Page 28 of The Duke’s Second Bride (Regency Second Chances #4)

Immediately, Edith softened. “Oh, poor Ava,” she said, and reached out to pat her friend’s gloved hand with a gloved hand of her own. “You need not be embarrassed. If anyone should be embarrassed, it is he , for wasting the opportunity to be with his young, beautiful new wife.”

Ava chuckled. The jest only barely soothed the sting of the memory, but it still helped.

“Right,” she said, though her tone made it clear she did so disbelievingly.

“And,” Edith added, “I still maintain he might have been trying to be considerate of you.”

Ava snorted. “Considerate!” she exclaimed. “I have never met a less considerate man in my life.”

Even as the words left her mouth, they began to ring false to her. After all, she knew Christian loved his son. He had married her in order to save her from public ruin and from being preyed upon by her horrible brother-in-law. He had allowed Pudding to live with them.

And, of course, she could not help but remember the purchase of the book of plants from the village bookstore. That gesture had played in her head for days after the fact.

But then she recalled all their petty arguments. The last one, in particular, had lit up her ire the most. It was one thing to stand toe-to-toe in argument against her, but to be so callous in dismissing his son’s feelings about his dead mother? Ava could not excuse that.

She shook her head, returning to the present and her conversation with Edith.

“He is stubborn and accustomed to getting his own way,” she said scathingly. “I can’t imagine he would be particularly shy in voicing his wants. And, moreover …” The venom left her tone as she recalled the final reason she believed he didn’t want her.

Edith leaned in, looking more concerned. Ava realized, with horror, that she could feel tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.

“What is it?” Edith asked. “If he hurt you, I don’t know what I’ll do?—”

“No,” Ava protested weakly. “He has not hurt me at all. If anything, he has—it is just that…well.” She sighed. “He did kiss me,” she finally confessed. “Once, on our wedding night,” she clarified.

Edith was clearly delighted, pressing a hand to her mouth to shield a happy little gasp.

“Oh!” she exclaimed, clapping her hands together.

“Oh, that is wonderful, Ava! Or was it wonderful? Was it pleasant, or quite horrible? You and I have both had our share of poor kisses within marriage, I know, so don’t feel any need to lie or obfuscate. ”

“It was … more than pleasant,” Ava admitted.

It was embarrassing to say out loud, but she couldn’t help but let out a little giggle at the memory. Humiliating as it had been, it had been quite a good kiss.

“I hadn’t even known that kisses could feel like that,” she said. “With William, it was …” She trailed off, not wanting to speak ill of her late husband.

Edith nodded. “I understand,” she said. “Oh, goodness—that is lovely, then! But I don’t understand. He kissed you after telling you he wanted nothing more than a civil arrangement?”

“Before,” Ava said. “Which is all the more confusing.”

“Confusing indeed,” Edith mused. “Although, I must say, it sounds to me as though he was trying to protect himself from embarrassment, rather than trying to reject you.”

“How so?” Ava asked.

Edith tilted her head, giving her a look. “He kissed you, no? Not the other way around,” she pointed out. “And he is the one who suggested you marry in the first place. The man looks as though he is on fire any time he is in your presence, Ava.”

Ava sighed. “Perhaps you’re right,” she said, if only in an attempt to pacify Edith and change the conversation, though she didn’t believe it. The only thing that made sense to her was the idea that Christian didn’t want her. It was the only logical explanation for his behavior.

“Oh, my dear, I am so sorry,” Edith said, patting Ava’s hands once more before releasing her. “Men can be so complicated.”

“They certainly can,” Ava muttered. “Sometimes he is so deeply kind. But then at others, he is entirely insensitive to everyone around him. And I don’t really understand why he would marry me if he was so unwilling to be around me.”

“Perhaps he is simply shy,” Edith suggested. Then her eyes lit up. “And if he is, I believe there is an occasion coming up which may reveal the true nature of his feelings.”

Ava looked at her suspiciously. “Don’t be silly,” she said. “I know his true feelings. He made them very clear.”

“Well, if that is the case, then he shouldn’t be jealous at all when you are asked to dance by several handsome men at the Evett’s ball later this week,” Edith said, a mischievous twinkle in her eye.

“This week?” Ava said. Then she shook her head. “It’s much too soon. I am quite certain all the invitations must have gone out ages and ages ago.”

“You are the Duke and Duchess of Richmond,” Edith pointed out. “And you have just returned to town after a most intriguingly sudden marriage. No good hostess in her right mind would ignore the opportunity to have such a topic of discussion at her party.”

Ava rolled her eyes. “That would be just perfect,” she said, a hint of sarcasm dripping into her voice.

“Even more rumors. As though I have not been the subject of quite enough unseemly gossip this year. And your plan is flawed; what self-respecting gentleman would want to dance with a lady like that?”

“This is different, though,” Edith assured her. “Since you’ve been gone, all of the ton has been wondering about the connection between you and your new husband. They reckon you must have quite a few qualities to recommend you, for him to be so insistent upon marrying you.”

That took Ava aback.

“Is that so?” she asked.

It had been so long since she had felt utterly ostracized and rejected by society that the idea of being a topic of conversation in a way that wasn’t utterly demeaning felt nearly unthinkable.

“Indeed, it is,” Edith affirmed. “Additionally, now that you are a married woman, there is no scandal to be risked for any gentleman associating with you. Indeed, I expect quite a few gentlemen will ask you for a dance as a way of trying to curry favor with the duke. And once the duke sees you have won such attention, just you wait and see how his jealousy makes itself known!”

This last bit came out almost as a sequel. Ava rolled her eyes again, though she could not help but smile at her friend’s childlike enthusiasm.

“Now you are simply making up fairy tales,” she said.

“Just you wait,” Edith said. “You will get your invitation to the ball no later than today, and you will be all but the guest of honor. I’d stake my life on it.”