by Vanessa Lee
The Countess, who was now standing on the balcony gasped, “My good graciousness! What on earth?”
At the startled shout, Erica's head cleared significantly. She looked over at their esteemed hostess, who was the very picture of absolute shock with her mouth open in a wide “O,” and her hand holding her fan held dramatically over her chest.
“Nicholas Wellington, you had best explain yourself, young man!”
Nick smiled inwardly. The moment had come. He knew beforehand that his old friend, the Countess, would play a part in his plans tonight. The woman was the epitome of good virtue in society and was also one of the loudest. If she thought that there was any hint of a woman's reputation being ruined, she would demand reparation. Immediately.
Well, good. That was exactly what he wanted. He was not looking forward to the verbal thrashing that he knew was coming his way. He smiled inwardly, recalling how the woman had a flair for the dramatic.
Keeping his hold on Lady Erica, he turned his head to answer the Countess. “Hello again
Countess, Erica and I were just enjoying the evening air-”
Nick cut off as he heard Erica gasp, and spin away from him. He felt her gaze on him, but kept his eyes on his old friend.
“Nicholas Wellington, you will explain to me, right now, exactly what is going on here!” the Countess demanded, once more.
At that moment, Linnus Campbell came upon them, having heard Madam Richardson's shouting. He had been searching for his eldest daughter, not liking that she had gotten away from his protective gaze. When he heard the yelling, he quickened his pace.
Seeing his daughter caught in the Countess' glare, along with Nick Wellington, he demanded,
“What the devil is going on here?”
“Oh, yes, the devil indeed, Sir Linnus!” Indignity poured into every word from Madam's mouth. “Your hussy of a daughter must have thrown herself at my poor Nicholas! This is just outrageous I tell you, outrageous!”
Linnus glanced at his daughter, who was clearly distress by the situation at hand. Erica was frowning and shaking her head at him in denial. That was all the confirmation that he needed from her. It was obvious that this was a misunderstanding. His daughter would never deliberately ruin her reputation, of that he was certain. “Now wait just a minute Agnes, there must be another possible explanation for what is going on here.”
“Despicable, Linnus! Absolutely despicable!” Madam thundered. “Your opportunistic daughter is trying to trap our poor Nicholas into marriage. Why else would he put his hands on her?” That had Linnus seeing red. Just the thought of a man putting their hands on his daughter...
“Wellington!” he thundered.
Seeing that there was about to be a major scene, one which she most definitely did not want being written about in tomorrow's dailies, the Countess drew everyone's attention by roaring, “Enough!”
Turning to Erica and Nick she said, “You two will come to my study, immediately!” to Linnus she turned and said, “Come now Linnus, for there will be reparation made on this night, or so help me!” Turning on her heal, she left the balcony and headed back inside. Linnus' eyes were boring into Nick and he looked like he wanted to strangle him, but Nick knew that he wouldn't do anything at the event. He followed the direction of his old friend and Erica followed him, as instructed. Linnus brought up the rear, absolutely furious.
Erica didn't know why Nick did not set the woman straight. She had only just met the man! How could this be happening?
As the small party followed the Countess into the study, the rest of the ball looked at them in astonishment. They knew that something must have happened. Whispers flew throughout the room and Erica knew that her reputation was ruined. She saw Abbie rushing through the crowd to get to her, but she didn't want her friend having any part of this. It was bad enough that her reputation had been ruined. She didn't want to do that to her friend, as well.
Entering into the study, she sat down on a cushion opposite of Nick, as her father shut the door. His face grim, Linnus entered the room, and waited to hear what the Countess would say.
Chapter 2
Countess Agnes Richardson sat in her seat behind her desk and looked out at them. Erica knew that this situation was not good. She felt completely humiliated, and yet she had done nothing wrong. She had gone out on the balcony to get away from trouble, but that's exactly what she had somehow found. The look on her father's face still said that he would gladly do bodily harm to the Duke.
