A Duke's Garden of Love: A Historical Regency Romance Book Read online

  They departed for the hall and arrived within twenty minutes. Going inside, Rosamund was eager. She was looking forward to seeing how everything was decorated and when she saw the walls lined with candles and flowers, she was delighted. There was a sweet smell in the air from the roses and it made her feel as though she belonged.

  “It is so beautiful,” she observed.

  “Indeed, it is. But it is still nothing like those balls which we hear about from nobility,” Juliet said.

  Regardless, Rosamund could not complain. She was too pleased to think anything wrong with this.

  “Now, with whom do you wish to spend your time most?” Juliet asked. “Are you wanting to gather with the other young ladies? Spend time getting to know Mr. Filbert better? Your father and aunt and their friends? Or are you hoping to meet some other gentlemen and allow Mr. Filbert to get terribly jealous?” Juliet asked with a laugh at the end.

  “I suppose I shall speak with whoever happens upon me. I have no plans for this dance. I am simply here and I wish to enjoy it,” she said.

  “Very well. In that case, let us mingle,” Juliet said.

  Soon enough, Rosamund saw Mr. Filbert from across the room. He was not on his own.

  Although she was hardly offended, Rosamund knew that she ought to be bothered by the fact that he was flirting with another woman. It was not clear if the woman had any care for him in return, but the way in which Mr. Filbert leaned towards her showed his evident interest.

  “What is he doing?” Juliet asked, her tone filled with fury.

  “He is…well, I think it is fairly obvious,” Rosamund said without much feeling.

  “How can you simply stand there as if this is acceptable?” she asked.

  “Because I do not care enough for him to be offended,” Rosamund replied.

  “That is not a good enough answer,” Juliet replied.

  “Why ever not?” she asked.

  “Because you need to be angry. He is forcing you into this engagement and yet you are willing to sit by as he mortifies it before it even begins?” she asked.

  Rosamund could not bring herself to feel anything. No sadness, no pain.

  “Please, Rosamund. Get angry. This is awful of him,” Juliet said.

  She appreciated the fact that her friend was angry on her behalf. Nevertheless, Rosamund knew she had no reason to confront him. This was the behavior which she expected from him. She did not ever think that he was going to be a loyal husband. Nor did she care. All she wanted was for him to leave her alone, for him to bring their engagement to an end. He did not matter to her and she did not wish to matter to him.

  “I never expected that he would do anything good for me, Juliet. I am thankful for your anger and how you wish to defend me, but I have no qualms with his actions,” she said.

  “How not?” Juliet asked.

  “Because all he is doing is acting out that he will never be a good husband and I am not forced to raise my expectations for anything. I always assumed that it would be this way,” she confessed.

  “Well, I did not. It is not right, Rosie. He shouldn’t be so disrespectful of you like this. And so openly,” Juliet said.

  “He is a portrait of disrespect at all times. Not only to me, but to everyone,” she said.

  “I wish you did not have to marry him,” Juliet said.

  But her words were only an echo of everything Rosamund had been hoping on her own behalf. She did not wish to marry him and would have given nearly anything to make it so that she was free from this marriage.

  Yet, she had no choice and had to bear that in mind before she allowed herself the faintest sliver of hope. Hope was a cruel thing. It would trick her so often if she allowed it to.

  “Honestly, does your father not see this?” Juliet asked.

  “No, he does not…” Rosamund trailed off.

  Suddenly, she realised that this might actually be a good thing. If her father could see him flirting with other women, perhaps he would see that Mr. Filbert was a terrible option for a husband.

  Rosamund rushed to where her father and aunt were standing with friends of theirs. She got his attention without having to say a word and he came out of the group in order to speak with her.

  “Father,” she began.

  “Yes, my dear, what is it? You seem rather in earnest,” he said.

  “I am. I would like to see what you think about the lack of loyalty I am being shown by my betrothed,” she said, quite boldly.

  Her father looked over to where Mr. Filbert was standing with a young woman who was laughing at something he had said. She was far too beautiful for the likes of him, but she was also the sort of young woman who might think that her best option was to marry a rich man rather than being happy.

  Rosamund’s betrothed was leaning towards her again and his eyes continued to gaze upon the young woman’s form. It was so evidently an attraction that he was clinging to. He cared nothing for the fact that he was engaged.

