Page 53 of An Unwanted Spinster for the Duke

“Where’s Lizzie?” she asked.

“Father insisted that she went to London with him to attend events,” Wilhelmina explained. “We tried to convince him to let her come, but he would not be dissuaded.”

“She was left alone with him?” Marianne asked in complete disbelief.

“Yes,” Wilhelmina confirmed. “We tried to argue with him, but to no avail.”

Marianne pursed his lips. She had hoped that all her sisters would be together even during the weekends. Keeping them safe for only a few days would be some sort of consolation. But Elizabeth remained with Lord Grisham, and it felt like a deliberate plan on his part.

Suddenly, Marianne felt a slender pair of arms wrapping around her. Of course, it was sweet Daphne.

“I’ve missed you,” she whispered.

Marianne hugged her sister back, pulling some strength from the affection and warmth Daphne wanted to share with her.

Meanwhile, Victoria still watched the estate in disdain. “Huh! This place smells like sadness. And why is it so quiet?”

“What a curious thing to say,” Marianne said.

Even though she’d resented being at Oakmere Hall, it had started feeling like home. Perhaps her efforts were not that wasted, she had thought.

“It does have that dreary, brooding air,” Wilhelmina observed, her eyes sweeping over the hall’s stone facade. “But then we’re hardly strangers to the countryside. No, it’s the architecture—that Gothic melodrama. Honestly, I half expect a ghost to drift past or someone to jump from a window at any moment.”

Marianne smiled and shook her head in disbelief. Her sisters had been there for mere minutes and they had already managed to amuse her.

“Come inside. We have tea waiting for you.”

As soon as they reached the foyer, she heard footsteps echoing from above.

The Duke.

He stood at the top of the staircase, his hands tucked behind his back while he observed his visitors. It hurt Marianne to see how disinterested he looked. He could have at least feigned warmth. After all, he expected her to behave properly in the presence of company. Shouldn’t he at least do the same?

“Your Grace, these are my sisters. You met them at the wedding. Wilhelmina, Victoria, and Daphne, and this is their governess, Miss Clara Aldridge.”

The Duke acknowledged them with a nod. “Ladies.”

“Your Grace.” Daphne immediately bobbed a curtsy.

A flicker of something—amusement, maybe—sparked in his eyes. His lips twitched, barely holding back a smile as he straightened just a fraction, clearly taken aback by the unexpected grace coming from someone of her kin.

Well, there was Elizabeth, but she wasn’t here.

And Victoria? Her arms remained crossed in front of her, her lower lip curled, her stance defiant as usual.

Wilhelmina managed a polite nod. “Oakmere Hall is, er, grand for someone who lives on their own, Your Grace.”

“I am no longer living alone, Lady Wilhelmina. Your sister, my servants, and the dogs live here as well. Speaking of, the dogs don’t like loud noises,” Dominic explained. He’d finally reached the bottom of the stairs. “Please keep that in mind.”

“Oh. You have dogs!” Daphne exclaimed, her eyes widening with excitement. “May I see them? What are their names?”

“They’re hunting dogs, not pets, Lady Daphne,” the Duke replied in a flat, cold voice.

Marianne clenched her hands into fists as she saw Daphne’s shoulders drop.

“Achilles and Beowulf are domesticated,” she chimed in, rubbing her sister’s back. “They are large, but I believe they’d be happy to see you.”

Dominic turned his gaze to her, narrowing his eyes in warning, but she lifted her chin in response.