Page 15 of The Duke’s Second Bride (Regency Second Chances #4)

“ I do,” Ava said.

Hearing those words come from her lips stirred up something within Christian that he could hardly bear to admit to himself.

In her simple white dress—nothing overly ornate, for a wedding that was a second wedding for them both—she was still a vision. Perhaps more a vision than usual, like an angel from heaven.

She held a small bouquet of white lilies in those delicate hands.

Her dress was modest, but every place where her creamy skin rose from the ivory silk was tormenting to look at.

Her eyes were alight with her usual determination when she had walked down the aisle to meet him.

That set him ablaze as well, both with desire and with the understanding that she was meeting this wedding as a business arrangement and that she would likely be as much of a stubborn thorn in his side as a wife as she had been when they had first met.

This idea was confirmed when she refused to look away from him for most of the priest’s words. He had held her gaze, if only to let her know that he intended not to be one of those beaten-down husbands who acquiesced to their wife’s every whim.

Her eyes were hazel, almost hypnotizing in their warmth of color, like a still lake under cloudless skies. Her cheeks were like fresh churned cream, with a light smattering of cinnamon-colored freckles across the bridge of her nose.

He had never noticed that before. He had never been close enough to.

Her lips were the perfect pink of freshly picked berries, and slightly parted as she gazed up at him. What he wouldn’t give to kiss her.

He supposed he could now. They would be husband and wife, after all. And yet—he could not expect that of her. He had been so revolted by her suggestion that he was anything like her lecherous brother-in-law, after all.

No, Christian had no need of the company of a woman—no matter how Vincent might tease him. He could tell, from Vincent’s look of mischief as he walked Ava up the aisle, that there was plenty of teasing from Vincent to come.

He had been honest when he told Ava that all he really needed—all he wanted—was someone to take care of Luke. In that regard, they were a perfect match.

One glance at Luke was enough to confirm it. He looked at his stepmother-to-be with such warmth and joy in his eyes.

This is the only reason we’re marrying , he reminded himself.

This arrangement with Ava was just that—an arrangement. A matter of convenience. A matter of chivalry, to protect her from the horrible Lord Dunfair, and to keep her off the streets. Christian was only doing what any decent gentleman would do.

The priest reached the end of his speech a second time.

“I do,” Christian responded.

The priest nodded serenely. “I now pronounce you husband and wife,” he said, and a small, polite round of applause went up from their assembled witnesses.

To his relief—and perhaps a small amount of disappointment—the priest did not direct him to kiss the bride, as one might in other circumstances. It was for the best.

No matter how temptingly pink her lips were. No matter the way the wedding dress skimmed her curves in a way that tantalized and teased, while still remaining modest.

No matter the heat that rose throughout Christian when he remembered that, as husband and wife, the conventional thing to do would be to share a bed.

All at once, their small cohort of guests rushed to congratulate the couple.

Vincent and Sophia, his wife, reached them first. Sophia grabbed Ava’s hands, more warmly than Ava had expected.

“Congratulations, Your Grace,” the other woman said, leaning in to press a kiss to Ava’s cheek, as well.

“Thank you, Lady Sedwin,” Ava said, almost taken aback by how immediately Sophia was welcoming her into the fold.

She had gathered that Sophia and Vincent were among Christian’s closest friends—perhaps his only friends, from the look of things.

Vincent stepped forward as well. “I can’t believe it,” he said, looking just as jovial as when Ava had met him moments before he had walked her down the aisle. “Christian Adler, an honest man. I never thought I’d live to see the day a second time.”

Christian rolled his eyes at his friend’s good-natured teasing.

“Congratulations, Your Grace,” Vincent said to Ava, giving her a nod. “Christian could not have found a better bride.”

Edith came forth, hands clasped beneath her chin, a brightness in her expression as she smiled widely.

“Ava, darling, I am so happy for you,” she said.

Then she crossed her arms, turning to Christian.

“And you’d better treat my friend as though she were the best bride imaginable, because she is, or else I shall see to it you regret the day you were born.

” She gave a little curtsy at the end of this. “Your Grace,” she added cheekily.

Though the words and tone were stern, it was clear from the sparkle in her eye that she was joking—at least in part.

Luke giggled at this, greatly amused that anyone would speak to his stern father in such a way.

“She will have all of the safety and security marriage has to offer,” Christian said. Ava wondered why she felt disappointed at that.

An older woman came by whom Ava recognized as the Dowager Duchess of Richmond. She went to curtsy, only to be brought back to standing by the older woman’s hands on her shoulders.

“Congratulations, my dear,” the Dowager Duchess said, practically beaming. Ava was pleasantly surprised; every other time she had seen the Dowager Duchess at a ball, the woman had always seemed stern. “I was beginning to worry that our dear Christian would live out the rest of his days alone.”