Seated across from him, Erica took the opportunity to study the man who was at the center of disgrace with her. He was not paying her any attention. No matter how horrified she was that the Countess had thought she had acted indecently, Nick was apparently not concerned with the possibility of disgrace. His disposition was still so calm, and assured, and confident. She had no doubt that he was a man who could handle himself in any situation.
Erica saw that Nick was staring intently at the Countess, as though he was anticipating what she was going to say. They didn't have long to wait.
“Out of all the foolishness that I did not want to find out on my balcony tonight, seeing you two lovebirds make a spectacle of yourselves was not one of them!” Speaking directly to Nick, she made her ideas about this situation known. “Nicholas, you know that this woman's reputation is now ruined. No matter how things came to be tonight, everyone at this party saw that there was inappropriate behavior going on. Under my own roof! I demand to know right now, if you would be willing to save this girl's honor. Do you understand what I am telling you, boy? Will you marry the girl?”
Before he could answer, Linnus jumped up and said, “Wait a moment Agnes! Marriage, really? We don't even know what actually happened between them out there, let us hear their explanation.”
The Countess was having none of it. “Linnus, it does not matter one way or another. I know what I saw and everyone at my ball tonight saw your daughter and the Duke of Eastham in questionable circumstances. The situation must be rectified. They must be married now.”
“Agnes please! It's not too late. Erica still has the chance for a good marriage arrangement. You must go out and tell everyone-”
Deeply incensed, the Countess shot up from her chair. “Do you dare to suggest that my dear boy,
Lord Nicholas Wellington, would be anything other than an ideal match for your hussy of a girl!”
Flushed with frustration and desperation, Linnus replied, “Well, it is no secret about the state of his finances-”
“Let me end your absurd statement before you dig yourself any deeper. The Wellingtons are old acquaintances of this family and they come from old money. Good money! I have every confidence that our Nicholas will bring his family's fortune back up in good time. I have known this boy his entire life and if anyone can do it, he can.”
Completely at a loss, Linnus backed down and seemed prepared to brace himself for whatever this evening may bring.
Nick drew everyone's attention when he said, “Madam, to answer your question, yes, I will agree to a marriage arrangement between Erica and I. We will not wait to marry, we will see it done as quickly as possible.”
Beaming at him, the Countess expressed her pleasure in Nick's agreement to marry the girl and save her reputation. “Well done, my boy!”
Panicking, Erica jumped up and said, “But I do not know this man! How can we be married when we've only just met?”
“My girl,” the Countess replied, “count your blessings. A gentleman, a Duke nonetheless, has agreed to take your hand in marriage after your scandalous behavior tonight. He is saving you from bringing shame onto yourself and your family. You have my word, he will make you a good husband.”
Erica's head was spinning. A Duke. She would be married to a Duke. A penniless Duke. What about her father's business? This couldn't be happening. How had her chances of helping her father to save his business been so completely ruined?
Nick saw the worry and panic wash over her face. Those feelings
were only natural, given the circumstances. But the one emotion that got to him was the desperation. Erica had nothing to despair. He would do everything he could to make her a good husband. She would make it easy, he thought with a smile. His future wife was enchanting. Her beautiful looks extended to her personality. Her sweet smiles and gentle disposition were a treasure he looked forward to receiving. She had completely bewitched him and he was so pleased with her.
Erica felt Nick take her elbow. Thoroughly disheartened by the recent turn of events, she didn't want to look at him. He tilted her head up so that their eyes met. She saw his determination. Oddly enough, his strength increased her own resolve. Aching inside, her worry for herself and for her father threatening to drown her, she tried to smile at him, this man who would be her husband. Her lips trembled with her effort to give him assurance of her willingness to try, and his answering smile melted her insides.
