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going to allow you to marry my daughter.” His clumsy form clambered up the steps; his breath came in raspy pants from the exertion of his efforts.
    No one said a word until they entered Danby’s offices. For one so advanced in years, the duke was surprisingly agile and quick. By the time Alexandra, Nathan, and her father entered the room, the duke was already seated behind his desk, a glower fixed to his otherwise unreadable face.
    At last, Danby spoke. “Well?”
    Before Alexandra could speak, her father launched into a rant. “That, scound—, ah—rogue, is not fit to marry the daughter of the Marquess of Tewkesbury, nor for that matter the granddaughter of the Duke of Danby. His father was a notorious whoreson.”
    Alexandra gasped even as Nathan tensed at her side, his hands balled into tight fists.
    Father continued as though there’d been no interruption. “ And he all but killed his wife.”
    Who was this man before her? How could they even share the same blood? It shamed her. She looked up to Nathan to see how he’d been affected by the tirade, except his face was set in an inscrutable mask, which seemed to further infuriate her father who turned to Nathan so quickly he nearly lost his footing. “You bastard, do you have nothing to say?”
    “I do, Tewkesbury,” Danby bellowed from across the desk, the sound startling both Alexandra and her father. Nathan, however, appeared wholly unaffected by the stern tone.
    “God forgive me, Tewkesbury, I thought you were a good match for my daughter. The only reason I gave you her hand was because your father and I were friends, and I respected him. There aren’t many I respect, but I respected your father. Shame on me for judging another man by his father. You are nothing like your father. Just like Pembroke is nothing like his father.”
    Red splotches stained her father’s cheeks and he sputtered, attempting words. Alas, Father had never been eloquent.
    Danby slammed his fist down. “Silence,” he barked. “It’s time you listened. I’ve had to accept that my daughter is miserable because of a match I put together, but I’ll not see my granddaughter committed to the same fate. You are a cowardly, conniving, manipulative fellow and undeserving of my daughter. Well, that is a mistake I cannot correct. But I can save my granddaughter the fate of allowing you to select her husband.”
    Alexandra felt a sting behind her eyes and her vision blurred, turning the duke’s image into a kaleidoscope of light from the sconces and salted tears. Nathan’s hands came to rest on her shoulders, reminding her of his love and support.
    “She’s my daughter,” her father blustered.
    Apparently he had more backbone that she’d credited him with.
    “More importantly, she is my granddaughter. Listen good and listen well, Tewkesbury.” Placing his elbows on the desktop, he leaned forward. He spoke with lethal calm. “When I issue commands, I expect them to be obeyed. I expressly bade you to remain in London. You ignored my directive. I am telling you now, Pembroke is marrying your daughter.” He paused and shifted his attention to Nathan. “I presume you want to wed my granddaughter?”
    Nathan claimed Alexandra’s hand and held it aloft. The candlelight illuminated the massive diamond on her finger, sending a prism of light radiating off the walls. “More than anything, Your Grace.” His hot gaze fell on Alexandra, and he caressed her with his eyes, before returning his attention to the duke. “I love her.”
    A tremulous smile tipped the corners of Alexandra’s lips.
    “Well, there you have it, they are to be married.”
    “Now, off, you two. I’m sure my offspring are hovering outside this office for details on what was discussed in here.”
    Alexandra curtsied as Nathan bowed. Without sparing so much as a glance for her father, Alexandra started to leave. Upon reaching the door, she paused, turned, and hurried the twenty-three steps across the room to her