  “My dear, he is a man and he is making a mistake,” her father said.

  “That is all you have to say about it?” she asked.

  “What more can I say?” he asked.

  “You can condemn him. You may tell him that you will not have your daughter marrying a man who is so unfaithful,” she said.

  “My dear, I need to return to my conversation,” he said, giving her a final glance as he turned away.

  Even though he was so clearly bothered by the incident, her father was not going to give her any way to get out. There was no way that he was going to allow her the freedom to refuse this man.

  Even if he felt sad, as she saw in his eyes, he was going to force her to marry him.

  Rosamund was hopeless. She no longer saw any goodness or brightness at the end of this. She could see no way out of the engagement or the marriage. She was utterly stuck.

  The pain of that was overwhelming.

  She turned from her father, walking away without trusting that he would do anything to bring an end to this. He had already made it clear.

  He would make her marry Mr. Filbert. He would give her no other choice.

  As she walked towards the door, intending to depart entirely, Mr. Filbert stopped her.

  “Ah, there you are. You did not come to find me. I believe you ought to show me the respect of a dance, yes?” he asked.

  The last thing she wanted was to have to dance with him. But, alas, that was her only choice. She would have to give in and give him the dance he was asking for.

  “Yes, Mr. Filbert,” she said in a defeated voice, giving him her hand.

  As he led her to the floor where all of the couples were lining up, she cringed.

  He took her hand and when the music began, the dance started.

  “Well, this is just a pitiful display, is it not? They call this even a dance or even a party, but I am having just the worst time,” he said with an ugly laugh.

  “If that is so, why have you come?” she asked.

  “Because there is nothing good here if I am not here,” he replied.

  It was awful. All of it. She could not believe that she was going to be married to this man. She could not believe that her lot in life had brought her here.

  But this was it. This was her life. This was her future. And she had no say otherwise.

  Chapter 18

  “Ah, there you are, Theodore. I was wondering where you had got to,” Albion said.

  “Yes, I am sorry for being away for a while. I received a communication from Miss Fleet. She will be here this afternoon,” Theodore said.

  He looked upset or irritated about something and Albion was curious what it was. He wondered why Theodore would be frustrated about his cousin coming when she came most days.

  “Is something the matter?” he asked Theodore.

  Theodore sighed, pausing before he answered.

  “Perhaps. I do not know, it is difficult to say,” he said.

  “Tell me. What is the matter? Surely it
would help you to unburden yourself,” Albion said.

  “Perhaps. I simply…I feel a bit foolish about it,” he said.

  “What is it?” he asked again.

  Theodore simply handed over the communication, rather than saying aloud what it was that had upset him.

  Albion took it in his hands and began to read Miss Fleet’s lovely script.

  Theo,

  I shall be there later today, but I wished to write to you about last evening. Oh, it was awful. I feel terrible because I did not think to tell you ahead of time, but there was a dance. It was in the Winslow Hall and many of our friends were there. I wish that you had come.

  But I also wish that you had been there in order to save me. I had the worst evening. Mr. Filbert is truly the most awful man in all the world. I know that it sounds as though I am far too dramatic in saying so, but he really is. I do not think I could handle being near him any longer than I was.

  He spent the whole evening flirting with other women, dancing with them, and staring at their figures without shame. He even told me that he admired Miss Hendricks but found her to be too pompous for his taste. Can you imagine? He told me that he cared for another woman. And he claimed she was arrogant?

  It was purely dreadful. I wish that I had not attended. But even despite seeing the whole display, my father still insists that I must marry him. He is giving me no choice in the matter at all because it is what is best for our family.

  I know that I ought to be grateful for the life I lead and for the opportunities I have. There are many who do not have these same things. But my heart aches to know that I am bound to marry a man like him, Theo. Tell me what I should do.

  And come to the next dance. Again, I am so sorry for not telling you about this one. Miss Grimes would have loved to have seen you there.

  Rosie

  Albion was overcome by the wealth of information this letter presented. He was also desperately sad for Miss Fleet.

  “I feel like such a fool. My cousin is suffering and I am just upset about having missed the dance,” Theodore confessed.

