Dukes to Fall in Love With: A Historical Regency Romance Collection

by Bridget Barton

  Madelene knew that Maria was right, but they couldn’t possibly take everything with them. They needed to pack lightly to avoid her aunt catching onto their plans.

  “Surely I do not need that many undergarments – leave the corsets behind, Leticia needs them more than I do!”

  Leticia, her cousin, enjoyed her pudding rather too much, and it showed on her pudgy figure. Netty, on the other hand, was as thin as her sister was big. They were a mismatched pair– not many would know that they were twins at first glance. Madelene believed that they would have been prettier if not for the loss of intelligence. They were quite dim-witted, bending to the will of their mother in all things, even if it meant getting married to two young men that had nothing in common with them. Madelene refused to believe that any woman with enough sense in her head would allow herself to be forced to marry a man that was apparently a lousy match. Or perhaps she simply did not fit into this world of social etiquette and formal rules. It seemed that she was continually breaking some rule as a woman, but the men seemed to get away with many immoral activities.

  “Poor Letty. She would do well to pass on the dessert or she may find herself fighting some rather unsightly spillage,” said Maria. “But a lady needs good structure under her dress, Madelene. We must make a good impression once we arrive in America– do it for your father, if not for yourself.”

  Maria knew just how to get her to do something that she did not particularly want to do. One mention of her father, and she would acquiesce to whatever Maria wanted of her. A knock on the door alarmed them both, and they scrambled to ensure that nothing was amiss in the room.

  “You may enter,” said Madelene.

  A young maid entered her room and dutifully curtsied, her eyes on the floor.

  “Miss Madelene, the Mistress wishes to see you in the music room.”

  Fear gripped her. Her aunt often entertained esteemed guests in the music room. Could the Earl have chosen to collect her now rather than later? Madelene glanced at her window, desperation filling her. Surely I’ll be able to climb out of this window and disappear into the darkness? A gentle hand touched her elbow, grounding her. The young maid was still staring, her brow slightly puckered. Say something, Madelene!

  “Th–thank you, Rebecca, I’ll be there shortly.”

  Madelene waited for the maid to leave the room before rounding on her abigail.

  “What could Aunt Cornelia want with me, Maria?”

  “It must be about the Earl,” she said. “If it is, you must not lose your temper, but do not be so accepting of it either. Do you understand?”

  Madelene started pacing, her mind filling with terrible notions.

  “Do you suppose that she will lock me up until the Earl arrives? She must know that I shall be against this union. I cannot get married to an old man, Maria, I will not!”

  “Madelene!” Maria scolded. “You must learn to control your tongue, child. What good will come of angering your aunt?”

  Madelene could feel the first pinpricks of tears behind her eyes. Up until that moment, she had not allowed herself to give into hysterics, but as their day of departure drew near, her nerves were on edge.

  “Oh, Maria, how can you say that? Do you not see that I am under the hatches? If only my father were here! He would not allow such an atrocity to take place.”

  “Yes,” Maria replied. “Your father would never allow this union, but he is not here, ma cherie. There is only you, Giles, and I. We must have hope that our plan will be successful. Now, you must not tarry– your aunt is not a woman who waits.”

  Madelene nodded, allowing Maria to fix her hair before leaving her room. She descended the stairs with much trepidation, fearing what was to come. Madelene was a woman who thought nothing of dressing up in men’s clothing and meeting with pirates, but the meeting that was to take place had the power to change the course of her life forever, and there was nothing that her father could do to save her.

  *****

  Cornelia could not play a musical instrument, but she had enforced it upon her daughters from an early age. Both Letty and Netty were accomplished piano players and could sing well enough. Of course, once Madelene came, she was able to surpass her daughters in both the piano and in singing. Was there nothing that she was not better at? The thought left her with a bitter taste in her mouth. Despite her inability to play, the music room was still her favourite room. Cornelia ran her fingers over the keys, imagining herself playing a beautiful melody that would earn her the adoration and applause of her audience. She closed her eyes, seeing the notes flow from her fingertips and into the air around her. She became invested in the image she created in her mind, so much so that she did not hear the door being opened and closed. It was that wretched voice that broke her dream.

  “Aunt Cornelia? Are you quite alright?”

  Cornelia snatched her fingers away from the piano and stood up, embarrassed to have been caught in such a position.

  “Do you not knock?” she snapped.

  “Forgive me, Aunt, but I did knock,” Madelene said.

  “Then you must not have done it properly! Can you not do anything right, Madelene?”

