It had only been a week since he had bid Noelle farewell, but to Pierce, it felt like an eternity. He hadn't planned on seeing her for yet another week but knew he couldn't hold out that long. The first few days she had been gone he had kept himself busy instructing the servants to freshen up the chapel and making preparations for their wedding trip to France, but he quickly realized that no amount of busyness could keep his desire to be with her at bay. He impulsively decided to return to London and surprise her, spending the entire trip fantasizing about how delicious it would be to hold her soft body in his arms and kiss her pert mouth, as he inhaled her fresh scent.
Due to their late start, they did not arrive in London until well past an appropriate hour to pay a call to the Brattondale's, so Pierceinstructed his driver to take him directly to his townhouse on Grosvenor Square for the night where he slept fitfully, much too anxious to be reunited with Noelle.
The following morning, Pierce was up early. Tucker had helped dress him in tan breeches and a dark brown tailcoat, his cravat expertly tied in the mathematical before he left the house whistling in anticipation for the day ahead. He walked the few blocks from his house to Noelle's, and when he arrived, the butler showed him into the drawing-room where he could wait for Noelle. He sat down on the rose-colored settee and smiled at the remembrance of the first day he had called on the Earl of Brattondale with the intention of meeting his future wife and the encounter with Noelle that ensued.
The memory of her in her white day dress, with her hair cascading down around her in untamed rivers of honey, made him even more eager to see her, to touch her. He looked up expectantly as Noelle and Estherwalked into the room, quickly coming to his feet and closing the distance between them. He smiled at her, his dark eyes sparkling with merriment.
Noelle watched as the duke smiled charmingly at her, revealing straight, white teeth. He was every bit as handsome as everyone had said he was, but she couldn't help comparing him to Soren, to the handsome American who had stolen her heart. The duke was taller and broader than Soren, but where his eyes held a gleam of wickedness, Soren'semerald eyes had always seemed to sparkle with barely contained laughter. As she stood assessing the duke and comparing him endlessly to Soren, her heart ached anew with the fresh grief of her loss, and she tried to remind herself that that part of her life was in the past and had to stay that way forever. It would be best if she forgot about Soren completely and embraced this new life, this new man standing in front of her.
Pierce reached for her hand and brought it to his lips, where he placed a soft kiss to the inside of her wrist, allowing his lips to linger longer than what was deemed appropriate. Noelle couldn't help herself, as she recoiled inwardly at his overly familiar touch. She pulled her hand back suddenly when she found she could no longer bear his touch. When Soren touched her she felt nothing repulsive, only tingly, like every nerve was on fire and alert to his every movement. When the duke touched her, she just felt flat.
Piercesquinted his eyes and looked at her, her aloofness bothering him greatly, especially after being apart for so long. He wished there was some way he could get Esther to leave them for a time so he could pull her into his arms and kiss her as he had been envisioning doing for the last week.
"Iknow I said I wouldn't be here for another week, but I found I couldn't stay away from you any longer, love."
Love? Apparently he and Hope had grown more comfortable than she realized. She knew she would have to set him straight, for she didn't want him to expect more from her than she was willing to give. "That'snice of you to come all this way to see me, but I really must get going, I have an appointment with my dressmaker and don't wish to be late."
Noelle'sattempt to dismiss Pierce confused him. Was this the same girl who had so reluctantly parted with him back at Ridgecrest Manor? He looked at her closely and noticed the way she avoided looking into his eyes, the way she stood with her arms crossed rigidly across her chest as if she was impatiently waiting for him to leave. Well, if she thought that was the case, she had another think coming.
Turning to Esther he said, "Esther, would you mind fetching a pelisse for Noelle? It is a little chilly out and I would hate for her to catch a chill."
"But Your Grace, it wouldn't be proper for me to—"
"Now, Esther," he ground out between clenched teeth.
"YesYour Grace," she said, as she scurried out of the room to do his bidding.
The minute they were alone, Pierce wasted no time. He stepped forward and pulled Noelle into his arms. "Oh, how I have missed you, my minx."He bent his head and eagerly found her lips and kissed her with all the pent up passion he possessed. He was so distracted by the feel of her soft lips at first, that he failed to notice that she wasn't responding, or for that matter that he wasn't experiencing the same tidal wave of passion he had previously experienced either. When the fog of desire finally cleared from his mind, he realized that she stood stiff and unyielding in his arms. Never before, when he had kissed her, not even that first time in this very same room had she ever been so unresponsive and never before had he felt such lack of passion. It was as if there was no emotion involved when they touched. He heard an alarm sound in his head, as he pulled back to gaze into her amber eyes; eyes that usually sparkled with life were now dull and unwelcoming.
