The Duke of My Heart (Regency Romance)

by Hanna Hamilton

  “I am going to tie your hair up now; I hope that is alright with you?”

  “Thank you very much, Daisy, that is kind of you.”

  Iris watched Amy’s face reflected in the mirror for a few moments, admiring the joy shining in her eyes. This girl was truly beautiful, naturally so. With her name and her stunning looks, she would be inundated with marital offers. Iris just hoped that the master would choose her someone much more suitable than her father chose for her. She did not think another switch would be a good idea.

  If this lovely young lady could find the right man, then her life would be as wonderful as she deserved. Maybe Iris would even be brought into her new life with her. The idea of starting over with a new set of staff scared her, but if she could continue to help Amy then it wouldn’t be too bad.

  Anyway, Iris was getting ahead of herself. She was planning for a potential future that was not even on the horizon yet.

  “Do you have learning to do today?” she asked to change the subject rapidly.

  “No, I have told the governess that I need to wait for my brother,” Amy told her seriously. “I will not be able to concentrate so it should be a waste of time.”

  Iris’s eyes drifted off of Amy and onto herself for just a minute. It was not so long ago that she was sitting in the other seat, having her hair done, but being on this side of the chair was preferable. To Iris at least. Where she stood now, Iris shone more, she looked healthier and better. She felt more content with herself and her life.

  The switch had been terrifying, but it had led to some truly wonderful things.

  “So, what would you like to do today while we wait? Would you like to read, or write, or...”

  “I think I would like to take a walk in the gardens,” Amy answered happily. “Would you care to join me?”

  “Of course. But do not forget your hat, the sun is shining very brightly, it would not be good for you to get burnt.”

  Iris felt very excited by that idea. Since living under the Oakley roof, she had not been given enough time to explore the outside area of this house. She had spent a little bit of time gazing out the window, thinking how lovely it was, but the thought of walking through the grass out there felt wonderful.

  The heat from the sun washed over Iris right away which instantly brought a smile to her face. She had never realized before how affected by the weather she actually was.

  “This is nice,” Amy commented happily. “I feel much calmer out here. There is something about the fresh air that clears my brain.”

  “I feel the same way,” Iris commented. She really did feel like she could breathe much better out here. She sucked in a deep breath and smiled brightly. “So tell me all about yourself, Amy, I feel like there is still a lot to you that I do not know.”

  Amy laughed a sweet tinkling sound. Now that her new handmaiden had stuck around for a while, she felt more open to speaking about herself. “What is it you would like to know?”

  “Everything.” Iris extended her arms wildly. “Tell me more about your childhood, what was it like growing up in such a large home?” She knew it might be very similar to her own upbringing, but she wasn’t Iris Warwick. As far as Amy knew, she was Daisy Jones. “It must have been very exciting. It will be nice for me to hear stories about how the other half lives."

  “Well, sometimes it was great, but there were times that...”

  As Amy started to talk, Iris opened her ears. She wanted to know everything about this girl, least of all to take her mind off of what was to come. She liked Amy, it was nice to discover all there was to her, and now that she was being much more open Iris knew that she would get a much clearer picture.

  Maybe it wasn’t a direct story about how ‘the other half lived’, but Amy still lived her life in a very different than Iris so it was fascinating to hear her story. Iris could have listened to it all day long... especially if it kept her away from the inside of the house where she did not even want to know what was happening.

  The longer she could keep away, the longer she could avoid the dreaded meeting. Even though she knew that she was going to have to face it eventually, she wanted to be fully mentally prepared.

  If that was even possible.

  * * *

  Iris did not need to be told that the master was home when she and Amy got back inside, it was instantly obvious from the change in atmosphere. There was a much stronger professional feel to the house. All the relaxing that she had done all morning vanished and her insides tied themselves up all over again.

  “Is my brother home?” Amy gasped excitedly, feeling exactly the opposite to Iris. “Is he here? Can I go and speak with him?”

  “He is very tired from his long journey,” Mr. Shipman warned. “But I am sure that he would like to see you, Amy. He is in his office, organizing his paperwork.”

  “Come on, Daisy.”

  Amy grabbed hold of Iris’s hand and she dragged her along the hallway with her. Iris wanted to resist, she did not want to see the master before it was absolutely necessary, but there was also no reason to resist. Lord could not think of any reason she could give not to go along with Amy. Maybe once they got to his office she could make her escape. It was very unlikely that she would be taken inside.

  Her heart raced, she could feel an iciness travelling up and down her spine, fear clutched at her chest and squeezed tightly on her lungs.

  Amy did not let go of Iris’s hand until they both stood outside the master’s office. The large wooden doors appeared much more intimidating than Iris’s father’s office, but somehow there wasn’t that pure air of terror surrounding it. Iris was scared herself, but that wasn’t because of this office.

  “Will you wait for me?” Amy asked, now sounding a little anxious. “Will you sit out here while I go inside?”

  No, let me go, I want to hide! Iris thought inside her mind.

  “Of course I will,” she answered aloud instead. “I shall take a seat here and wait for you to come out.”