  The girl remained silent and clasped her hands before her. Cornelia found her countenance strange; the girl appeared subdued and in low spirits.

  “Are you unwell, Madelene?” she asked.

  The girl stood up straighter and attempted a smile, but it was a far cry from her usual disposition.

  “No, Aunt Cornelia. I am quite well, I assure you.”

  Cornelia indicated a seat and waited for Madelene to sit down. She would not sit down, as she needed to keep the upper hand. Far better for her to be looking down than to be at eye level.

  “I have some good news for you, Madelene. It would seem that your uncle has indeed been fortunate enough to secure an enviable match for you.”

  Cornelia watched as emotion passed over Madelene’s face before it was replaced with a closed expression.

  “A match, Aunt Cornelia? I’m afraid that I do not understand.”

  “Come come, now, Madelene. Surely you are not so dim-witted as not to realise that I speak of your future? You are to be married! Is that not a wonderful thing?”

  Cornelia smiled. She was enjoying this immensely, but she had expected more of a reaction from the young girl. Her niece’s eyes were closely guarded, but her chin trembled.

  “Married? But I have not met any suitors, Aunt Cornelia. Surely I cannot get married to a man that I do not know?”

  The young woman was painfully trying to control her emotions, but whether she flew into hysterics or remained silent was of no consequence to Cornelia. The details had been set: tomorrow the Earl would arrive to take his young bride.

  “Nonsense! It is not necessary to know everything about your husband. I will inform you that he is an Earl, highly respected with a great fortune. You will be well looked after and will want for nothing.”

  Cornelia dared not divulge the details of his past. The girl need not know that her husband-to-be was a murderer and a rake of the highest degree. Rumours abounded where the Earl was concerned. No money in the world would have her give one of her daughters in marriage to him– better this trollop than her sweet and wholesome daughters.

  “Does my father know of these plans? I am sure that he would not agree to his only daughter being married off to a man that she has neither seen nor heard about.”

  Cornelia pursed her lips. Trust the chit to throw that in my face. She was well aware that Cardross would forbid such a match; the man was a fool and could not be depended upon to see the things in the manner that she did. He had allowed his daughter far too much freedom and then proceeded to dump her into her controlled existence. No, there was nothing for it: Cardross must not find out until they were confident that the Earl could silence his wife.

  “Your father placed you in the care of your uncle; that gives him the right to act on his behalf. As your guardian and only brother of your fat
her, your uncle found it necessary to find you a worthy husband. It would not do for my daughters to be betrothed and yet have their older cousin remain a spinster– what would people say?”

  Cornelia could have laughed. Her performance was a wonderful thing to behold– she almost convinced herself of her lie! For extra measure, she placed her hand upon her bosom and sniffed. Madelene looked down, no doubt disturbed by the news. The little chit should be grateful! When the girl looked up again, the dead expression had returned.

  “I understand, Aunt Cornelia. May I return to my bedchamber to rest? I fear that the news has been a great shock to me. I will require some time to digest all that you have told me. You say that the Earl will come tomorrow?”

  Cornelia nodded. “At first light, I am told. He is most eager to meet his new wife. Of course, we would have held the ceremony here, but your husband-to-be is an impatient man. The wedding ceremony will take place in London.”

  “And will you attend my wedding?”

  Cornelia stifled an unladylike snort. Once she saw the back of Madelene’s head, she had no intentions of seeing her again. No, once the young girl stepped into that carriage, she would have washed her hands of her. The only fly in her ointment was her husband; he appeared to be remorseful of his actions despite all the positive consequences the situation had garnered. She would have to keep an eye on him.

  “Unfortunately not, Madelene. With Letty and Nettys’ weddings approaching, I am simply too busy to make the trip to London and return in good time to complete the arrangements. No, as much as it pains me to say this, I cannot come. I do hope that you understand?”

  Madelene nodded and stood up, keeping her eyes on the carpet.

  “Thank you, Aunt Cornelia. I shall take your leave and rest for a little while.”

  “Of course, dear,” Cornelia answered. “This has been exciting news, has it not? You need not come down for dinner; I will have a tray sent up for you.”

  Madelene nodded and turned away, taking her time to cross to the door. Cornelia waited a few moments after the door was closed to give a shout of laughter.

  “I’m finally rid of her! Oh, what good fortune! By this time tomorrow, Madelene will have left my home forever to be closeted in the control of the Earl. He is just the man to curb her rebellious ways.”

