Page 3

Chapter three

Beatrice

Of all the things Beatrice had considered on her long, cold walk to Eldenwilde, she had never considered the fact that Lord Dunham would want to marry her. It hadn't even crossed her mind. And if she had to guess again, she still wouldn't imagine something of this nature.

If it wouldn't be super obvious, she would pinch herself to make sure that she was, in fact, awake and not merely dreaming all of this.

“Miss Beatrice? Did you hear me?”

Beatrice shook herself slightly. She must not be dreaming, and she would have to answer.

“I am...not sure,” she admitted. How could she be sure when she had never expected to get married in the first place, much less to Lord Dunham?

“I know this must be a shock,” he said, “but I must find a wife immediately.”

She could hardly believe the words coming from his mouth.

It was so unbelievable, one could consider it to be a joke.

Her eyes widened. Was it a joke? “This isn't a prank, is it?” she asked, just to confirm. “Dietrich isn't about to pop out and laugh at me?”

Lord Dunham shook his head. “I don't know who Dietrich is, but no, it's not a prank.”

“I didn't think it was,” she said with a sigh, leaning back in her chair. It was extraordinarily comfortable, and the warmth of the fire was beginning to help her thaw out. If she had been alone, she would have been tempted to take a nap.

But one couldn’t take a nap when a man was proposing marriage, which was apparently her current situation.

“Why must you find a wife immediately?” she asked.

Lord Dunham took a deep breath and opened his mouth, then paused. “It was my father’s will that I marry before my thirtieth birthday,” he said after a moment.

Beatrice considered his statement. She’d heard before of nobility having legal requirements to fulfill before they could inherit their estate, but wasn’t Lord Dunham already Lord of Eldenwilde?

“Is there no one else for you to marry?” she asked.

He shook his head. “The young ladies of the nobility in this region are far too young for me, and it’s very unlikely that I could travel to Riyel to find a bride in time. The simple truth is, I need you, Miss Beatrice,” he said.

She felt butterflies in her stomach at the words. She could hardly imagine Roan or her father admitting to needing someone in that way. Dietrich might, perhaps, but he was more boy than man when it came to her.

No one had ever needed her before.

“When would you need to know the answer?” Beatrice asked.

Lord Dunham grimaced. “About thirty minutes.”

“Thirty minutes?” Beatrice said, almost to herself, her head suddenly feeling light.

She had thirty minutes to decide if she would marry him and become Lady Beatrice Dunham of Eldenwilde.

A thought pushed to the forefront of her mind. “What about my library?” she demanded.

He glanced away from her, toward the fire. “As my wife, you would not be able to run the library in town. But I have a library here on the estate, which contains even more books than the library in town, and you would be given free rein to manage both as you see fit as the lady of the estate, of course.”

The thought of giving up her library was like a knife to her chest. “I would have to give up my library?”

“Yes,” he said, turning back to her, and there was true regret in his eyes. “And I apologize for prodding, but unfortunately, my time runs short. If you will not marry me, I'll be leaving in half an hour for Riyel to search for a maiden to marry.”

“I see,” she murmured.

Lord Dunham took a deep breath. “You would be given the full power of the title of Lady Dunham as long as you live. You’d never want for anything, and I would be as much or as little of a husband as you wish.”

Her eyes widened at the implication. “And an heir?”

“We can discuss that in a year or so,” he said, not quite meeting her gaze. “It’s certainly not something we’d be rushing toward.”

Beatrice took a deep breath. She could hardly believe she was actually considering the idea. Surely, this was something that she should run far, far away from.

Yet, the truth was, the idea of stability that would last the rest of her life was very appealing. She’d grown up with so little stability that the idea of marrying a man who was tied down to an estate and wouldn’t leave it felt like a dream come true.

It wasn’t as if she had many men beating down her door in town. Roan had been the only one to even hint at marriage, and she had no interest in him. There were few men who were interested in a woman more educated than they were.

That wouldn’t be an issue with Lord Dunham.

And she would be mistress of her own home…not simply managing her father’s and being at the mercy of his every whim.

When she thought about it like that, the decision suddenly became much clearer. Even if she might regret it, even if no one else understood why she had done it.

Her one regret would be leaving her library. But Lord Dunham had promised a large library of books here at Eldenwilde, and she would ensure that her library was well looked after.

Perhaps Eugenia would be interested in the position. She spent a large amount of time at the library already, and she had no qualms about telling people what they needed. She would probably love the chance to help Beatrice with running the library.

It would change everything about her life, but Beatrice had never been one to shy away from a challenge.

Maybe it was time to try something new.

Marrying a lord seemed new enough.

With her mind made up, Beatrice looked at Lord Dunham and nodded her head.

“I will marry you,” she said.

The sigh of relief that he gave made her smile.

“Let us make haste then,” he said. “I will have a maid take you to your room so you can prepare while I send for the priest.”

Beatrice took a deep breath. He was wasting no time. She already had a room?

Lord Dunham took a deep breath. “Thank you, Lady Beatrice.”

Her eyes widened at the new title. Lady Beatrice.

She was about to become nobility.

“Of course, Lord Dunham,” she said as she stood, her bare feet connecting with the cool floor. “I owe my current situation to you, and it has treated me well thus far. I am sure that trusting my future to you will also work well.”

He let out a slight chuckle. “I hope it will work well for you, too. And please, call me Alexander.”

Beatrice glanced down at the floor, her cheeks heating at the thought.

Marrying Lord Dunham was one thing.

