From Young Man to Viscount: An Anthony Bridgerton Story

24

-Y/N's POV-

"You do know we need to eventually get out of bed and face them, right?" I asked as I snuggled closer into Anthony and buried my face into his chest, which was when I realized he felt hairy. I lifted my head to see he had unbuttoned his shirt at some point during the night.

Anthony chuckles before saying, "Yeah we do, but there's nothing wrong about that."

"Anthony Bridgerton, do you realize how many questions Isa is going to throw at us? And she's only a young girl!" I said before laughing at the thought of Isa prying her nose into businesses that aren't hers to know, "But I'm pleased I get to be happy."

Anthony smiled before kissing my forehead to whisper, "Although we need to do this in the privacy of our own homes due to the fact the Ton and Lady Whistledown would stir up something if anyone sees it."

I sighed as I remembered Whistledown wrote about the debacle that happened at the wedding, which meant Anthony and I would have to hide our engagement for even longer than it was intended.

A jilted groom. A broken-hearted bride-to-be.

A royal wedding in shambles.

Sensational? Quite. But true?

This author may traffic in chatter and speculation, dear reader, but misinformation? Never.

Explanations of why Miss Edwina absconded from the altar may be greater in number than anyone could possibly fathom. But we must not forget, it was Her Majesty the Queen who placed the young miss on that special stage so that she could make her grand exit.

Allow this author to hope...for Her Majesty's sake, as well as both the Sharmas and Bridgertons, that an official explanation emerges swiftly, lest the ton are run away by their tawdry imaginings.

"I wish I could outright say I'm betrothed to you to give Lady Whistledown something else to talk about instead of your family and the Sharmas," I whispered as Anthony let out a sigh and rubbed my arm.

"As do I, but as you and I both know, it would cause more trouble and our matrimony shouldn't start that way," Anthony says as I smile and ask him how I got lucky to have a man like him by my side, which prompted him to say, "It is I who is the lucky one, to have such a woman who will be the perfect Viscountess and," he then moved his hand over my stomach, "When the time comes, she will be an amazing mother to my children."

I placed a hand on top of his and started imagining how life would be awaiting the arrival of a baby, but fear started rearing its ugly head when memories of Azazela and Iris popped up.

"Are you okay?" Anthony asked as he felt his hand being squeezed tight and looked at me with worry etched on his face, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Yeah, I was just thinking back to Azazela and Iris because that part of me is still scared," I whispered as Anthony started to caress my face and asked, "What about it scares you?"

I sighed before I expressed my fears, "I saw things a girl at the mere age of 12 shouldn't have seen. Azazela was lying in that bed, in pain from the blood, and when the doctor delivered Iris, she just dropped like she was in relief, not realizing she was so close to reuniting with Jameson. And Iris, when they handed her to me, she was pink and looked healthy, but she passed in my arms otherwise, the doctor said she might've been born too early. I'm scared I will be in the same position and if something happened, Isa and Charlie wouldn't have me here anymore, and you would be grieving again."