“You need not be,” Bridget told her. “Not fully. I have seen how Lord Michael treats you, and he is a good match. You will not only enjoy your wedding night but your entire marriage.”
Margaret’s expression turned solemn. “I wish you had been the first to marry,” she said. “It still does not feel right that I will be married and you will not.”
“You must not worry about that. You are marrying for love, and that will be the best thing in the world.”
“I know,” Margaret admitted, still looking sad. “It is only that I have dreamed of us both being wed and our children growing together, and I will not have that.”
“You will have all you need and more,” Bridget assured her. “I will be a loving aunt to your children, and that will make me happy, too. You will not suggest that I wed the Duke again, will you?”
“No,” Margaret said, laughing. “I know you dislike him.”
“I don’t dislike him. He only rubs me the wrong way sometimes.” Bridget saw the look on her sister’s face and quickly added, “I will not let him bother me. Your happiness is far too important to me for me to do anything to jeopardize it. His Grace can annoy me as much as he wants, and I will be on my best behavior.”
“Thank you,” Margaret said. “That is all I really want. I have my happiness, and I wish for yours, too.”
“Then your wish is granted,” Bridget replied. “I am happy, married or not.”
The sisters sat on the bed and stared at each other, sharing in the happy moment.
“I only wish Father were here to enjoy it, too,” Margaret said.
“Father?” Bridget asked, fearing something had gone wrong. “What happened?”
“I don’t know,” Margaret replied. “He left this morning, and he didn’t get a chance to say goodbye. Mother does not know when he will be back, but he is very busy. Do you think it was something I said or did?”
“No,” Bridget said immediately. “No, of course not. I know he would stay for you if he could. He would only leave if it were for very important business back in London.”
Margaret nodded, even though she still did not understand. “Do you think he will return?”
“I know he will try,” Bridget replied.
Yet, she hoped he would not.
CHAPTER12
Secrets and Lies
“Mother, what happened with Father?” Bridget asked once she and her mother were far enough from the others that they would not overhear.
“He left,” Penelope replied.
“Yes, I know that, but did he say why?”
Bridget was worried the Duke had spoken to her father—he had intimated that he would do it to make things better, but she did not need him interfering in her life, especially when he did not know the intricacies of the situation.
“He did not say anything,” Penelope replied. “Well, he did not say much. He informed me he had to return to London and gave some excuse about a business deal, but I have heard that line enough times to know it was a lie. Perhaps he means to try and do some business after being around the Duke and his brother so much, or maybe he will go and drink the last of our money away before the wedding.”
“Why does he have to be like this?” Bridget moaned.
“Your guess is as good as mine,” Penelope said witheringly. “I know he loved us all once, but I don’t know anymore. If you were to ask him, he would claim he does not mean to hurt us, but then he goes and does it anyway. Why couldn’t I find a good man, Bridget? What is wrong with me?” Her voice cracked as she started to cry.
Bridget had not seen her mother like that before. Lady Lincoln was usually calm and collected and showed no sign of weakness. It stunned Bridget, and she froze. She was so used to her mother being the strong one in the family, and it broke her heart to see her mother breaking down, especially when there were other people close by.
“Come here,” Bridget said quickly.
She pulled her mother farther away from the other people in the garden and ignored the discomfort in her ankle to lead her behind a bush.
Mother and daughter looked at each other for a moment, unsure what to do next. Bridget was so used to her mother being annoyed at her behavior that she found it hard to take on the role of the protector. She needed to, so she pulled her mother into her arms.
