Read Online A Matter of Choice by Laura Landon - Free Book Online

it on the table.
    “May I speak with you first?” Lynette asked when she started to rise.
    “Of course. But I think I already know what you’re going to say.” Allison sat back down. “You don’t have to concern yourself with me any longer, Lynette. I know what I have to do.”
    “You never did have a choice. None of us do. Unless you thought to rely on David’s generosity for the rest of your life.”
    “No, I never thought to do that.”
    “He loves you, you know. Sometimes I think even more than me.”
    “Oh, Lynette. That’s not—”
    “It’s all right,” Lynette interrupted. “There’s a special bond between you and David. Which is the reason I found the courage to speak to you. If you love David, you’ll marry and free him from feeling responsible for you.”
    Allison’s world shifted beneath her.
    “I don’t mean to be selfish, Allison. But I want my husband to myself and he’ll never totally be mine if I have to share him with you.”
    There’d always been a special connection between she and her brother, but she never considered that bond might interfere with David’s marriage. Or that Lynette might resent their closeness.
    Allison’s world slowed to a standstill. “I see. I didn’t realize.”
    “It’s not your fault. Or David’s. It’s just the way things are.”
    Allison pasted a smile on her face and turned to Lynette. “You are right, of course. It’s past time I married. Past time I had a home of my own.”
    Allison waited until her legs were steady beneath her, then walked to the door. “I’ll see David now.” She knew what she had to do.
    Refusing to marry was no longer an option. But she’d marry who she wanted. David could demand all he liked. She was done with his dictating.
    She walked down the stairs and across the marble foyer. She didn’t knock when she reached his study but grabbed the handle and opened the door. David’s head snapped in her direction, the surprise evident on his face.
    “You don’t have to concern yourself with me any longer, David. I have decided I will marry.” She closed the door hard behind her. “But I will not allow you to choose my husband for me. I will decide with whom I must spend the rest of my life.”
    “Allison—“
    “No. Hear me out.”
    She marched to the small side table where David was pouring two glasses of brandy and anchored her fists on her hips. “I won’t make the same mistake each of my sisters made. I won’t marry a man who only wants to marry me to get control of my dowry. And I won’t take a husband who will humiliate me by sharing a bed with every woman who will have him.”
    “Allison—“
    “Hear me out, David. It’s the least you can do. You above anyone know how desperate I am to avoid marriage. And you know the reasons why.”
    David shifted his focus to look over her left shoulder. She didn’t doubt he had trouble holding her gaze. He should feel guilty. He was the one who had issued the ultimatum.
    She faced him and gave him the most intent look she could muster. “You can put your mind to rest. I’ve decided who I will marry.”
    “Who?”
    “Someone I can trust not to humiliate me with his string of mistresses. Someone with whom I am sure I can be content spending my life.” A long silence stretched between them while she searched for the courage to say his name. “I will marry the Earl of Archbite.”
    “No, you will not.”
    Allison stared at him with her mouth open. She couldn’t believe what she’d just heard. “Surely you don’t mean to object to Lord Archbite?”
    “I’m afraid if your brother doesn’t, Lady Allison, I will.”
    She spun around in search of the low, velvety voice that came from the corner behind her. Her gaze locked with the Marquess of Montfort’s and she reached out to steady herself.
    “What are you doing here?”
    “Your brother and I were about to toast my betrothal and upcoming marriage. Would you care to join us?”
    Montfort crossed the room