  Amy slid into her brother’s office without even bothering to knock on the door. She was that confident she was wanted that she didn’t have to, which made Iris wish that it had been the same way for her. Maybe things would have been different if she had come from a very close family...

  Time passed. Iris wasn’t sure how much, but it felt like forever. The longer that Amy spent inside that room, the worse Iris felt for simply sitting there. She might have been doing her duty and looking after the lady as she had been assigned to do, but she felt awkward doing nothing. She could have been cleaning or tidying, even polishing the silver, instead of anxiously waiting on the edge of her seat.

  Iris tried to hum a tune to herself for distraction, she attempted to tell herself a story, she even tried to lose herself in one of her famous daydreams, but nothing was working.

  As the door clicked, Iris jumped up from her seat and she brushed her clothing down. She did her best to rearrange her expression into something a lot more neutral than she felt inside.

  “Oh, thank you so much for waiting, Daisy.”

  Amy appeared and she seemed to be alone. The master was still in his room. Iris breathed deeply as she realized that at least for the time being she was safe.

  “Of course, anything you need. How is... how is your brother?” For some reason that felt really strange to say, and she wasn’t sure why.

  “He is good, tired from his journey, but very well.” Amy linked her arm through Iris’s. “He wants to buy a new boat, which is what he has been negotiating.”

  “A boat?” That sounded very exotic to Iris. The idea of a boat and of travelling on the water to different lands sounded wonderful. “What does he need a boat for?”

  “He deals in trade. I do not know too much about it, but it keeps him terribly busy.”

  “I can imagine...”

  “Amy,” a deep voice boomed through the hallway, causing both the girls to spin on the spot. “You left your ribbon behind.”

  “Oh sorry.�
�

  Iris’s heart stopped dead in her chest as she spotted the man calling out to Amy, her brain tumbled and fell. She no longer knew what to think, any panic that she had been feeling previously doubled... tripled even.

  This was certainly a man that had been in her home, one that had attended the ball, and it was a face that she knew well. His dark hair, those beautiful eyes, those broad shoulders...

  Lord Ewan.

  Instantly Iris was transported back to a different time in her life, one where she was a maid at the ball she was supposed to be attending as a guest. One where a lovely gentleman spoke to her in the hallway and he held her close. They danced illicitly, his hands brushed against her hips and he made her feel a million different things at once.

  “See? It is much better to dance as we please,” he had whispered lightly into her ear.

  She hadn’t wanted the moment to end, she had wanted to cling onto this man forever. If Daisy hadn’t interrupted their special moment, then she might never have let him go. It was a memory that she hadn’t wanted to forget either, but she had forced herself to do so, to move on with her life.

  Now she couldn’t think of anything else.

  That moment where they had danced, it was the most magical and special that Iris had ever felt. It was the closest thing to love. Even then it could never become real, but now the possibility was even further away. Iris was a maid in his home.

  She needed to run.

  Without even thinking, Iris turned on her heels to move, but before she could get anywhere Amy called her back.

  “Daisy, come here a moment, meet my brother.”

  Iris slid her eyes closed and she groaned internally. Why could she never catch a break? Still, she couldn’t defy what her lady wanted, and she certainly couldn’t ignore her master. She just had to hope that he wouldn’t remember... although, if he didn’t remember her that might crush her too.

  “Of course.”

  Iris could hear her footsteps breaking the silence as she walked. Every step that she took brought her closer to what could possibly be the end. Ewan could decide that she wasn’t suitable to have around, he might find her presence far too distracting. He had hinted that he liked her as they shared a dance, which could prove to be a problem.

  Iris thought that she had forgotten his sweet words on that night, but with him here they all came flooding right back.

  “It is a shame that you are not in the grand hall wearing a fancy dress.”

  “If you were a lady, you would already know the steps, but then again I might not want to dance with you then.”

  “I do not like to play by the rules.”

  He had been so lovely with her, it was unbearable to think that could be her downfall.

  “Ewan, this is my new handmaiden. Her name is Daisy.”

  Ewan's eyes slowly moved off the piece of paper in his hand. Clearly, he was so involved with the business that he was currently attending to that he hadn't even realized that she was there. As their eyes connected and bolts of electricity raced through Iris's system, she waited with baited breath to see how he would react.

  At first, there was a blankness to his expression, he showed no emotion in his eyes. Then recognition hit him hard. He knew this girl; she was the beautiful one from the ball. Here in his home. He went from happiness, to shock, to fear, and all the way to disappointment again.

  “Hello, Daisy, is it?” The only thing he could do was deny all knowledge.

  “Erm, yes.” Iris curtsied, this time it felt like the right thing to do. “It is nice to meet you, Lord Oakley.”

  “Daisy is wonderful, Ewan, I love her a lot.” Amy seemed completely unaware of any tension surrounding them all. “We have a great time together, don’t we, Daisy? She has been a good friend to me.”

  The tears that balled up behind Iris’s eyes were half because of Amy referring to her as a friend, and half because the man of her dreams was in the house and there was nothing that she could do about it. If Iris was going to stay in the Oakley household, she would have to witness Ewan marry, and possibly fall in love with another woman right in front of her very eyes.

