The Duke of My Heart (Regency Romance)

by Hanna Hamilton

  “That is where my sister currently works anyway,” she continued rapidly, hoping that she could pull it off. “She has requested that I meet her there, I hope that is not too much trouble.”

  “Not at all, anywhere you need to go. My business is near that area anyway.” Ewan gave Iris a caring smile. “And you take as long as you need. If there is anything I can do to help, you must let me know.”

  “Thank you, but you have already done enough.”

  Iris could not have Ewan helping her because she had told him a lie, but it was lovely of him to offer. His words touched her deeply as she imagined what it’d be like if she was telling the truth. She pictured him assisting her and her sister with their father’s funeral and falling even deeper in love with her as he did.

  Then her mind raced towards the kissing again, without her even meaning it to, and Iris could feel her face flame with embarrassment. She could not think about such things while sitting right in front of Ewan, it was bad enough that she thought such things when she was alone!

  “Shall we leave then?” Ewan interrupted her thoughts, bringing her right back to the present moment.

  “Yes, we should,” Iris replied gratefully. “We still have far to go.”

  “Are you sure you have eaten enough?”

  Ewan seemed concerned as if he thought Iris might not eat again for a very long time. She supposed that maybe he truly did feel that way if he thought she was returning to the home of a lowborn family.

  “I have eaten better than I have done so in a very long time,” Iris replied honestly. “Thank you, I am ready to leave now.”

  They left the dining hall and walked back through the reception area. Ewan thanked the owner of the home and waved goodbye to her. This time, Iris did not hide behind him, she stood proudly and thanked the lady too. She felt less and less like she had anything to be ashamed of. The judgement of others did not affect her in the way that it once had.

  Iris felt a bounce in her step as she left the guest house behind Ewan because there was that much excitement balled up in her. The closer she got to Elizabeth, the happier she felt about it. It had been such a long time since she’d seen her, and now she would have the chance to spend some time with her. Even if there was no telling which way it would go, Iris felt positive.

  Something about this day felt wonderful and she hoped that would continue once she reached her sister’s home.

  As her carriage pulled away from the guest house, Iris gave it the long, lingering look she had given the Oakley home, just for a different reason. That was because the house was her home, this was because Ewan had allowed her to see a piece of his true self within those walls. He had opened himself up to her and made her fall for him even deeper.

  She just wished that she could give him the same. It was a shame that she had to hold so much of herself back. Iris felt like it was a real shame that she could not share any of her own childhood stories with Ewan, nor could she discuss with him any troubles that she had faced. That was the reason she could not consider really marrying him, even if she was in love. She would never be able to keep the mask fixed in place forever. Eventually, she would slip up and everything would unravel.

  It would be kinder for her to keep her distance now. It might hurt them both, but the pain would only be temporary. Eventually, they would be able to move on with most of their hearts intact.

  Maybe. Iris had made no solid decision about what she intended to do next. Maybe if things with Elizabeth went well she would gain the courage, to tell the truth about everything. By this point anything was possible.

  It seemed hard to accept now that once upon a time, Iris led a very stable and boring life. She remained in her bedroom, hidden away from the rest of the world, and she was truly content with that. She might have remained that way forever had she not been forced to change... but if she hadn’t, then she would not have come on this wild adventure. She would not have experienced time with this wonderful man.

  Even if their time together hadn’t always been easy, she wouldn’t want to change it for the world. That would be the truth even if things did not turn out the way that she wanted them to. The memory of this love was worth all the heartache that was sure to follow.

  As the carriage bumped along the road, Iris felt her eyes fluttering shut. It seemed the lack of sleep that she’d had over the last few weeks was finally catching up with her, and she could take it no longer. Or maybe it was because she finally had a sense of peace within her, which was strange considering what she was about to do. Her head slumped forwards, her eyes blocked the world out, even the sounds faded away.

  It was the most uncomfortable position ever, but Iris fell into the deepest, most dreamless sleep that she’d had in a very long time. It was the sort of rest that would allow her to wake up refreshed, if not a little stiff.

  Chapter 27

  The city was louder than Iris remembered. After being secluded in the countryside for a while, she had forgotten what it was like to be surrounded by so much noise. It almost hurt her brain to be back among it all. How did people live like this, and why would they want to? It had actually woken her up, it was such a loud place.

  As Iris stared out the window, the tall buildings and the sheer number of people took her aback. She did not think that she could ever come back here and feel comfortable, which shocked her since she’d spent a lot longer living nearer to the city than in the countryside.

  All she really wanted was to be back in the peace and quiet of the Oakley household. She couldn’t wait to get back there... if she made it back, of course. Iris still knew that there was a chance she wouldn’t. There was no point in planning for that because she would rather imagine that things would turn out as she wanted them too. Iris hoped that a positive outlook would help her to go far.

  Iris had never been to Elizabeth’s home after she married, so she had no idea what to expect. Her sister had described the tall, red bricked building to her, but Iris knew that it was going to be different to see it for real. She stared out the window and waited for it to appear...

