“Nancy! Your husband is so enchanting! He knows a lot of dog tricks, and Dash listened to him quite well! And he promised to show me some of his tricks!” she babbled excitedly, clinging to the sleeves of Richard’s coat.
“My brother was good at card tricks, and he never hesitated to show me how he did them whenever I asked. He was quite important to me, so I have held the values of sharing with family close to my heart,” the Duke said gently.
“Come along, Anne. You should find Beatrice and tell her tales of the marvelous tricks His Grace performed for you,” Georgiana prompted, beckoning Anne over.
“Oh, yes! Come, Dash!” Anne called, and Dash followed her as she walked down a hallway, undoubtedly on her way to find her sister.
The Dowager Marchioness gave her eldest daughter’s hand one final squeeze before she walked away as well.
Nancy inhaled deeply as she fixed her gaze and attention completely on her husband, pretending her heart was not thundering in her chest at the sight of him.
“Good afternoon, Richard.”
ChapterTwenty-Five
“Nancy,” Richard breathed. “Good afternoon.”
He was relieved that she had eventually chosen to give him a chance to speak to her, but now that she was before him, he was not sure where to begin.
The Duke had been haunted by the words he had said to her already, but gaining clarity and realizing that she had been an innocent bystander caught in the crosshairs of his messy family made him feel even worse.
A part of him wondered if Nancy would be better off without him, and away from the pain and eventual humiliation spurred by being a Harrington. But the truth was, there was a selfish side of him that did not, under any circumstances, wish to give her up.
“I understand that you are upset with me. You have every right to be,” he started with a shaky inhale. “It seemed as though I did not trust you enough at the time to have taken your words as the truth, but… for me, it was more than that. I believed what was published in that sheet because I did not see myself as a person worthy of you.”
He noticed her frown as he said so and his mind recalled her kind words during their time together.
“My past is tainted, and I was told several times during my childhood that I would never amount to anything,” he went on, “And no matter how far I ran, I could never seem to outrun those words. But that wasn’t your burden to bear, and it was unfair of me to dismiss you like that without properly talking with you about the issue.”
After that, he told her about Mr. Aldridge’s visit, as well as everything that happened between him and his uncle.
Nancy remained quiet while he spoke, her face a blank sheet that made him nervous, unable to tell if she was listening to him or merely waiting for him to be done so that she could dismiss him and state that she had no intention to return with him.
Richard nearly relented and gave up, not wanting to cause her any more discomfort, but a voice in the back of his head that sounded suspiciously like his brother’s urged him to continue, telling him to remain firm and to fight for what he wanted.
And at that moment, all he desired was Nancy.
“…I expect that it should all be dealt with soon,” he said after he finished explaining his uncle’s ploys to separate them.
Hopefully, that would ease her heart.
Hesitantly, he stepped closer to her, relieved when she did not back away from him. “Talking with my uncle showed me that while I also claimed to despise my father, I had adopted his way of life,” he admitted.
“I had let his opinions of me govern my life, even long after his death. I do not want that to be the case, not if I want to be your husband,”
He inhaled once before he continued.
“And I do, Nancy. I am sorry for not believing you and holding your words above all else. You are my wife, and I was supposed to protect you and side with you during that time, and I failed to do so.”
“I know it won’t happen in a day, but I promise to become a man worthy of you and your affection. I will work hard to change all my bad habits and unsavory traits. Though, I might like to have an occasional drink in my study, especially if you would join me for one.”
He smiled a little, moving even closer to her.
It took a lot of self-restraint not to reach for her, but he did not want to cross any boundaries and undo whatever grace he had obtained from her already.
Inhaling deeply, he finally said, “You make me want to be a better man, not a perfect one. And for you, I am willing to try everything I can. Please, forgive me, Nancy.”
* * *
