running through the orangery, the girls close behind her. The reliable thud of Leo’s footsteps followed them as they wove in and out of the rows of orange trees. Until he reached out and grabbed her by the arm.

“I believe the game is over, now that I have caught you,” he murmured against her ear. “Until tonight, My Lady.”

Margaret took the dismissal as an opportunity to get ready for the opera. After Leo left, she led the girls inside, and they quickly ran to the kitchen. Stifling a laugh, she shook out the skirts of her dress and decided that she would change before a night out in London.

As the maids scurried about the stairs, no doubt preparing for the house party, Margaret tried to stay out of their way. She found her way to the front sitting room and, to her relief, Theresa was already there.

“I feared we would not see you today after your absence during breakfast,” Theresa called when she saw her in the doorway.

“I was not hungry,” Margaret lied. “Morning prayers take some time, as I’m sure you remember.”

“And you would say your prayers even here?” Theresa raised an eyebrow. “Perhaps you have grown more devout since the last time we were together.”

“I will be a nun soon. I must practice every day of my life.” Margaret sighed and sat down beside her friend, all too aware that what she said was true.

It would be a lifetime of saying morning prayers—or pretending to, at least. She could not think of a duller existence.

Aaron sat beside them, reading the newspaper. He ignored their conversation and turned the page when Margaret caught a glimpse of the title of the article he had just finished reading.

Ice ran through her veins, and her heart started to pound in her ears. Her stomach lurched unpleasantly at the thought of the Earl showing up on the page.

“The Earl of Riley has announced an auction?” she asked, looking at Aaron.

“It seems that he has found his granddaughter, who had been lost for some time. Now, he is trying to auction off her hand. No doubt to try to restore some of his fortune and build more connections in the ton. The man does nothing without an ulterior motive.”

“I think I might be—” Margaret started to speak, but she choked on the words.

She ran out of the room and heaved in the hallway. Fortunately, the servants had left a bucket of water there. Margaret bent down and retched violently into it. At least she had not had breakfast.

“Margaret!” Theresa followed her out and found her hunched over the bucket, unsure whether she had anything left inside her to throw up. Her eyes narrowed. “What exactly has happened?”

“Nothing. It’s nothing,” Margaret said, more to herself than to Theresa. She tried to steady her breathing, her hands. “It will all be fine. I’m taking my vows soon, and no one can hurt me.”

“No one except Mother Superior,” Theresa corrected.

“Who cares about Mother Superior?” Margaret shrugged. She rolled her shoulders back and straightened to her full height. Just the thought of taking her vows made her feel more at ease. “I will do it. I will take my vows. I will not let my parents down.”

“You are not making sense,” Theresa said, reaching for her and resting a hand on her shoulder. “But if you wish to talk to someone, you know you can trust me. Please tell me you know that.”

“You are like my sister,” Margaret assured, gripping Theresa’s hand in her own. “I trust no one more.”

But she trusted no one enough with her secret. She loved Theresa, but she did not know how to tell her the secret she had been keeping all this time. The mistake she made in coming to London.

She opened her mouth and tried to explain to Theresa as best she could. “It’s just… You know I joined the convent to hide. The person I was hiding from—well, he found me.”

“How would you know that he found you?” Theresa tilted her head to the side as she considered the possibilities. Then, realization seemed to dawn on her.

Margaret nodded. “Because he is holding an auction for my hand. But I am safe here. And once I take my vows next week, he will not be able to touch me. Not anymore.”

Her voice was little more than a whisper. She knew that the walls of large estates had ears.

“An auction?” Theresa tapped her chin thoughtfully. “And you would not consider it? A marriage of convenience might be a better choice than spending the rest of your life in a convent, Margaret.”

“Not all arranged marriages are as good a match as yours.”

“But we both know that you are the least fit person for the life of a nun. Look how much mischief you have caused. How many times they have punished you over the years. Is this truly what you want?”

Theresa looked like she was on the verge of tears at the thought of Margaret taking her vows. Her eyes were red-rimmed, and her cheeks were flushed. She was more emotional now that she was with child.

