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“ A re you ready for this?” William asked as they stepped down from the carriage. “Our first real public appearance.”

Arabella swallowed hard and nodded, unable to speak.

He was right to characterize tonight’s ball that way.

The only other public event the two of them had attended had been the dinner party that had ended so catastrophically, and this party would be nothing like that one.

This one would be full of society members itching to see the new duchess, anxious for her to make some sort of mistake that would prove to everyone she wasn’t up to the responsibilities of the role she had taken on. Everyone wanted to see her fail.

She was determined not to allow that to happen. She wanted to make a good impression tonight, if only because that was what would reflect best on her husband. He deserved it from her.

“Remember,” he said as they crossed the distance between the carriage and the open front door, “our host tonight is the Earl of Bainbridge. He’s a good man.

His wife is a bit of a gossip, so she will be the difficult one of the pair.

The Earl is a friend of mine, though. Let him see your charming smile and winning personality, and things will be off to a good start. ”

“I’m not sure I have a charming smile or a winning personality,” Arabella murmured.

“Don’t be silly. You have them if I say you have them,” he told her firmly. “Don’t I know you by this time, Arabella? Do you think you’ve tricked me so easily?”

Her stomach churned. “I haven’t been trying to trick you.”

“No, of course you haven’t which is why we know that my assessment of you is the correct one,” he said easily. “You’ll have to learn to trust me, Arabella. I wouldn’t allow you to get into a situation you were unprepared for.”

Arabella had not felt adequately prepared for anything that had happened from the moment the two of them had met, but she could hardly say so. She merely offered him the smallest nod she could in response.

William put a hand on her waist, just above her hip, and guided her forward.

He was probably trying to help, but the effect it had on her was something completely unexpected. It was as if his fingertips were little tongues of flame, as if her skin had ignited where he’d touched her beneath the fabric of her gown.

There was something about this gown that made her feel unusually exposed.

It was the second new one she’d had since her marriage, a pale pink color, and while the fabric was plenty thick and heavy, she couldn’t seem to put it on without reminding herself of the fact that William had been the one to select it for her.

He had sent her off to the modiste with instructions to get something for the Bainbridge Ball, and Arabella had expected that she would be making her own selection.

She had intended to choose something simple but elegant.

But when she had arrived, she had been shown directly to this ornate gown, which was both extremely fashionable and entirely too much. She could only suppose that it was William’s latest attempt at spoiling her, a mission he did not seem to have abandoned when she had returned his necklace.

Well, he had warned her that he wouldn’t be giving up. How angry could she really be that he had done exactly as he’d told her he would?

She had intended to try on the gown he had selected so that she would be able to say truthfully that she’d done so and then to remove it and claim some problem with it.

She could say that it wasn’t her style or that the fit made her uncomfortable.

The modiste would not argue with her about it, and she didn’t believe William would do so either.

Not if she were to tell him that the gown was too immodest, that she couldn’t bring herself to wear it.

He would indulge her in that, just as he had when she had rejected the necklace.

She wondered when she might wear out his patience. It seemed inexhaustible.

In the end, there had been no need to reject the gown, no need to worry about William’s reaction to her refusing to keep it.

She couldn’t have given it up if she had wanted to.

The moment she caught sight of herself in the looking glass, she knew that she would be keeping the gown.

She had never felt so beautiful in all her life.

The problem with that, though, was that she couldn’t wear it around William without wondering what he was thinking.

Without being aware of every moment his gaze lingered on her.

He had chosen this gown—he must have done so out of a desire to see her wear it.

Was the sight living up to what he had imagined?

Was he happy with the way she looked? She could only hope so, for she didn’t have the courage to ask him.

But the hand that rested on her hip now seemed to be an answer to that question. Surely such an intimate touch must indicate that he found her beautiful.

She recalled the condition she had set for him when she had agreed to this marriage—her insistence that he not lay a hand on her.

He was in violation of that condition now, and yet she found that she didn’t want him to let her go.

It was a startling realization, one she wasn’t sure exactly what to do with.

He steered her over to a gentleman about ten years older than the two of them. “Lord Bainbridge,” he said with a slight bow. “I’d like you to meet my wife, Arabella—Her Grace, the Duchess of Redmayne.”

“Of course,” Lord Bainbridge said with a warm smile that made Arabella feel more at ease. “Your Grace. It’s so lovely to meet you at last; I don’t think I’ve had the pleasure before now.”

He hadn’t, of course, because of the fact that Arabella and her family had so often been excluded from society events.

Even if their paths had crossed before, Arabella doubted he would have recognized her, given that she would have been dressed in raggedy clothes on any prior occasion they might have met, and the gown she wore tonight was truly fit for a duchess.