“I told you, you needn’t worry,” Christian said. “Though we thank you for coming to share in this … celebration with us.”

Ava noticed the hesitation. She tried not to let the disappointment sweep through her too much. “Yes,” she said to the dowager duchess. “Thank you so much, Duchess.”

“I wouldn’t have missed it for the world,” the older woman assured her kindly. “And I look forward to hearing what you think of the country estate. I hear you’re quite fond of animals, just like darling Luke.”

“Speaking of,” Christian said. He cleared his throat and turned, to Ava’s surprise, to her. “I suppose it is time we were on our way,” he said. “Shall we, wife?”

He extended an elbow. Ava fought past her surprise and took it. Beneath her hand, the contours of his muscles were strong and warm even through the fabric of his suit. She tried her best to ignore the thrill it sent through her.

“Yes,” she said. “Let us be gone. Luke will soon be tired, won’t you, Luke?”

“No,” Luke said. “I shall be awake f-f-for hours and hours!”

Ava could not help but laugh at his precociousness. “We shall see about that,” she said affectionately, ruffling the boy’s hair. She briefly let go of Christian’s arm to lean in to hug her friend. “Thank you for coming,” she said to Edith.

“I would not miss it for the world,” Edith said, squeezing her firmly. “And I meant what I said before,” she continued, lowering her voice to a whisper only Ava could hear. “If he mistreats you in any way, he shall rue the day most thoroughly.”

Ava chuckled. “I shall let him know,” she whispered back jokingly, before leaning back and smoothing out her skirts.

She took hold of the Duke’s arm once more. Then, on a whim, she reached out a hand towards Luke.

With a grin, the little boy grabbed onto the offered hand. She felt Christian stiffen in surprise at her side.

Once they were in the carriage, with Luke seated on one side of Christian and Ava on the other, the full weight of what had just happened finally settled over her.

She was married. A wife once more.

She was the new Duchess of Richmond.

And Christian Adler was her husband.

Luke began fidgeting practically the moment the carriage began to move.

“How l-l-long will the ride b-be?” he asked, not quite whining, but getting close.

It was a bumpy ride already, and Christian knew that if he was uncomfortable, surely the boy was even more so—not to mention Ava, in her stays and dress.

“Quite a bit,” Christian said stiffly. It was one thing to have to deal with the boy on his own in front of his new wife—God, it would take him a while to get used to that—it left him feeling almost embarrassed. “We are leaving to go to the main estate in the country.”

“I d-do l-l-love Richmond,” Luke said, seemingly pacified by the information. However, merely a few minutes later, he began squirming again.

“Luke,” Christian said sharply.

“I’m bored,” Luke muttered to himself.

“If you cannot remain still, we will have to stop the carriage, and you shall have to spend the rest of the journey in the carriage behind with your governess. Is that what you want?”

Luke shook his head.

“Then behave, please. I will not stand for this, and neither shall Lady D—” He shook his head. He had not called Ava by anything other than her former married name, aloud. “Your stepmother?—”

“And who are you to say what I will and will not stand for?” Ava’s voice came, firm from the other side of him. He looked at her in shock. She met his gaze unflinchingly. “He is a child,” she said quietly. “It is natural he should get bored.”

Christian paused. He did not want to get into an argument so soon into their marriage, particularly not in such close quarters, with Luke already in a bad mood.

He sighed. “Very well,” he said, and saw Ava relax at his agreement. “What do you suggest, then?”

Ava smiled. “Luke,” she said, looking out the window, “we shall be seeing a great number of animals as we get into the country. How about you look out the window, and we shall see who can count more horses, you or me?”

Luke took to the game quickly, though he soon grew bored of that, too. After a while, Ava began telling him a story.

Soon enough, he fell asleep, leaning on his father.

With the silence in the carriage, Ava and Christian had nowhere to look but each other.

After a few hours, they finally reached the estate. Christian felt himself relax as soon as the large, sprawling grounds and the building itself came into view.

He had been in London longer than he liked. Being in the city meant being around people, with all their complications. In the countryside, he had always felt more at ease—although, of course, he was not able to conduct as much business or be as productive as he liked here.

It was a trade-off with a steep cost, but his parents had left the running of the estate to him. So he generally made a practice of sacrificing his personal comfort in order to ensure the finances of the dukedom stayed not only good, but profitable tenfold.

When Luke was older, he would ensure that his son had nothing to worry about and that his son understood all the work that went into maintaining and expanding the family business.

When the carriage pulled to a stop, he gently nudged Luke awake. The boy seemed groggy, blinking and rubbing at his eyes, but awoke enough to step out of the carriage on his own, at which point his governess came to see him into the house.

Christian followed his son out of the carriage and then turned around, extending a hand to Ava.

“Welcome to your new home,” he said.

Her hand in his was a spark in dry tinder. And Christian, at last, was burning.