  Cornelia returned to the piano and placed her fingers upon the keys again, imagining herself the focus of an appreciative audience. If there was one thing that could be said of Cornelia, it was that she was a crafty woman who always got her way. She closed her eyes and hummed a soft melody. Within moments, her eyes flew open again as a disturbing thought entered her head. Madelene had seemed too docile for her liking. What if she runs away? Cornelia stood up, intent on ensuring that it did not happen. I will lock the girl in her bedchamber if need be! But as soon as the thought entered her head, common sense soon followed.

  “Where could the chit possibly disappear to? Her uncle is her only family, and we possess her inheritance. There is no possible way that she could leave this house.”

  Satisfied with her conclusion of the matter, Cornelia once again entered her world of music and adoration.

  *****

  Madelene was about to run up the stairs to her bedchamber, but she remembered herself and kept her pace at a leisurely walk.

  “A young lady does not run,” she mocked. “She walks as though floating on a bed of clouds! A young lady must not have her own notions; she is to be controlled by the notions of others! A young lady cannot choose her own husband; she is at the mercy of those that declare nothing but goodwill for her!”

  She gave a great sob at the end of her last words, quickly silencing herself with a hand to her mouth. There were maids around, always watching and ready to report to her aunt. She could not afford one of them to cry rope to her aunt. Remaining calm in her aunt’s presence had been torturous. Madelene had wanted to defend herself, to shout that she would not be coerced into a marriage of their doing, but it would not have helped her case in the slightest. Asking if her aunt was to attend the wedding had been a simple diversion. She needed her aunt to believe that she had accepted her fate when in fact she had not. Relief entered her when she reached her bedchamber and opened her door, immediately crying once she was safely inside. Upon seeing her teary countenance, Maria came toward her and drew her to the bed.

  “Whatever is the matter, Madelene? What did your aunt say?”

  Madelene struggled to get the words out of her mouth, flitting between anger and sorrow.

  “Oh, Maria. It’s terrible, it really is.”

  “Tell me, child,” she asked. “What did that woman say?”

  Madelene grabbed a fistful of her dress and dried her eyes, not caring that she had committed a faux pas.

  “She made it appear as though she was doing me a favour by getting me married off to some wretched old Earl! You should have seen her, Maria; she wasn’t in the least concerned about my well-being. To think that my father trusted them.”

  Maria pulled the folds of dress from her hands and gave her a lovely embroidered piece of cloth to dry her eyes.

  “Madelene, why do you fret so? By tomorrow midday, we will be gone from this place – Giles has arranged everything for us. The carriage will pick us up a little way down the road to take us into town. From there we will secure our passage to America upon one of the ships at the docks.”

  Madelene flounced from the bed. “But that is just the thing, Maria; we cannot wait until tomorrow midday for the Earl is to fetch me in the morning. Aunt informed me that he will arrive at first light.”

  Maria’s eyes widened as she took in this information. She looked away, clearly disturbed by the news. Madelene watched her as she stood up and paced the length of the room in great agitation.

  “That woman is the Devil himself. What is she thinking by bringing this man at such an ungodly hour? He must be in a hurry, but why? What would a few hours do?”

  She suddenly stopped. “Rest, child. I’ll go and see my Giles about this. Together, we will come up with a solution to counter this disturbing change to our plans.”

  Madelene nodded and returned to her bed, suddenly too weary to respond. Maria came to her and placed a light kiss on her brow.

  “Do not worry, ma cherie, your aunt will not best us. We will figure this out.”

  Madelene nodded and lay down, curling herself into a ball. She tucked her chin in as Maria drew a light cover over her. Moments later, she heard the soft click of the door as her abigail left the room.

  Maria found her husband outside tending to the soil. They were an unlikely couple, but they suited each other perfectly. Giles, strong and broad, was a soft-hearted man who preferred the outdoors to four walls. They had found each other in their late years upon Cardross’ ship, and it had been love at first sight. Maria would have laughed if anyone had told her that she would fall in love with a great hulking Englishman. But it had happened, and her life was better for it.

  “Mon amour,” she said, drawing his attention.

  He looked up and smiled. Maria didn’t even mind the few missing teeth.

  “It’s always a beautiful day when I see you, my love. Has Miss Madelene dismissed you so early?” he asked.

  “Non, but I have come with troubling news. Our plans have to change – we can no longer leave at midday.”

  Giles frowned and stood up from his hunched position leaving his dibble on the ground beside the seeds and bulbs that he intended to plant.

  “Why? Must I arrange the hired carriage for another day? I’m sure that Jeremy will not have a problem with this little change. You fret too much, Wife.”