Pierce dropped his hands from her person as if he had been burned and took a step back, "I am sorry...it's just that I..." he stammered.
"Yes," Noelle replied coolly. "I trust you will not allow it to happen again before we are properly married."
Piercereeled back as if she had slapped him. Where had his passionateNoelle gone, the girl who so eagerly and hungrily partook of his kisses with an intoxicating mixture of innocence and barely contained passion?
"What's the matter, Noelle? Has something happened?"
Noelle could see in his face that he was genuinely concerned for her. She didn't have the heart to hurt his feelings and instead opted to tell a small lie, "I am just not feeling well."
"Why didn't you say so? Shall I ring for tea?"
"No, no, I think I just need to lie down for a while. If you wouldn't mind sending word to the dressmaker that I won't be able to keep my appointment, then I think I will just go lay down. Thank you for the visit and have a nice day." And with that, she hurried out of the room, leaving a stunned Pierce gaping after her.
The disappointment that invaded his mind and heart at the reunion would not ebb. He felt sick inside as he thought back on their past encounters, on the fiery passion that they had shared. He thought about how unassuming and likable Noelle had been at Ridgecrest manor and the lively badinage they had engaged in. She had been so different from any other woman he had ever known, but today she felt like a stranger. The concern he felt on her behalf was immense, and so he quickly took leave of her house hoping to find a way to distract himself from his fretting.
Pierce walked agitatedly back to his townhouse where he instructed his groom to ready his carriage so he could drive into town. His first order of business was to purchase a large bouquet of pink roses to be sent over to Noelle. The light, delicate shade of pink reminded him of the color of her soft, creamy skin after he had thoroughly kissed her. He had to keep reminiscing on their time together in the country to reassure himself that nothing was terribly amiss, that her sudden alteration in behavior was truly due to illness and not something more formidable.
Next, he drove to Oxford Street to make a purchase he had been contemplating ever since Noelle had told him of her penchant for writing. He alighted from his carriage and strolled into Gillow'sto pick out a Bonheur du jour for Noelle. It didn't take him long to pick out the perfect writing desk for her; the dainty George IIIdesk was made out of rich mahogany, imported from the West Indies and featured a central section bookshelf, flanked by two cupboards veneered in tulipwood. The drawers featured turned brass handles, and the desk sat atop elegant, squared, tapering legs mounted on brass castors. It was perfect—the desk radiated an air of elegance and beauty that reminded him of Noelle. He couldn't wait to see the look on her face when he presented it to her.
After purchasing the desk and instructing it to be delivered to his townhouse on Grosvenor Square, he left hoping to find something to distract him from the persistent ache in his heart that warred with the persistent desire to be with Noelle.
***
Estherflitted around the room retrieving discarded articles of clothing, as she occasionally sent an annoyed glance in the direction of the testered bed. Noelle had been lying face down on the plush coverpane, her body racking with sobs ever since the Duke of Kerringtonhad left nearly an hour ago. She hadn't been able to pry any information from her mistress about the encounter but secretly wondered what had occurred in the short time she had been gone retrieving Noelle's pelisse that had disheartened her so.
Quite frankly, ever since Esther had gone in the room to begin Noelle'stoilette that morning, she had sensed a change in her demeanor. Her eyes that had been so alive were lifeless and dull. She was morose and almost unfriendly in her dealings with Esther and had shown not even the slightest bit of excitement about her appointment with the dressmaker to begin assembling her trousseau. And, there was no talk of the duke or the upcoming wedding, and that by far unnerved her the most.
Ever since arriving back in London, all Noelle seemed to be able to do was talk about the duke with a dreamy, love-struck look on her face. And Esther could not say she blamed her. If a man as handsome and fine as the Duke of Kerrington was to become her husband, she'd be walking around distracted and smitten as well. The thought of such a glorious man kissing her made her cheeks instantly flame with heat, and so distracted was she, that she hadn't even noticed that Noelle'scrying had finally ceased and the room had become eerily silent.
"Esther, are you listening to me?"
