“He wishes to marry as soon as possible.”
“And that doesn’t strike you as suspect, Papa?” Harriet glanced at her stepmother who hadn’t said a word up till this point. “Mother agrees?”
“Leave your mother be. I investigated Leeds. There is nothing suspect about him or his circumstances.”
Yet he wished to marry her by way of a special license?Surely her father must find that odd.
“The man is enamored with you, Harriet.” Her father rounded up his conclusion. “I could tell.”
And I am a fairy!“I assure you, he is not.” How could he be? They hadn’t even been introduced! Did her father truly not care about this?
“Nevertheless, the matter has been settled.”
“What has prompted this sudden madness? This is only my second season.” Harriet tried to persuade her father. “I ought to hold out for a”—love match—“duke.”
Her father arched both brows.
“Is it so impossible to conceive that I could snatch a duke?”
“Not impossible,” her father said slowly.
But not likely, was what he did not say. Harriet wanted to stomp her foot but refrained. “Where is Leeds?” she asked instead. “Why has he not proposed to me? Or courted me? Or, God forbid, strung a sentence together and acknowledged me? And you believe he is enamored with me? I have never heard a more laughable notion.”
Her father let out a heavy sigh. “You can ask him that when he arrives.”
Harriet’s breath caught. “When is he arriving?”
“Should be any moment now.”
“Anymoment? What happens when he arrives?”
Her father said nothing.
Her heart sank. “I shall run away to the Americas before I marry a man without knowingwhyI’m being handed off in such a rush!”
Her father slammed his fist on the table. “Because I said so, damn it! You will marry Leeds and that is final.”
Harriet turned to her stepmother. “And you will allow this travesty to take place?”
“Your father has his reasons, dear. I support him in this matter.”
Harriet, however, did not.
A special license? Well, then she would have to usespecialmeans to get out of this underhand business. In fact, the horror she now faced—and to which she protested—gave rise to a specialdetermination. As a wallflower, Harriet had never been comfortable in social settings. Her first season, she had chosen to watch from the sidelines. Everything had been fresh, sparkly, and a bit overwhelming. This season, she had planned to be more active and find her love match.
Her dream husband.
A man who would fight for her.
She had made that promise to her mother. Which was why Harriet refused to stand aside and allow this man, the dubious-smelling Marquess of Leeds to sweep aside her dreams and upturn her promise with a surprise marriage he and her father had arranged. Not to even mention the fact that the man embodied her worst nightmare come true.
No, she longed for a connection much more meaningful than a transaction between families, something her father could not understand. It didn’t have to be a big, all-consuming connection, though that would be lovely, but she could build on the knowledge of a husband that fought for her. Courted her.Spoketo her.
But not this.By Jove, she could not just accept it without a smidgeon of resistance! Who was Leeds anyway? If the man wished to wed her, he would first have to prove himself worthy.
She glanced at the clock perched on a mantle behind her father. How long did it take to procure a special license? An hour? A day? A week?
Never mind that. Harriet did not plan on being available for Leeds to plunder her future as he pleased.