  It would be absolutely torturous.

  Then again, what else could she do?

  “Well, I am glad to hear that you are having such a nice time.” Ewan’s back straightened, his face hardened. He needed to escape this situation before it overwhelmed him completely. “I need to get back into my office now, I would like to remain undisturbed all day long.”

  On the one hand, that meant Iris would not be having her very awkward meeting with the master of the house, but on the other, she would not be able to clear the air at all. That was going to be really hard.

  Again, she was back in a world where she didn’t have a say. Iris didn’t totally feel like her wings had been clipped, but they’d been tied behind her back. She squeezed her lips tightly together while she tried to figure out what to do next.

  “Of course, I will let everyone know.” Iris curtsied once more, deciding to remain professional. If Ewan wanted to keep up the pretense that they did not know one another then she would do the same. At least for now. “It is nice to meet you, Lord Oakley.”

  Chapter 21

  Oh, my goodness.

  Iris felt like she was going to be sick. Her stomach churned, her chest fluttered, her knees knocked together with fear. Seeing Ewan had unleashed a lot. In all honesty, it made Iris realise just how insane this whole plan was.

  How on Earth did she think that she was going to pull this off forever? Why hadn’t she thought this through properly? Yes, she and Daisy had managed to keep her sisters away from the ball, but they wouldn’t remain out of her life forever. Eventually one of them – probably Elizabeth – would want to visit her in her new home. Maybe to see how she was coping as a newlywed. Elizabeth had been very worried about Iris. She was the one who warned her against marrying the Duke because of his reputation in the first place. The sudden decision to go through with the wedding after all had probably come as a huge shock to her.

  Then eventually Daisy would have children. There would be no keeping either of Iris’s sisters away then. What would happen if they came to visit? Maybe Daisy would be able to placate Elizabeth with the right words, but there was no way she’d be able to convince Olivia. The whole debacle would be exposed and everyone would be ruined.

  Iris would never be able to be seen again, Daisy’s life would be wrecked, the entire Warwick family would be ruined. Duke Pembroke would suffer as well, as would Elizabeth’s husband and Olivia’s daughter. Ewan and Amy would be impacted as well. There were too many people that could be affected by this, Iris had to make sure that the secret would be kept.

  But how could she do it?

  Iris paced up and down inside her tiny bedroom as terror swallowed her up. She couldn't let this defeat her, somehow she needed to come up with a good plan to ensure that nothing would ever come out. This was absolutely massive, and it had to be handled delicately.

  At first, Iris considered writing a letter to Elizabeth. That was an address that she knew well, but it felt too dangerous. Not only could the meaning easily be lost in translation, the information could also fall into the wrong hands. Maybe someone would read it along the way, or Elizabeth’s husband would see it first.

  No, that was something that Iris could not risk. Elizabeth’s husband would never be able to keep the secret.

  There was also the chance that Elizabeth would visit her here, which would be a nightmare. There was no way that she could explain that one away.

  Really, there was only one way that this could be solved, but again it came with a lot of risks. She needed to go and visit Elizabeth. At least at first, she would be enough. If Iris could get Elizabeth on her side, then maybe everyone else would come around too.

  But she could not just go to the city alone. If she left the Oakley household without permission to do so, she would end up losing her job. She did not want to have to give up her lif
e here, even if it was more challenging with Lord Oakley around.

  Still, he was a busy man, he did not spend much time in the house. It would not always be difficult.

  As Iris came to the conclusion that she would have to ask the Lord for his permission to go back home, she could almost feel the mask that she’d built up for herself slipping away. It was as if she’d spent the last few weeks disguised at a masquerade ball, and now someone had come along and ripped off her mask.

  Iris felt raw, exposed, a little muddy inside.

  She forced herself to lie down on her bed and to close her eyes. Iris would have to speak to the Lord at some point, she needed to face her fears, but there wasn’t anything she could do about it right now in the middle of the night. She absolutely had to get some sleep before exhaustion came for her...

  * * *

  “Daisy, I remember you.” Ewan smiled at her in the same way that he did on that wonderful night. They stood in the hallway outside his office, only this time Amy was not there. Maybe that was why Ewan felt like he could speak so much more freely. “It is so good to see you again, I have been trying to find you ever since that night. You made such an impression on me that I have not been able to think of anyone else.”

  “Oh, Ewan,” Iris gasped happily. “It is so good to hear you say that, I thought you did not want to know me anymore.”

  Ewan grabbed hold of Iris’s hands and he pulled her in closer to him. As her body pressed up against his, Iris felt those explosions all over her again. No one would ever make her feel this way again, it was only him. This had to be love, there was no other explanation.

  Iris hoped that made everything else about this alright.

  “How could I not want to know you, Daisy? I fell in love with you that night, and I have wanted nothing more than to dance with you again.”

  He moved his body and music burst out around them. It was as if they had a personal orchestra just for them. Iris fell into the same dance mode as she had on that magical night. She did not worry about steps or timing, she simply enjoyed the way that Ewan made her feel. With her heart racing and a bright smile on her face, she was happy once more.