“I cannot entertain the thought of marriage. I promised my father I would not allow him to get to me,” Margaret said.

She kept her gaze averted, knowing that Theresa would not understand.

Theresa had given up everything she knew to come to London, and it had worked out well for her. What would it be like for Margaret to be under the Earl’s thumb, in a marriage that he arranged for her?

She knew it would be nothing like Leo. That she would never kiss another man quite the same way. And if she could not do that, what was the point of getting married? She vastly preferred the austerity of the convent, even though she often got into trouble there.

She took a deep, steadying breath and moving from her spot on the floor. With one hand, she swiped away her tears, and with the other, she reached out to pull Theresa close. The two women stood in the hall, arms wrapped around each other, for a while.

It was the only way Margaret could comfort herself.

As long as she was among friends and did not leave the estate alone, the old Earl could not find her and would not be able to auction off her hand.

“Let us pick a dress for the opera tonight, shall we?” Theresa asked her when Margaret’s breathing returned to normal and no more tears fell.

The opera was the only thing she had to look forward to tonight, her last chance to enjoy such folly and revelry. Finding a dress to wear to the event would be a welcome distraction, and she would need Theresa’s help to get ready. Margaret was hopeless at making herself look decent.

Theresa and Margaret made their way to her chambers on the other side of the mansion.

Theresa opened the wardrobe and started to rifle through the dresses, looking for one suitable for the opera.

Finally, she pulled out a beautiful light gray gown with white lace hemming the neckline and sleeves.

The neckline plunged to a point nearing indecency, but Margaret did not mind.

Leo would see her in this gown, and she wanted him to look at her, even if she had forbidden any further touches. She had gone as a nun for so long, making sure that she did not stand out. Nobody in particular wanted her around; she had been forced on the nuns the day she had arrived.

Things were different with Leo. It felt nice to be wanted for the first time since her mother died. Since that moment when her father saw her off on her way to the convent. She relished the feeling, as fleeting as it was.

“What shall we do with your hair?” Theresa mused, undoing the braid Margaret had tried so hard to affix this morning.

“We can help.”

Margaret spun around at the sound of the girlish voices.

Annie entered the room first and reached for Margaret, who moved to sit on the floor so that her head would be at the right height for the little girls to do her hair. Kitty removed the pins from her hair and laid them on the vanity table while Annie ran a silver-handled brush through the curls.

“It seems you are in good hands,” Theresa laughed. “I bet they’ll do a better job than I can. I will take my leave of you then.”

She backed out of the room with a smile for the girls. Annie was already separating Margaret’s hair into sections, working the thick tresses with nimble fingers.

“Who does your hair for you when you aren’t here?” Annie asked while she braided.

“I do it myself,” Margaret said.

“You need help to do your hair properly,” Kitty chided, braiding another section.

The two girls jabbered in their own form of shorthand while they braided Margaret’s hair, and she felt content just to sit in their presence. She asked them what their favorite parts of the gardens were, which trees they liked to climb, and which were their favorite hiding spots.

Annie and Kitty seemed delighted to have someone to talk to, even if it was someone they barely knew.

“Finished,” Annie announced, pinning the last braid in place.

“Thank you, girls,” Margaret said, bending down to hug each of them. “Would you mind staying to help me into my gown? I will need help to fasten the buttons down the back.”

She turned to the bed, quickly took off the gown she was wearing, and donned the light grey one Theresa selected. The girls helped her button it, but the process was slow.

When she was alone, Margaret looked at herself in the mirror—something she rarely did at the convent. Vanity was a sin, but she would repent of it later. Tonight, she was merely satisfied not to recognize her life in the convent.

She relished the opportunity to do more than she could as a nun.

She relished the opportunity to feel wanted. Because Leo did want her, did he not?

“What is the meaning of this trip to the opera?” Aaron asked as he swirled the whiskey in his glass. “You hate the opera as much as you hate house parties.”