The Countess drew their attention when she said, “Now that it's settled, let's go and announce our good news to everyone.” Cheerfully guiding them out of the study to stand at the railing above the parlor where everyone was gathered, the Countess took her position at the top of the railing, overlooking the crowd below them. Erica stood by Nick, hoping to draw comfort from him in some way. Her arm brushed his, and he took her arm, securely linking it through his.
“Attention everyone, attention!” she called out. The Countess had their complete attention immediately, because they had all been anxiously anticipating hearing what had transpired tonight. They all wanted to know Erica's fate. Would the Duke marry her to save her reputation, or was she ruined for good?
Given all that occurred that night, Erica supposed that she was indeed lucky, as the Countess had affirmed. Erica began to take heart. A shining sliver of hope began to grow within her. Maybe they could make this a wonderful marriage. She liked his touch, and his presence. She liked his demeanor and the Countess seemed to have faith in his ability to provide an income. But what kind of husband would he really be?
“Hello everyone! We have some absolutely wonderful news this evening, don't we Nicholas? Linnus, Erica, come over here,” she instructed. With their arms still linked, Nick and Erica joined her side, followed by Linnus. Facing the audience once more, the Countess announced, “In a very pleasing turn of events, a marriage between His Grace, Nicholas Wellington, Duke of Eastham, and Erica Campbell, has been arranged.” Erica saw Abbie gasp in complete disbelief, but she couldn't offer any reassurance to her friend. Abbie had to be burning with curiosity. Surely she knew that Erica would never compromise herself in such a scandalous way.
The Countess finished her speech by saying, “Please join me everyone in offering congratulations to the happy couple!”
A cheer built slowly up from the crowd. The occurrence was completely unexpected, but the Countess was in support of this union, so they would follow her example. The cheers grew in volume when the Duke leaned down to kiss his new fiancé. Nick's warm, firm mouth settled over Erica's in a brief, but no-nonsense kiss that had desire shooting straight from her head to the tips of her toes. His kiss left her stunned and dazed. Breathing deeply and flushed with heat, she gazed into his eyes now, and she saw promise. She saw her future. God help her, she was actually beginning to look forward to this.
A motion at the bottom of the stairs caught her attention. Abbie was beginning to climb the steps, but she was stopped by Randall. Erica was desperate for a few minutes alone with her friend. She wanted to tell her what had happened in the very short about of time since they had last parted. Maybe once she told her everything, Abbie could help her to make sense of it all.
Nick tugged at her arm, prompting her to follow him down the stairs. Passing Abbie, she quickly squeezed her arm and told her to pay her a visit in the morning. Nodding in adamant agreement, that was exactly what Abbie would be doing.
The Countess had ordered a champagne toast for them and the flutes were being distributed to the guests. When everyone had been served, the Countess held up her glass, and faced Nick and Erica. “To Lord Nicholas and Erica! May your marriage be blessed with infinite happiness and may your fondness and affection for each other continue to grow every day. Cheers, to the happy couple!”
Erica lifted her glass to her lips. Cheers, indeed. She was going to need all the help she could get. She hoped she would have a happy life with Nicholas Wellington. He glanced over at her and caught her staring at him. He winked at her. Blushing, she looked away, and she heard his soft laugh.
Arm-in-arm, Nick and Erica accepted well-wishes from those who stopped to congratulate them.
One of the well-wishers didn't look very well-wishing, at all. Seth Collins gained their attention by sliding up to them and grabbed Erica's hand. He looked deeply into Erica's eyes and kissed the back of her hand, saying, “I wish you both the very best of luck.”
Not wanting to be rude in front of her husband-to-be, and feeling assured that Nick was there and could protect her from this vile creature, she smiled at him and said, “Why thank you, kind sir.” Seth walked away, pausing to turn back to look at her once more, and then made his exit from the building.
Wiping the back of her hand against her dress, Erica looked up at Nick to see what he had made of that interaction, but he was staring straight ahead, and not at her.
