An Unlikely Duchess Read Online Free PDF

glare were anything to go by, he would not want to be on the receiving end of her cold anger.
    Icy, cold. They seemed apt indeed when describing that lady. She was beautiful, but coolly so. Her manner was impeccable, but lacked warmth. She was perfectly polite and amiable, but altogether too rigid and controlled.
    How she was the sister of the absolute hoyden they’d come across in the garden, he had no idea. As his mind turned to Lady Rebecca, he felt a stirring in his body that frustrated and, frankly, baffled him. He had never reacted so strongly, nor so quickly to a female before. Not even in his uncontrolled adolescence.
    What was the matter with him anyway? The unbending Duke of Hartridge, he so famous for his self-control, mooning about like a lovesick schoolboy? It was ridiculous.
    But he could not help it. She was exquisite. He had felt the impact from those eyes right down to his toes.
    When he took her hand in his, it was all he could do to stop himself from pulling her flush against him and kissing the breath from her lungs, and damned if he cared who saw!
    She was the complete opposite of her sister. Fire instead of ice. Fun and full of life. He could well imagine the types of scrapes she managed to get herself into. He would wager they were often too, considering Lady Caroline had seemed more resigned than surprised, by watching her sister climb statues and fall into ponds. As if the occurrence were regular. Very peculiar.
    Yet her manners were definitely those of a lady of breeding. Her curtsey, her eloquent speech spoke of training and good society. It made the fact that she’d been knee deep in pond water and laughing with abandon all the more strange.
    Yes, the total opposite of her proper older sister. And of you. The tiny voice spoke in the back of his mind and brought him up short.
    He was a fun-loving, free-spirited man was he not? He certainly had been in his younger days. But the mantle of responsibility that came with the dukedom weighed heavily on his shoulders. If he were to be brutally honest with himself, he knew he had become rather stiff and implacable himself.
    He gave a deep sigh. Yes, they were opposites. Not well matched at all. He supposed he should be thinking of ladies like Lady Caroline. Proper, polite, pretty. Filled with elegant poise and gentle mannerisms.
    And boring, the voice piped up, irritating thing that it was.
    Boring or not, a duchess needed to be of a certain ilk. And when did he start thinking of any lady as a potential duchess anyway? He wasn’t here to marry either girl. The brandy was addling his brain.
    He heard his mother enter the room and prepared himself to face her. She had a lot of explaining to do. He turned to address her and noticed that she was flanked by the countess and Lady Caroline. Biting back an irritated sigh, he bowed deeply to the three although he kept his eyes trained on his mother.
    He knew she had brought reinforcements so he could not confront her about this blasted arrangement.
    Well damned if he was going to make idle chit chat while they all made wedding plans behind his back!
    Excusing himself after a couple of well-placed compliments and enquiries after the ladies’ wellbeing, he went to stand with Tom and the earl and was about to address a question about the local agriculture when a movement at the door drew his attention and that of everyone else in the room.
    The lady who had been occupying his thoughts almost exclusively since their unorthodox meeting this afternoon had arrived, and Edward felt once again like he’d been punched in the gut.
    She was altogether too beautiful and intriguing for his peace of mind. And right now he knew he would never again see anyone as utterly breath-taking as she.
    He heard Tom clear his throat nervously beside him and felt a ridiculous urge to block his view, shield her from his appreciative eyes. He could not, of course, but he was oh so tempted. He could hit him. But that might raise some