  Once Iris’s eye set upon a building that pierced the skyline with it’s pointed rooftops. The gorgeous red bricks were beautiful, as were the balconies that jutted out proudly. The home was just as lovely as Elizabeth had described, it was just a shame that she was not happy there.

  Ewan came to greet Iris on the road by her carriage, and as she stepped down to join him, he held out his hand to help her. Iris automatically took the help as it assisted her descent in a more dignified way, but as soon as their skin connected, Iris realized that it was the first time that they’d touched since the ball at her household. Feeling his hand simply made her feel all those wonderful sensations once more, and judging by the bright expression on Ewan’s face, he could feel it too.

  Iris stumbled, just a little bit, and she almost fell into Ewan’s arms. Luckily she managed to regain her footing at the very last second which saved them both. If Ewan had embraced her, and their lips found themselves near to one another, Iris might have lost complete control of herself. She may have allowed him to kiss her.

  “Will you be alright from here?” Ewan asked her softly. “Do you need any help from me?”

  “I will be fine.” Iris’s voice was breathy as she replied. “Thank you very much.”

  “I will return for you once my business is complete to see how things are with you. Would you like me to meet you here, or at your home?”

  “Here will be fine,” Iris replied a little too quickly. “Thank you.”

  She knew that it was suspicious and that Ewan was likely to question her increasingly thin theory, but in the end, it turned out that she had braced herself for nothing. Either Ewan was very distracted by his business, or he trusted her much too readily. Either way, he asked her nothing. He simply took Iris at her word.

  “Right, of course.” Ewan stepped backwards, leaving Iris cold and feeling alone. “I shall see you soon then.”

  “Yes,
I look forward to seeing you again.”

  Iris watched as Ewan stepped back into his carriage and he drove away from her before she twisted her body around to face the music. Before taking those brave steps to her sister’s front door, she sucked in a few deep, calming breaths just to steady her nerves.

  Then she moved.

  It wasn’t easy, Iris had to really force one foot in front of the other, but she just about made it down the garden path. Her heart raced and her fingers trembled, but she would see Elizabeth as soon as she knocked on that door which helped her to continue moving.

  Knock, knock.

  While she waited for someone to answer the door, Iris shifted her body weight from foot to foot while the nerves threatened to consume her. Now she was thinking that maybe she should have planned out exactly how she was going to present this plan because going in unprepared left her with the possibility of messing things up completely.

  After only a few moments, the door opened a crack, and Iris found herself looking into a very dark pair of eyes.

  “Good afternoon, the Steward household, how may I help you?”

  “I need to speak with the lady of the house,” Iris told the butler. “Is she available, please?”

  “Who, may I ask, is calling for her?”

  Iris was not sure what to say. If she told the truth, she risked letting far too many people in on the secret, but if she didn’t, there was a chance that Elizabeth might not see her. This was Iris’s only chance, she needed to be let in.

  “I am her sister.”

  There, that was clear enough without being too specific. She could be either Olivia or Iris, there was no telling. It was unlikely that Olivia visited often, so the butler probably did not know what she looked like.

  “I am sorry; I did not know.” The butler opened the door wider and he stepped aside to let her in. “Please, come inside and wait in the reception area. I will call Mrs. Steward to come and speak with you.”

  As Iris stepped inside, she marvelled at how modern and classy Elizabeth had her home. When they were children she had often commented that their parents kept their home stuck in the dark ages, so this shouldn’t have been a surprise, but strangely it was. Iris guessed that she always thought every home was like her own, but that was because she spent so much time indoors.

  She strolled around the reception area and took it all in, while she waited for Elizabeth to come for her. There were plenty of comfortable-looking seats that she could have waited in, but she was much too wired to rest. Plus, Iris had been sitting in the carriage for hours, it felt really good to stretch her legs.

  “Iris?” Elizabeth’s voice boomed down the stairs, making Iris jump. “Is it really you? I cannot believe that you are here.” She raced rapidly down the stairs to embrace her sister. “Oh my goodness, it has been such a long time. I have so many things that I want to ask you. Everything has changed so much and I cannot believe how little I know about you now.”

  Iris allowed her eyes to slide shut as she fell into her sister’s arms. She breathed in deeply to inhale Elizabeth’s familiar, floral scent, which instantly transported her back to a simpler time.

  “I know,” she murmured into her sister’s hair. “I have so much that I need to talk with you about, but it needs to be in private. Is there any room in the house where we will not be overheard?”

  Elizabeth had been worried about Iris already, so this statement sent her into a tailspin. She pulled back sharply and stared into her sister’s eyes.

  “What is going on?” she demanded. “Is something wrong? Is it... what has been happening?”

  She did not like the idea of Iris being married to the Duke, it had shocked her to learn that it had happened so quickly, but since it was a stipulation in their father's will, Elizabeth knew there was no getting away from it. She had been waiting for the right time to visit Iris, so she was glad that she’d come to her first. It meant they could sort whatever they needed to, without her horrible husband around.

  “Is there something I can do? Tell me, Iris, whatever you need, I will help you.”

  “You do not need to worry,” Iris replied with a smile. “Things are not bad, I just need to discuss things in private.”