It had taken Nick all the discipline he had not to send Collins flying out the door on his backside. He had put his mouth on her. Nick wanted to hit him, for daring to touch what belonged to him. Erica didn't seem to mind their interaction. He thought that if she was still harboring any feelings towards Collins, she could just forget about it.
Suddenly appearing at their side, her father begged to have a word with them. Linnus still looked miserable about the situation, yet resigned to it. They retreated to the study, once more, closing the door behind them.
He lit into Nick at once. “Well, Wellington, it would seem that you are going to get your wish, after all. You and I are going to be business partners. We will go through with this God forsaken marriage arrangement. But I warn you now,” he said, his eyes glittering with his promise, “if anything happens to my daughter, if you mistreat her in anyway, I will kill you myself. Do you understand me, you rogue bastard?”
Overlooking the insult, because he had gotten his way, and Linnus had acknowledged that they would be business partners, Nick made him a solemn vow. “Erica is going to be my wife. She will be treated well and provided for. There's staff to look out for her needs, she will be well-attended.”
Losing some of his steam, Linnus nodded his head. Turning to his daughter, he said, “I am so sorry my dear, but it would appear as though we don't have much time to plan a large wedding, which is exactly what you deserve to be having.”
Erica looked to see what Nick would have to say about that, but he only stared back at her.
Nick couldn't care less for weddings. He thought the things were overrated, overdone, and too costly. No, Erica would not have a large wedding, Nick thought. He would make it up to her by making sure that she never wanted for anything. His wife was going to live very well.
Not wanting her father to worry, Erica said, “It's alright papa. A huge wedding is an expense that we can do without. Besides, it wouldn't be the same without mother there. I shall be fine without one.”
Smiling at his daughter, he was grateful that she was taking this well. While he was grateful to be spared the expense, he knew weddings were special to a woman, and he wanted that for her. Looking over at his future son-in-law, he knew that it wasn't meant to be.
“Wellington, when do we need to arrange this wedding for?”
Nick wanted to get started immediately on the ways he could use the money from Erica's dowry to put his plans in motion. Even though Linnus would be his business partner, he knew he would have to take care of things on his end, as well. “Tomorrow. I will arrange for Father David to come to your residence. We will be married at eleven o’clock, sharp, and Erica will return home wit
h me.”
Erica's eyes flew to his. “Tomorrow?” She cried, “You cannot be serious! Shouldn't we at least get to know each other better, before we marry?”
Nick's jaw tightened in his determination. “The Countess was right. There will be gossip about tonight's events that will threaten not only your reputation, but that of our business reputation, as well. Waiting to marry would only make it worse. We will have plenty of time to get to know each other after we are wed.”
Nick didn't care if she turned into the she-devil herself after they wed. He would lock her away in one of his many estates, if it came down to that. They were getting married tomorrow, no matter what.
Knowing that Nick was right about the gossip, Erica agreed with him. “Alright, tomorrow at eleven, we will be married.”
Nick smiled at her acceptance of their situation.
Erica looked at the man who was to be her husband and thought to herself that she could have done a lot worse. She could have ended up married to a boring man whose touch she couldn't bear. But instead, she was marrying a handsome man who thrilled her. Her heart beat wildly now as she thought of spending all of her days, and her nights, with Nick.
Bidding her goodnight, he took her hand in his, bowed over it, and kissed the back of her hand once more. Their eyes burned with awareness of the heat that arose between them, just like before.
“Tomorrow,” he told her, releasing her hand.
Nodding to her father, Nick left them alone with each other. Linnus looked hopelessly at his daughter. What had they gotten into?
Chapter 3
Erica couldn't breathe. It was her wedding day. She looked at the beautiful sapphire blue dress that lay on her bed. It was to be her wedding dress. Her father had bought it for her before the season began in the fall. Her season was now over. In a way, she felt like her life was over. Engaged to marry a Duke without a fortune, she had no idea what kind of life was in store for her. Her heart twisted painfully in her chest, as she imagined every unfortunate event that could possibly happen to her.
