Forever My Duke--Unlikely Duchesses

by Olivia Drake

  She considered his words before nodding. “All right, Hadrian, I suppose we could stay with you and your mother for a few weeks.”

  The thrill of victory welled in him, though he was careful not to show just how much her assent mattered to him. It would take time and patience to ease her strong disapproval of the aristocracy. “Excellent,” he said. “Then you’ll wish to do your packing. We’ll depart at first light in the morning.”

  But she made no move toward the door, her gaze intent on his face. “You are fond of Leo, aren’t you? I believe you’d make him an excellent father.”

  “Me?”

  “Yes. And Lady Ellen will be a good mother to Leo. She’ll give him the affection that he truly deserves.”

  Lady Ellen? What had she to do with anything?

  Hadrian gaped for a full five blinks before remembering that Natalie still believed he meant to wed the girl. He almost corrected her, then thought better of it. If she knew he was considering altering his marital plans in her favor, she might very well rescind her agreement to go to London.

  “I’ll keep that in mind,” he said noncommittally.

  He would do no such thing, of course. Although he liked the novel notion of adopting the boy, a part of that included Natalie filling the role of his wife and Leo’s mother. Best of all, Hadrian would have her in his bed each night. Their passionate kiss had been a mere taste to hone his appetite for her.

  It struck him that he’d never entertained a single lascivious thought about Lady Ellen. With Natalie, however, it was a constant battle to keep himself from visualizing the feminine curves beneath her gown. He craved to glide his hands over her lush bottom, to trace the slender indentation of her waist, to cup the breasts that filled his palms to perfection.

  But it would be an uphill battle to soften her resistance to a man of his high rank. Was he wrong to think he could convince her to stay in England? Wrong to hope she could somehow fit into his world? Wrong to believe she’d find him worthy enough to give up her life in America?

  At the moment, she was eyeing him with determination, a charming flush in her cheeks. “There’s something else I need to say,” she told him. “I oughtn’t have encouraged you to kiss me last night. It was my fault and utterly unfair to Lady Ellen. It must never happen again.”

  The air suddenly seemed to hum with charged energy. They stared at each other, and he could see in her direct gaze that she, too, felt the scorching bond between them. He himself recalled every moment of their embrace with searing clarity. The brandy tang of her mouth, the eager softness of her lips, the pressure of her slim body arching against him. He burned to touch the silken smoothness of her breasts again, this time to strip away her clothes, to discover every hidden secret of her body, to sink into her welcoming heat.

  In two steps, he could close the distance between them and have her in his arms again. It wouldn’t take much effort to coax her into returning his fervor, despite what she was saying. But it would be far wiser to wait until they were away from this house. Once in London, he could devote himself to enticing her.

  He tamped down the blaze of desire. “Neither of us were unfair to Lady Ellen,” he stated. “I’m not betrothed to her. In fact, Godwin has agreed she should be free to enjoy her first season.”

  Frowning, Natalie appeared to be keenly inquisitive about the situation. “But … you do intend to marry her, don’t you?”

  “That remains to be seen,” he hedged.

  She firmed her delectable mouth. “If you don’t, what will happen to Leo? I don’t want him to be raised in this house, Hadrian. Especially not after what happened with Lord Wymark.”

  “Happened?”

  Natalie glanced over her shoulder at the door, then lowered her voice. “That incident with the stallion, of course. I shudder to think of how close Leo came to being trampled. If truth be told, there’s something reckless about Lord Wymark that gives me a cold chill. I don’t trust him.”

  Hadrian’s first impulse was to scoff. Richard was simply a careless young fool who had been spoiled by his mother.

  But Natalie looked so genuinely concerned that he considered the matter from her perspective. All she’d seen of Richard was his sulky manner, his lack of control, his penchant for drinking and gambling. That, combined with the cold reception she’d received from Lord and Lady Godwin, had fostered a very real fear in Natalie for Leo’s welfare.

  Blast his cousins for treating the two of them so badly.