Estherguiltily shook all thoughts of the duke out of her head and walked over to the side of her mistress's bed, "I'm sorry, Milady. What was it you were saying?"
"I was saying that I want to leave."
"And where do you want to go? Are you sure you are feeling up to it?"
"I'm not really ill you twit. I just couldn't stomach another minute in that vile man's presence."
Esthergasped audibly. Had she really just heard Noelle correctly? She didn't know what had happened to change her mood so drastically in such a short time, but all she knew was, this behavior was completely out of character. "Are you sure you are feeling well, Milady?"
"Aswell as can be expected, now stop asking me that. I want you to come with me."
"Come with you where?"
"To Shepard's Bush. I have a—a friend I need to see. It's urgent."
"I'm not sure that's wise, Milady, won't your father object to such an outing?"
"Oh, it's not like he has to know. The only way he'd find out is if you were to say something," Noelle squinted her eyes at her and assessed her coolly, "You wouldn't betray me would you?"
"Of course not, but what about the stable boy? Won't he tell your father where you have gone off to?"
Noelleswung her legs over the edge of the bed, "No because he won't know. We will tell him we are just going for a ride through HydePark and that Devon is meeting us there to accompany us."
"Very well, Milady. But there is just one thing—"
Noellerolled her eyes, "Pray tell, what is it?"
"I can't ride a horse."
Noelle had no sympathy for Esther and her lack of skill. She was so keen on getting to Hope in Shepard's Bush that she was determined to drag Esther along on the back of her horse if that is what it took to get them there. They were halfway to the mews when they were interrupted by Devon sitting atop a chestnut mare.
"Goodday, Noelle, where are you off too?"
Noellerolled her eyes impatiently before turning to stare up at her brother. "We were just off on a ride through Hyde Park."
"By yourself, unchaperoned?"
"Well, it's actually quite good fortune that we ran into you because I was hoping you might be able to accompany us." She hoped with everything in her that he would say that he had other plans and leave them be so they could sneak off without further interruption, but apparently luck was not on her side.
"What a marvelous idea! We haven't gotten to go riding together since we have been in London this season, and it's such a fine day to be out. Perhaps you should go grab a bonnet to shield yourself from the sun."
Noelleground her teeth together in frustration. Clearly she wouldn't be able to follow through on her plans this day. "Please have Geoffreysaddle my horse while I go retrieve a bonnet, then we can be off."Then turning to Esther, "It appears you won't get the chance to learn to ride today. I won't be needing your assistance now." She stalked off back towards the house, irritated beyond belief that she couldn't go track down Hope and beg her to come back and marry the Duke of Kerrington.
Though initially, Noelle had regretted Devon's presence that morning and the ride she was being forced to take through Hyde Park, she found as they rode along, the sun beating down on their backs, that she was actually grateful for the opportunity the ride had given her to think through her plan more thoroughly. She found that her initial idea of running off to find Hope and begging her to come back and marry the duke was incredibly flawed. Once Hope came back and became her, what was she supposed to do? Where was she supposed to go?
She had always been quite impulsive, one of the traits she possessed in great abundance. It was that same impulsiveness that had prompted her to run off with Soren, but now that she had time to think through her actions more clearly, she knew that there was no way she could bring hope back and force herself out on the streets once more. She felt her throat clog with frustrated emotion, as she thought of the predicament she was in. She silently cursed Soren for having the audacity to die on her, leaving her in this position. Next, she turned her anger towards her father, for if he hadn't so foolishly arranged for her to wed the duke, she would never have been in this position in the first place. She was so dratted mad at anyone and everything that she could hardly focus on the plethora of people who had stopped to greet the pair on their ride.
Noelleremained aloof the entire outing, and by the time they had returned home, she was once more in deep melancholy. She felt so hopelessly frustrated and depressed when she thought about her future. Even knowing that she would soon be a duchess couldn't brighten her mood any. She thought of the kiss the duke had so unwelcomingly bestowed upon her and wanted to retch. It wasn't that he wasn't attractive, because she could admit that he was dangerously so, it all came down to the fact that she wasn't in love with him. She was still helplessly, maddeningly in love with Soren, or the memory of Soren, since the man no longer existed.
Her thoughts kept whirling around in the same never-ending cycle of pity. The only solution she could come up with was not satisfactory but seemed to be the only way—she would simply have to learn to tolerate the duke and make the most of the marriage, for she could see no other way around her inevitable future.