She didn’t imagine she looked anything like she had in the past. If anyone who had known her before had seen her today, it seemed highly unlikely to Arabella that they would have recognized her.

She curtseyed. “Lord Bainbridge,” she said with a smile that she hoped appeared genuine. “It’s such a pleasure to make your acquaintance, and thank you for inviting me here tonight.”

“Oh, the pleasure is all mine,” Lord Bainbridge assured her. “I hope you have a marvelous time tonight. You know, everyone has been looking forward to having the opportunity to meet you, Your Grace.”

“Have they?”

William chuckled. “Bainbridge means that they want to gossip about us,” he said. “Isn’t that right, Bainbridge?”

“Well, can you blame anyone?” Bainbridge asked shamelessly. “The two of you married so quickly, after all. Everyone has their own opinions about your reasons.”

“Including you?” William raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, you know me. I’m just happy to see that you’ve finally accepted the responsibility that goes along with your role in society. Your father would be overjoyed by this, you know.”

To Arabella’s surprise, William’s whole body grew tense. “You think so?” he asked stiffly.

“To be sure. You know how he always insisted that you marry and produce an heir—and now, you’ve made your first strides in that direction.

I wondered sometimes whether you ever would.

Of course, I should have placed more faith in you, and I’m sorry I didn’t do so.

But now I can see that you’re on the right path. ”

“And where is your lovely wife this evening?” William asked.

“Oh—she’s here somewhere.” Bainbridge waved his hand in the direction of the bustling ballroom. “Entertaining our guests, I shouldn’t wonder. She’ll be very happy to see you, Your Grace,” he added, his eyes locking on Arabella. “She’s been eager to get to know you.”

“Yes, I’m sure she has been,” William murmured. His hand tightened on Arabella’s waist, and she leaned into the warmth of him, surprised by how comforting it was. Surprised by the fact that she wanted to be close to him. It wasn’t something she had anticipated feeling tonight.

Somehow, even when she had imagined coming to this ball, her biggest worry had always been his opinion of her. How she might be able to impress him. What she would do if she disappointed him.

It had never occurred to her that he might be her comfort. That the whole thing might be made easier by his presence at her side.

What could she interpret from the fact that she felt better having him near? That he was the easiest person to be around? She worried about everyone else’s impression of her, but somehow William caused her no worry at all.

He regarded her. She wondered if he could tell what she was thinking. “Shall we get a drink?” he asked.

“I think that would be good,” she agreed, breathing a sigh of relief.

The idea of a drink—something to hold in her hands, something she knew what to do with—took some of the pressure off.

And then, too, there was the fact that if she was sipping a beverage, she might not be expected to talk to anybody.

She might be able to buy some time for herself before she had to confront any gossips and gawkers, before she was peppered with questions about her recent marriage.

A member of Bainbridge’s staff came by with a tray of drinks, and William picked up two of them. He passed one to Arabella. “Take it slow,” he cautioned her. “Bainbridge likes to serve very strong drinks.”

“I thought you said he was a decent man.”

William raised an eyebrow. “He is,” he said. “He’s a friend of mine.”

“He certainly seems interested in getting everyone to drink to excess, though. And you didn’t seem particularly happy when we were speaking to him just now.”

“You noticed that?” He raised his eyebrows at her.

How could she have missed it? “Of course, I noticed.”

He hummed in surprise.

“What?”

“I suppose I just—didn’t think you paid that much attention to me.”

The words shocked Arabella so thoroughly that for a moment she couldn’t figure out how to respond.

Her gut instinct was to argue, to say, I don’t pay that much attention to you! But how could she say that now when she had just made it clear that she noticed tiny reactions in him? Of course, she was paying attention. She couldn’t pretend otherwise now.

He took a long sip of his drink.

“Be careful,” she told him. “I hear that stuff is strong.”

He smirked at her. “I can handle my alcohol,” he told her. “You’re the one I’m worried about.”

“I think you worry too much,” she told him.

“When it comes to you, Arabella, I’m not sure there’s any such thing.”

From the ballroom, they heard the sounds of the musicians beginning to play.

“Shall we go in?” William asked her. “I wouldn’t like to miss the opportunity to dance with my new wife.”

“You wouldn’t like to miss the opportunity to show me off to the rest of the ton, you mean,” Arabella countered, but she couldn’t keep the smile off her face. “All right, let’s go. And I’ll even let you have the first dance if you’d like.”

“Lucky me.” He took her by the arm, apparently unbothered by her teasing, and led her toward the music.