Page 44 of No Ordinary Lady

He couldn’t wait until their set had ended, and he could escape her. From that moment on, Mother kept suggesting he choose Amy to be his wife and make babies with her.

Was it any wonder he’d been in terror of becoming leg-shackled for so long? Right now, he was being revisited by those same panicked feelings as he looked at Amy’s pleased smile again, and Mother nodding.

If they held a ball, he would be required to dance with Amy. And at such a ball, he would never once dance with Marian, who he thought would be great fun to partner in a set or two.

He shifted in his chair and sought not to think about all the pleasures in life he was denying himself now as a duty-bound, almost-engaged man. There were many losses, and all his favorites, too. Drinking, wagering, attending outlandish amusements and having a jolly fun time as a bachelor.

But most of all, he would miss engaging in harmless flirtations with other women.

He struggled to keep his eyes from Marian as that staid and dull future he’d planned truly sank into his brain. It would be an enormous loss of his freedom and satisfaction in life to wed. Any woman, especially a pretty companion of his granny’s, was utterly off limits already. He would never share his bed with anyone but Amy ever again, either.

He tried to focus his attention on Amy and tried to feel something more for the woman than just admiration and respect. She was the perfect lady in every sense of the word. Elegant, well-informed, an accomplished musician and painter of watercolors. Trained to run a large household like him and be satisfied with country life.

But she was utterly boring.

She hadn’t revealed a spontaneous bone in her body yet and certainly had not when she was younger. He could have accurately predicted her response to almost any question put to her at once. She still deferred to Mother, eager to stay on her good side when she ought to be worried about what he thought of her, and what he might want from a wife instead.

It occurred to him that if they had any chance to grow closer in marriage, they would have to find interests in common. He did not think he could bear a dull, predictable marriage like some fellow lords had.

Not that his friends had had an easy time courting their future brides. The newly wed Whartons tempers still clashed. She, the new Lady Wharton, sided with the Dowager Marchioness of Wharton often against her husband.

But Sylvia differed from Amy…she was a matchmaker and something of a diplomat. She had brought about an understanding and peace between the Marquess of Wharton and his mother. They were back on friendlier terms thanks to Sylvia’s timely intervention.

Her cousin Eugenia Hillcrest had married the easiest of men. A man destined to become a duke. They did not fight exactly, but it was easy to see they were deeply passionate about each other, and their opinions, too.

And Aurora Hillcrest and her most persistent suitor, Lord Sullivan? Time would tell how that match went. Given that Aurora had no desire to marry anyone the last time he’d seen her, had been violently opposed to the idea of marriage to Lord Sullivan, he was not sure there would be constant harmony between the pair out of wedlock, either. Though perhaps they had reached an accord at last over their love for each other and found an acceptable compromise. He certainly hoped he’d been of some help there.

Yet, Amy and he were not in the same situation.

How would they live as man and wife? Would they learn to desire each other or meet only under the covers at night for as long as it took to get his heir and spare? The latter was not what he hoped for between them. He’d always enjoyed prolonged lovemaking. A night spent holding a woman close, with laughter and conversation interspersed with kisses, and with no thought for tomorrow or the consequences.

He looked across at Marian. That was how their night together would have ended had he not been coming home to marry Amy.

But now, days after that brief interlude and beside her opposite, his current choice for a bride…he could not forget that Marian had needed him and likely still did.

Amy did not. Not really.

But thanks to Mother’s excitement over his intentions to marry, Amy was waiting for his proposal. He could not be of much help to Marian when he was newly engaged or married.

“What do you think, my lord?”

He looked at Amy and around, realizing he’d been woolgathering, and discovered everyone was staring at him. “I’m sorry, my mind wandered. Must be the heat of the day. What were you saying?”

Amy looked vastly displeased by his inattention.

“An excess of heat can make you drowsy,” Mother suggested. “Perhaps you should take a stroll about the grounds with Amy, my lord.”

* * *

Daniel withheld a groan but stood. It was to be expected that Mother would try to speed up his proposal. To refuse a stroll with Amy would be rude, so he offered his arm.

“Marian can accompany you to ensure propriety is maintained if you like,” Granny offered, gesturing to Marian with a bland expression, as if she’d not said the most blasphemous thing possible.

“That will not be necessary,” Daniel said, curtly. “We will remain in full view at all times.”

Marian looked down at her gloved fingers, clearly as uncomfortable as he was about the suggestion of her chaperoning them.

Daniel led Amy away along the path, but made sure they could still be seen. He dug a finger under his cravat, attempting to loosen it. “It’s a warmer day than I expected it to be.”