  Abandoning his resolve to keep his distance, he stepped closer and placed his hands on her shoulders. Her vital warmth coursed through him as he lightly kneaded the tension from her muscles. “You mustn’t let Wymark alarm you. Once we leave here, your paths aren’t likely to cross.”

  “Nevertheless, I dislike spending even one more night in a household where Leo’s very presence is begrudged.”

  With his hands on her shoulders, he felt the shiver that rippled through Natalie. It communicated a twinge of worry to him, as well. Despite his reassurances to her, there was always the chance that he could be wrong.

  He ran his fingertips over her petal-soft cheek. “Then perhaps it would make you feel easier if we were to depart straightaway.”

  Luminosity entered her green eyes. “Right now? Today?”

  “There’s a few hours of daylight left. How quickly can you be ready?”

  “At once.”

  Watching the sway of her hips as she hastened to the door, Hadrian felt caught in the throes of fierce protectiveness. The sooner he had her and Leo safely under his care, the better. Grimly, he knew without an ounce of doubt that he would kill anyone who tried to harm either of them.

  Chapter 17

  Emerging from the post chaise two days later, Natalie thought there must be some mistake. Surely the grand structure towering before her could not be a house.

  Built of honey-colored stone, the residence had an impressive portico with tall columns topped by a stately triangular pediment. The classical style reminded her of the president’s house in Washington, though this building was much larger and more magnificent. She counted a dozen immense windows stretched across the ground floor alone. It was a crown jewel compared to the more modest brick town homes that lined the square.

  A tug on her skirts brought her gaze down to Leo, who stared up with rounded eyes. “Does the king live at this palace with Mr. Duke?”

  Laughing, Natalie tidied his tousled hair. “No, darling. Though it does look vast enough to hold a royal court.”

  “Never fear,” Hadrian said, “you’ll learn your way around Clayton House soon enough.”

  Her heart quaked at the sound of his deep voice. He’d just dismounted after having ridden on horseback for much of the journey, leaving the luxurious post chaise to her and Leo. Although he appeared the perfect gentleman in his greatcoat and hat, there was a banked heat in his eyes, a rakish curve to his lips, that once again made her doubt the wisdom of accepting his invitation to London.

  He desired her. Their passionate kiss had merely whetted his appetite. She felt a slow burn deep within her core every time he looked at her.

  Despite his assurances, Natalie was aware she didn’t truly know the Duke of Clayton. Nor could she shake the vague suspicion that he had some unspoken reason for bringing her and Leo here. He had appeared entirely too satisfied when she’d finally acquiesced.

  During the long hours of travel, she’d had ample time to ponder. He had visited Oak Knoll for the purpose of affiancing himself to Lady Ellen. Yet he’d seemed eager to clarify that he was not yet betrothed. What did it mean? Had he finally realized the girl had no interest in a man much older than herself? Or was he intending to win Lady Ellen’s hand over the course of the season?

  And how did she herself fit into the picture? She’d grown up hearing her father decry the indiscretions of the nobility, and their arrogant manner of using women they perceived to be of the lower orders. Yet Hadrian could hardly be scheming a seduction with his mother
in residence.

  Perhaps she was reading too much into the matter, Natalie thought. Perhaps he merely wanted her here for Leo’s sake.

  It was a dispiriting thought. Imprudent though it might be, she wanted to matter to Hadrian. She wanted him to toss and turn at night, dreaming of her. She wanted him to miss her when she departed for America. As much as she herself would miss him …

  “In my experience, brat, some ladies are frightened by a mouse. But it appears that Miss Fanshawe is frightened by a house.”

  The low rumble of Hadrian’s voice pulled her back to reality. So did Leo’s giggle at the rhyme. She blinked to see they were regarding her with shared male amusement. Realizing she was frowning, Natalie immediately corrected her expression with a smile. “Don’t be silly. Though it is by far the largest house I’ve ever seen.”

  “You are afraid. And here I believed you to be intrepid.”