Calling him Alexander? Another thing entirely.

The maid from earlier appeared and led her out of Lord Dunham's study, toward the grand staircase she had always seen, but never climbed.

“I’m Beatrice,” she said. “What’s your name?”

“I’m Colette, ma’am.”

“Have you worked for Lord Dunham long?” Beatrice asked as she followed Colette up the stairs.

Each step took her further and further into her new life. Within the hour, she would be married. This would be her new home, and she would be Lady Dunham.

“Most of my life,” the maid said. “My family has been at Eldenwilde for years.”

Beatrice should have paid more attention, but she was distracted as she climbed. The grand staircase she had always seen and wondered what lay upstairs would become a staircase that she descended regularly.

How was this her life? This seemed stranger than the romance novels that she occasionally read.

Well, perhaps more than occasionally.

But since she’d had no expectation of getting married, it had seemed a way to enjoy the romantic stories that she never expected would happen to her.

Well, now she was getting married…but there was no romance involved here, either. So she had been both right and wrong.

The maid led her up the stairs and turned left toward a large door.

“The housekeeper will be right with you, ma'am,” Colette said, bobbing a slight curtsy before hurrying down the hallway and disappearing down what must be the servants’ staircase.

Beatrice pondered the doors in front of her. Should she go in? Should she wait for the housekeeper? Colette hadn't given any instructions, and it felt odd to open a door in someone else's home.

But then again, this was to be her home.

What would Sophia do?

Beatrice grinned at the thought. Her friend Sophia had also become nobility after being raised as a commoner. Perhaps she should visit her soon and ask her advice.

Even if she couldn’t visit Sophia, she’d need to send word, and soon, because Thea would be very concerned if she didn't go to the café tomorrow. She wouldn’t want Thea and Dietrich to be worried on her behalf or to assume that Lord Dunham was a beast who had held her captive.

He’d simply asked her to marry him instead.

The townsfolk believed he was cold and uncaring, but that was just because they didn’t know him like she did. Any man who would establish a library and pay her to spend her life in a room full of books couldn’t be a beast.

No, he might be surprising, but he wasn’t cold and uncaring because he didn’t go into town.

Perhaps, as his wife, she could help him to change his image in town. She could start by going to town tomorrow to tell Thea and Dietrich that she was married to Lord Dunham.

She grinned at the thought as she leaned forward and threw the door open, gasping at the sight before her. The room was large enough that even the enormous bed with a canopy and four posts that towered high above it couldn’t fill it.

This was to be her room.

The room was fit for a queen, or at least a lady…which she was shortly to become.

She spun around, taking in the large, airy room, and her mouth dropped open when she realized that the room also contained three large bookcases filled with an assortment of books.

She hurried over, greedily taking in all the books that were about to become hers when she became mistress of the estate. She would have been lying if she said this marriage thing didn’t seem worth it for the books alone.

She was still taking in the soft, velvety exterior of one particularly gorgeous leather tome when there was a rap at the still-open door and a middle-aged woman wearing a gray dress and with streaks of silver in her hair bustled in.

“Hello, dear,” the woman said, her eyes bright and warm and her voice cheery. “I'm Mrs. Jenkins, the housekeeper, and I am here to help you prepare for your wedding.”

The words, stated so matter-of-factly, made Beatrice giggle.

“Is everything all right?” the housekeeper asked with a smile.

“Only, when I left my house this morning, I didn't expect to be getting married, much less to Lord Dunham,” Beatrice explained.

“I can only imagine, dearie,” Mrs. Jenkins said. “When I married my husband, I was fully in love with him, and even then, I was nervous. I'm sure you must be even more so.”

“Will you tell me about the man I am marrying?” Beatrice asked as the housekeeper hurried over to the wardrobe and opened it to reveal that it was overflowing with dresses. Beatrice's eyes widened yet again. If this house and these people didn't stop surprising her, she might permanently appear to be an owl.

Where had all these dresses come from?

“Lord Alexander is a kind and just man who has had a hard life,” the housekeeper said, clicking her tongue. “I am very glad that he has found a wife who will accept him as he is and help him with this next phase of his journey.”

The housekeeper's shrewd eyes looked her over. “You're about the same size as his mother—God rest her soul—so fortunately, we should be able to find something in here for you to wear for the ceremony. You'll not want to wear your wet things. What he was thinking, not sending a carriage for you...” she said, clicking her tongue again. “And my Jenkins didn't remind him! I'll have a word with him later.”

Beatrice startled at the realization that Mrs. Jenkins must be married to the butler, Jenkins.

She allowed Mrs. Jenkins to help her dress quickly in a stunning blue gown that laced up in the back and showed off her figure. “This color reminds me of the dress you were wearing,” the housekeeper said as she finished lacing it, “so I thought it might help you as you go from the old to the new.”

“Thank you,” Beatrice said, smiling at the woman in the mirror as she pulled out a pair of slippers and set them on the floor. Beatrice slipped her feet into them, her feet instantly warming.

The housekeeper pulled a brush out of the drawer and undid the braid that was falling apart. “I am not talented when it comes to dressing hair, but I can brush it out and it will look beautiful.”

Beatrice stood patiently and waited as the housekeeper finished, tying part of her hair back with a blue ribbon that matched the gown.

“Are you ready to become Lady Dunham?” the housekeeper asked gently as Beatrice inspected herself in the mirror.

She looked like a lady.

Whether she was ready or not, she was on her way to becoming the new Lady Dunham, and her life would never be the same.