Read Online Wedding of the Season by Laura Lee Guhrke - Free Book Online
Authors: Laura Lee Guhrke
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she thought with aggravation, Auntie could be so old-fashioned.
“Still,” Eugenia added hastily, sensing she might have gone too far, “dear Vivian’s clothes are said to be exquisite. I must confess, I find them a bit too modern for my tastes.”
Bizarre was the actual word her aunt had used upon first seeing the sketch of her niece’s wedding dress, with its stark, modern lines, but Beatrix was not so tactless as to remind Auntie of that description. She’d wanted something completely different from what she’d intended to wear six years ago, and Vivian, whose dressmaking business called Vivienne was known for its avant-garde style, had happily complied.
“You don’t like my gown, Auntie?”
“It’s a lovely gown.” Eugenia turned her head, smiling, but the smile seemed forced. “And it doesn’t matter if I like it. Besides, you’ll wear the topazes with it, so I’m quite content.”
Beatrix thought without much enthusiasm of the opulent topaz and diamond necklace, brooch, and tiara that had been in her family for seven generations. She found yellow jewels of any type unattractive, but the topazes were de rigueur for Danbury brides, and she’d always known she’d be expected to wear them. “Yes,” she agreed, “it’s all right then. And I shall have your prayer book, of course.”
Eugenia’s smile widened into a genuine one. “It belonged to my mother, an engagement present from her grandfather. The Duke of Tremore, you know,” she added with pride.
One duke’s as good as another, I suppose.
Will’s contemptuous words echoed through her mind, but she shoved them aside. He might not care about his birthright, his duty, or the security of his heirs, but she cared about hers. And it wasn’t as if she had chosen to marry Aidan because of his rank. There were other, far more important considerations. Mutual respect, affection, a shared vision of the future.
By accusing her of mercenary motives, Will was just trying to goad her. In fact, everything he’d said earlier had been offered with just that purpose in mind.
She thought of the infuriating way he had spoken of her father, who had always had her best interests at heart. Why, the last words Papa had said to her before his death had been for her happiness.
We’ve only one life, Trixie, my girl. Will’s gone, and it’s time to give up on him, and the past. Promise me you’ll make a new future.
And that’s just what she’d done. So unfair of Will to say she’d lost her sense of adventure. She’d gone to Cornwall with Julia, and she’d thrown off black crepe mourning clothes. She’d learned to drive an automobile and she’d smoked cigarettes—not that her father would have approved of that!—and though she still couldn’t work up the courage to dive off Cornwall’s rocky cliffs into the sea, she had walked barefoot in the sand and swum in the sea at midnight with no clothes on. And during that holiday with Julia, she’d learned at last that she could be happy without Will.
Then she’d met Aidan, and that had rather settled everything. When he’d proposed marriage to her, she had taken three days to think it over before accepting. Yes, his ducal rank had played a part, for the security of her children would be her most important duty. And no, she didn’t love him—not if love was a wild, passionate, intense insanity. Aidan didn’t love her that way, either. They were adults, mature and responsible, and they shared a bond that meant more to marital happiness than romantic love ever could. Aidan had the same vision of the future she did, a continuation of what their parents and grandparents had done before them.
After her mother’s abandonment of her family for passionate love, and Will’s utter disregard for duty and responsibility, Beatrix was quite happy with a man who valued the same things she did, the things that mattered, the things that endured. With Aidan, she had mutual affection, contentment, and
“Still,” Eugenia added hastily, sensing she might have gone too far, “dear Vivian’s clothes are said to be exquisite. I must confess, I find them a bit too modern for my tastes.”
Bizarre was the actual word her aunt had used upon first seeing the sketch of her niece’s wedding dress, with its stark, modern lines, but Beatrix was not so tactless as to remind Auntie of that description. She’d wanted something completely different from what she’d intended to wear six years ago, and Vivian, whose dressmaking business called Vivienne was known for its avant-garde style, had happily complied.
“You don’t like my gown, Auntie?”
“It’s a lovely gown.” Eugenia turned her head, smiling, but the smile seemed forced. “And it doesn’t matter if I like it. Besides, you’ll wear the topazes with it, so I’m quite content.”
Beatrix thought without much enthusiasm of the opulent topaz and diamond necklace, brooch, and tiara that had been in her family for seven generations. She found yellow jewels of any type unattractive, but the topazes were de rigueur for Danbury brides, and she’d always known she’d be expected to wear them. “Yes,” she agreed, “it’s all right then. And I shall have your prayer book, of course.”
Eugenia’s smile widened into a genuine one. “It belonged to my mother, an engagement present from her grandfather. The Duke of Tremore, you know,” she added with pride.
One duke’s as good as another, I suppose.
Will’s contemptuous words echoed through her mind, but she shoved them aside. He might not care about his birthright, his duty, or the security of his heirs, but she cared about hers. And it wasn’t as if she had chosen to marry Aidan because of his rank. There were other, far more important considerations. Mutual respect, affection, a shared vision of the future.
By accusing her of mercenary motives, Will was just trying to goad her. In fact, everything he’d said earlier had been offered with just that purpose in mind.
She thought of the infuriating way he had spoken of her father, who had always had her best interests at heart. Why, the last words Papa had said to her before his death had been for her happiness.
We’ve only one life, Trixie, my girl. Will’s gone, and it’s time to give up on him, and the past. Promise me you’ll make a new future.
And that’s just what she’d done. So unfair of Will to say she’d lost her sense of adventure. She’d gone to Cornwall with Julia, and she’d thrown off black crepe mourning clothes. She’d learned to drive an automobile and she’d smoked cigarettes—not that her father would have approved of that!—and though she still couldn’t work up the courage to dive off Cornwall’s rocky cliffs into the sea, she had walked barefoot in the sand and swum in the sea at midnight with no clothes on. And during that holiday with Julia, she’d learned at last that she could be happy without Will.
Then she’d met Aidan, and that had rather settled everything. When he’d proposed marriage to her, she had taken three days to think it over before accepting. Yes, his ducal rank had played a part, for the security of her children would be her most important duty. And no, she didn’t love him—not if love was a wild, passionate, intense insanity. Aidan didn’t love her that way, either. They were adults, mature and responsible, and they shared a bond that meant more to marital happiness than romantic love ever could. Aidan had the same vision of the future she did, a continuation of what their parents and grandparents had done before them.
After her mother’s abandonment of her family for passionate love, and Will’s utter disregard for duty and responsibility, Beatrix was quite happy with a man who valued the same things she did, the things that mattered, the things that endured. With Aidan, she had mutual affection, contentment, and
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