  Hadrian appeared perfectly serious, the image of ducal hauteur, though his gray eyes held a glint of humor in the sunlight. Aware of a treacherous weakening in her knees, she scolded herself for being affected by his teasing charm. It wouldn’t do to encourage any more familiarity between them.

  Before she could respond, Leo piped up. “What’s in-trepid?”

  “Bold,” Hadrian said. “Fearless. Since Miss Fanshawe finds bravery in short supply today, perhaps she should hold on to me for courage.”

  As the duke offered his arm, Natalie was half tempted to stick out her tongue. But that would be undignified when they were surrounded by footmen and grooms, including Chumley, the sour old valet who even now was casting baleful glances her way as he supervised the unloading of the baggage.

  “You can hold my arm, too, Miss Fanshawe,” Leo said gallantly. “’Specially if you’re afraid.”

  She glanced down to see the boy crook his elbow in a pint-sized imitation of Hadrian. Nothing could have been better designed to squeeze her heart. Smiling, she reached down to accept the assistance he offered, then curled the fingers of her other hand around Hadrian’s arm.

  “Why, thank you, kind sirs. Now, I can feel protected by two gentlemen.”

  Leo looked delighted and proud. It was a poignant reminder that he needed a strong male influence in his life, a man he could emulate as a model of courtesy and proper behavior.

  If only she could convince Hadrian to adopt the boy. He had been noncommittal when she’d brought up the topic, but she intended to persuade him to do so over the coming weeks. Leo deserved to be loved, rather than abandoned to the guardianship of a grandfather who resented him.

  As the three of them mounted the marble steps to the portico, a peculiar notion swept over Natalie. She fancied they were a family, returning home after a long absence. A bone-deep longing clutched at her heart, but she banished the illusion at once. Such a scenario would require her to be an English duchess. How absurd!

  It was dangerous, too. By allowing herself to fall prey to such fantasies, she would be more susceptible to Hadrian’s magnetism. He would never propose marriage to her, nor would she accept him if he did. She had a life of her own back in America, a plan to open a school, and she must not be distracted by dreams that could never be.

  A white-wigged footman in forest-green livery held open the door. As they proceeded into the house, their footsteps echoed in the vastness of the entrance hall. The interior was even more awe-inspiring than the outside, and Natalie scarcely knew where to look first.

  Untying her bonnet, she turned slowly around to view the tall marble columns with gilded capitals, the life-sized classical statues in niches, the domed ceiling that was painted with frolicking nymphs and cherubs. On either side of the room, a pair of matching staircases swept upward to meet at a marble balcony worthy of a soliloquy from Romeo to Juliet.

  Several servants in neat dark garb waited with square-shouldered posture. Natalie was glad Hadrian remained at her side. If truth be told, she did feel a trifle intimidated by this splendid house and the array of staff members, especially the distinguished middle-aged man in black who came forward, accompanied by a hatchet-faced older woman with a ring of keys jingling at her stout waist.

  “Welcome home, Your Grace,” the man intoned, bowing as his female counterpart bobbed a curtsy to the duke.

  Hadrian introduced them to Natalie as Winkelman and Mrs. Darrow, the butler and the housekeeper. “My guests have recently arrived from America,” the duke told them. “Master Leo Bellingham is a cousin of mine, and Miss Fanshawe is his temporary guardian. She was a friend of Leo’s mother, my late cousin Audrey.”

  Blinking in surprise, Mrs. Darrow glanced at Natalie, then back at the duke. “Forgive me, Your Grace. When we received your message yesterday, I presumed Miss Fanshawe to be the boy’s governess and would stay in the nursery. Shall I prepare a guest bedchamber for her, then?”

  “Yes, please do,” he said, handing his gloves and greatcoat to the butler, who then passed the items to a footman.

  “Please don’t,” Natalie dissented. “I’ll be perfectly fine in the nursery. Mrs. Darrow, you really needn’t go to any trouble on my behalf.”

  “Nonsense,” Hadrian said crisply. “You’re not in my employ. It would be remiss of me to give you accommodations designed for a governess.”