  “Well, I do not blame you for being sad. Miss Grimes was there and, of course, you would have liked to have danced with her,” Albion acknowledged.

  “I really would have. And I know that it is not as important as the things which Miss Fleet is experiencing. I feel just awful for her. She is being forced to marry a dreadful man and she even had to watch as he gave attention to other young women. But I still find that I hate being forgotten about at times like these,” Theodore said.

  “It is because you are not there. You are here. No one there imagines you even want to attend because they think you like in grandeur. But I insist that you attend the next dance. No matter what,” Albion said.

  Theodore looked at him with gratitude and caution in equal measure.

  “I do not know if I will have the courage required for asking Miss Grimes to dance,” he confessed.

  Albion thought for a moment. He knew that once he spoke these words, he could not take them back. Regardless, he had already made up his mind. He would regret it. He would hate himself. He would wish that he could run away. Nevertheless, the offer tripped off his lips with ease.

  “I could go with you.”

  Theodore’s eyes shot wide open. His surprise was easily noted and Albion could not blame him for that. After all, he was an isolated man. Why would he willingly go and attend a dance that was not even among his peers and equals?

  “Only if you would be willing to have me,” he said.

  “But of course! I only…are you certain? Do you really wish to come?” Theodore asked.

  “Indeed, I do wish to attend. I would love to. I have not been to a ball in such a very long time. Any dance will be a challenge for me, but if I may blend into the crowd and if I am not forced to dance against my will, I think I would be more than happy to try it,” he said.

  “I am in awe. I did not think you would ever be willing to attend such an event. You have given no sign of wishing to,” Theodore said.

  “No, indeed, I have not. But I think that knowing you and knowing Miss Fleet has changed me. You have been a good friend, a constant one. It reminds me that there is so much good in the world. And meeting your cousin has reminded me that it is not so frightening after all to meet new people,” he said.

  “Is that so?” Theodore asked.

  “Indeed, it is. Because she is so kind and I have come to see that I was missing out on so much by choosing not to enjoy myself and really be around others. I am seeing the brightness of community and companionship,” he said.

  “I am delighted that you feel this way. I promise you that I shall assist you in moving forward and living with others once more. You may attend with me, of course, and I am eager to see if you enjoy it despite the fact that it is not quite what you may be used to,” Theodore said.

  “Wonderful, thank you. I am looking forward to it, very eagerly,” Albion said.

  ***

  Three days passed with very little having taken place aside from an invitation. It was an invitation issued to Theodore to attend a dance, much like the one he had missed. Thus, Theodore shared the invitation with Albion and they arranged everything as planned to go together.

  “Am I all right? Does this look the way it should?” Albion asked.

  “Absolutely. You look excellent. Remember, this is not as grand as the balls held by high society. This is the sort of hall that is frequented by those of a lower class than you are accustomed to,” Theodore said.

  “I do not like to think of it that way,” Albion said, brushing away the terms Theodore had used.

  He was incredibly anxious, just as he had known he would be. Although he was wishing he could get out of this, he was glad he had put himself in a position of having to attend.

  Albion was going to have a chance to dance with Miss Fleet if he wanted. And he would be able to stand up to Mr. Filbert.

  He thought about it time and time again, a scenario in which he might rush to Miss Fleet’s aid and tell her betrothed that he must leave her be. But he knew that he would do no such thing. Not only would it not be appropriate, but he was far too shy. This was his first time interacting with others in such a long time; he would have to be careful. There was no sense in storming in and making a fool of himself.

  Albion hoped that things would go well. He hoped that he would enjoy his time, that he would be able to make Miss Fleet laugh and that they would dance together. But he was nervous that he would only make a fool of himself or that she would not wish to be around him the entire time.

  He was having flashes of fear and all sorts of things giving him pause.

  “Are you all right? You do not have to do this, you know,” Theodore said, clearly seeing his fear.

  “No, no. I am all right. I am eager to go, even. I think it will be good for me,” he said.

  “Yes, I hope you enjoy it. There really is every reason to attend and I am happy that you are coming along. It will be a nice time. And I would like to dance with Miss Grimes if I am able, but I will not leave you otherwise. Hopefully I shall leave you with my cousin if I do dance with her so that you are not on your own,” Theodore said.