Page 12 of Married to the Duke By Midnight

Jo could tell why Robert had called it the yellow sitting room: The walls were covered in soft yellow wallpaper above the white painted wainscot. Heavy curtains in a darker yellow hung in front of the windows and the seating arrangement consisting of a sofa, a chaise lounge and several chairs were all made of dark wood and upholstered with yellow and cream-colored silk.

Robert walked to a side table by the wall, and Jo could tell from the clinking of glass that he was looking for a bottle.

“Would you like a drink?” he asked after a minute.

“Yes, please,” Jo answered and rubbed her hands together. Despite feeling exhausted, she was not certain she would be able to sleep tonight. The drink might help.

“What do you prefer?”

“Nothing too strong. I am not accustomed to drinking alcohol,” she told him.

He did not ask more questions and the sound of him pouring and the fire were the only ones in the room. He came back to the seating arrangement and handed her a glass of madeira before he settled into the chair opposite her with a glass of his own. Whisky, she believed it was.

“I should like to apologize in advance for the state of the suite. I have not been in there in years, so I have no idea what condition it is in. I am certain Mrs. Taylor, my housekeeper, has taken care of it, although the décor is probably horribly out of date. No one has lived there for years.”

“What about your mother?” Jo asked.

“She lives with my stepbrother – The Earl of Barforth. She married his father when I was nine. My sisters live there as well. My youngest brother is away at school.”

Jo nodded as she took in all this information. Happy that she would not have to be confronted with his mother before bedtime. She had heard his friend, Lord Thornston, comment that Robert’s mother would be angry that Robert had married without her present and being able to arrange the wedding.

“I am supposed to go there tomorrow for breakfast. I thought it might be a good way for you to be introduced to my family,” Robert continued and looked at the glass instead of Jo.

Jo gulped as she nodded again.

6

“It is only a short drive,” Robert said as they settled into the carriage the next morning.

Jo did not dare to ask why they were driving instead of walking when it was so close.

“How… what are they like?” she asked as the carriage rumpled out of the driveway.

Lord Thornston’s words that Robert’s mother would be angry had kept her up for several hours last night and woken her early this morning. She had made several lists on how she could make a good impression on Lady Barforth, depending on how angry she was.

Robert did not answer immediately but made a sound that let her know he was considering the question.

“They will all be surprised but welcoming, I assure you,” he told her.

“I cannot wait to meet them,” she told him – because what could she say? – and hoped that he would not notice that her voice was hoarse with nervousness.

Her comment made Robert offer a close-mouthed smile. It was nothing like the one he had given Thornston yesterday, but she could hardly expect as much, Jo told herself. In general, he had been friendly although a bit aloof this morning. There had been no indication that he remembered their kiss, let alone wished to repeat it.

Jo decided to push the matter from her mind as she went over the steps from her list in her head and looked out the window:

“Be smiling and engaging. Apologize, if necessary, but only if Lady Barforth mentions her disappointment or seems angry. Topics to discuss: Lady Barforth’s social engagement the rest of the season, Riddlesmarsh Hall, Barforth Castle, Lady Barforth’s children?”

The houses here were much larger than in the part of London where Beatrice and Mr. Oakley lived. The sun was already shining brightly, and she felt the urge to be alone on the beach close to Seaglass Cottage. She would look at the sea for calm, then at the ground for pretty stones, while she walked until her legs were sore. It would empty her mind slowly and by the time she returned to the cottage, she would feel better – even if nothing had been resolved.

But she was not there and had no idea where she might go for a solitary walk in London. Was she even allowed?

The carriage stopped in front of a house just as impressive as Robert’s, this one in stones that were slightly darker and the details around the windows were black.

Jo was very pleased that her portmanteau had arrived from Beatrice’s house before they left and she had been able to change into a different dress, a light blue day one that she had felt accentuated her grey eyes and the golden streaks in her hair. She was not certain it was fit for a duchess though, but Robert had not commented on it, which she took as a good sign.

Robert helped her from the carriage and Jo was relieved she was wearing gloves so he would not be able to feel her damp palms. The Barforth butler was not fazed in the slightest by Robert presenting Jo as his wife but seemed a little put upon when Robert told him that they would introduce themselves.

Jo paid little attention to their interaction though and merely followed Robert when he led her down a hallway on the ground floor. He stopped in front of a closed door to what she assumed was the morning room and turned toward her.