  “Might I suggest the daffodil suite?” the housekeeper said, siding with her master while giving Natalie a commiserating look. “You won’t be terribly far from the lad, miss. The stairway to the nursery is directly beside the bedchamber. ’Tis a mere hop up one flight of steps.”

  Natalie turned her gaze to the little boy, who had wandered to the far end of the entrance hall. He stood with his head tilted back, studying a gigantic painting of some ducal ancestor wielding a sword and mounted on horseback.

  “But … my place is with Leo.”

  Hadrian’s warm fingers wrapped around hers, lightly squeezing. “Never fear, the brat will be perfectly safe. My staff will keep him well supervised whenever you’re unavailable. During the day, you’ll be free to spend as much time as you like with him. We both will. Besides which, it would be good for him to become familiar with his new station in life.”

  Natalie opened her mouth to protest, then closed it.

  When he put it so reasonably, with that subtle reminder that she’d be leaving eventually for America, she felt foolish for objecting. Was she being overly protective? She might not approve of the way servants raised the children of the aristocracy, but once she was gone, this would become Leo’s world. Perhaps she ought to allow him the space to adjust to it without her hovering over him too much. Oh, but the prospect did rip at her heart!

  Winkelman coughed discreetly. “Your Grace, the duchess returned from Bond Street not half an hour ago, along with Lady Elizabeth. She requested that you bring your guests to her suite straightaway. She, er, mentioned having something to give the child.”

  “Bond Street?” the duke said. “Let me guess. Tuttle’s Toy Emporium.”

  The butler’s impassive features betrayed a trace of humor in the minuscule elevation of one eyebrow. “There were a number of packages with that distinctive wrapping.”

  “Well,” Hadrian said, a weighty exasperation conveyed in the single word. “Will you mind coming along, Natalie? You can meet my mother and sister while your rooms are being prepared.”

  A footman whisked away her cloak and bonnet; then she collected Leo and they headed up one of the twin staircases. Hadrian took the opportunity to point out highlights of the house, including a portrait of an uncle who had been an admiral, and a nick in the woodwork where Hadrian had struck it as a boy while attempting to ride his sled down the stairs. It was clear that he was proud of his domain and very much wanted to make them feel at home.

  Natalie found that touching, though she was still too wonderstruck to imagine living in such grand surroundings. The place was in stark contrast to the modest frame house in which she’d grown up, and the cozy log cabin she’d shared with Audrey and her family in the wilderness.


  Reaching the upper balcony, she glimpsed several magnificent reception rooms before they continued up another wide flight of steps, headed along a carpeted corridor, and arrived at a door that stood partway open. The duke rapped loudly on the panel. When Leo would have darted inside, Hadrian held him back, a twinkle in his eye. “Ladies first, brat.”

  Natalie hesitated. Despite having forded raging rivers and ridden through wild lands, she found herself leery to cross this threshold into the private quarters of a duchess. Her reluctance made no sense. What could there possibly be to fear in meeting Hadrian’s mother and sister? They were, after all, potential allies in securing a happy future for Leo.

  Holding on to that thought, she marched inside and found herself in a sitting room that abounded with gilded splendor: chairs with embroidered pillows, shelves and tables crowded with dainty objets d’art, flower paintings on the rose-papered walls. Even the air smelled rich with a perfumed scent.

  Just then, a yapping spaniel sped around the corner and stopped in the arched doorway as if to guard entry to the bedchamber. The dog was followed by a chestnut-haired beauty in a mint-green gown.

  This must be Hadrian’s sister. A softer, feminine version of her brother, she showed the unmistakable roundness of pregnancy as she swooped forward with a glad cry. “Hadrian! I told Mama I heard a knock!”

  He gave her a peck on the cheek before reaching down to scratch the floppy ears of the spaniel. “Well, Lizzy. I understand that you’re up to your old tricks, encouraging the duchess to beggar me at the shops.”

  “That old tattler Winkelman! Now, don’t be a fussbudget and spoil our fun. We had a delightful morning preparing for your guests.” Her china-blue eyes roved with interest over Leo and Natalie. “And here they are!”