  "My husband is at work," Elizabeth replied thoughtfully. "And if we go into the drawing-room I can tell the staff to bring us some tea, after which they will leave us alone." She took in Iris's worried expression and her terror amped up to another level. “You do not need to worry, Iris, the staff here can be trusted.”

  “Tea sounds wonderful,” Iris finally relented. “Thank you very much.”

  Iris followed Elizabeth through the house and she waited in silence while her sister made the arrangements for them to have some drinks. As she took her seat, Iris had to really think to remember what it was like to sit like a lady. Admittedly, she had grown lax recently, she had allowed herself to sit in the more casual way that the lowborn people did. It felt oddly stiff and uncomfortable to sit with her back so straight. So much so that as soon as Iris and Elizabeth had their drinks, she allowed herself to slump ever so slightly.

  “So, please,” Elizabeth started curiously. “Tell me what has been happening with you, I have not seen you since father’s funeral and it seems a lot has changed for you.”

  Iris’s mind whirred, she did not know how to start this next sentence. She certainly should have decided. "It probably is not what you think," she went with in the end. "Actually, I have a lot of stories to tell you, and I need you to listen without panicking”

  To her credit, Elizabeth’s eyes did widen with surprise, but she didn’t say anything. She nodded silently, allowing Iris to continue. She could tell from the terrified expression her sister had something huge to tell her.

  “Well, I have not exactly... been honest with everyone?”

  “How do you mean?” Elizabeth jumped in without even meaning to. “Oh, sorry. Do not let me interrupt you, please carry on.”

  “It all started as a game really, a way to help me get over my panic about marrying the Duke. It was Daisy’s idea, although I do not think she really meant it.” Iris was speaking at a million miles an hour, unable to stop herself. “It was never meant to get so far.”

  “Please, take a breath,” Elizabeth smiled kindly. “Start from the beginning, I am not exactly following you.”

  The beginning... okay, Iris could do that.

  “Right.” She sucked in a deep breath of air. “Well, as you know I was terribly afraid of the idea of getting married to a man I did not know, a man who is rumoured to be cruel and mean. Daisy knew that, I cried to her a lot."

  Elizabeth felt guilty, she wished that she could have been there more, but unfortunately she had her own life to live.

  "She wanted to help me in any way that she could, which was when she suggested that we switch places so that she could put the Duke off the idea of wanting to marry me.”

  “What?” Elizabeth gasped in a horrified shock. “But that is so dangerous...”

  “I know.” Iris rested her hand over her sister’s. “Please, let me finish.” Elizabeth nodded and clamped her lips together. “Right, so we were not going to do it at first, I was going to put the Duke off me myself, but as it turned out I could not do it.”

  “No, I cannot imagine you acting badly.” Elizabeth smiled.

  "So, when our uncle came to our home, Daisy and I decided to try it out. She became me, and I became her.”

  “You served Daisy?” Elizabeth felt incredulous. “And our uncle fell for it?”

  “He does not know me. No one really knows me, I have been hidden from society for a very long time.”

  “That is true... so, what happened?”

  “Uncle fell for it. He did not even blink an eye, so we decided to keep it up. Uncle was busy arranging the ball, so Daisy became me and I, her. I did all her tasks, and she lived life as a lady. Then she was going to put the Duke off me at the ball.”

  “So what happened? You are married t
o him, are you not?”

  Iris’s heart pounded loudly, this was the part that she was most scared about saying. “Iris Warwick is married to the Duke.”

  “Yes?” Elizabeth screwed up her face in confusion. “That is what I said, is it not?”

  “No, you do not understand. Iris Warwick is married to the Duke.”

  It took a few moments, but realisation finally washed over Elizabeth. Her mouth fell open in utter shock. “You mean; you are still switched?”

  “Yes, we are.”

  Iris held her breath and she waited. Elizabeth went through a range of emotions, they all flittered across her face until eventually, she settled on a stunned acceptance.

  “So, Olivia knows? You are now working for her, or do you just live in your old room? I have not seen her since she moved back into the family home, so I have missed out on a lot.”

  “No, Olivia does not know. You are the only one who knows. Well, aside from Daisy’s cousin. I took a handmaiden job in another household.”

  “You are a maid? No, I cannot have that. I will speak to my husband and you can come and live here...”

  “No, Elizabeth,” Iris giggled. “I appreciate it, but I am happy. I like my work and I feel more comfortable than I ever did as a lady. I adore the young lady that I work with, I am having a good time with her.”

  “But you cannot be a maid...”

  “Elizabeth, I cannot give it up, If I do, I risk exposing Daisy. I need to keep up the rouse.”

  “Why did you come here then?” Elizabeth could not wrap her head around the idea that Iris did not want her help. Even though she could not always complete what she wanted to do, she always liked to try her best. “What can I do for you?”

  “I wanted you to know,” Iris shrugged simply. “I did not like having this huge secret from everyone in my family, especially you. Plus, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that you will see ‘me’ eventually and you’ll realise that it is Daisy. Then everything will fall apart.”