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Chapter One
“I will not marry that wretch, and you cannot make me!”
Eliza Prescott, eldest daughter of Lord Hastings, rolled her eyes. It was rather typical of her half-sister Margaret to be theatrical when displeased, and this was no exception. She had been promised to a man that was high standing in society, a duke, and even then, it was not good enough for her.
Even so, to be putting on such a display in front of their father and her mother was rather terrible, especially given that Margaret was one-and-twenty years old and thus more than capable of conveying her thoughts in a more productive manner. The room was cold, but with all of the fury coming out of Margaret, Eliza swore she could feel a heat in the air.
“Dear,” Eliza’s stepmother said gently to her father, “Do you not think that we could find a better match for our daughter?”
“She has been out in society for three seasons as it is. If she has not made her own match by now, then we have to continue with the agreement.”
“But she is unmarried, and two years older than me!” Margaret screeched, pointing accusingly at Eliza, as if there had been anything that she could do to remedy her situation.
Anybody with even the slightest idea of how London society worked knew that an illegitimate child was destined to struggle, and an illegitimate daughter was the worst fate of all. She would have no worth as a wife, and therefore no offers of marriage. All that Eliza could hope for was spinsterhood, in the home her father had graciously opened to her, though how much was grace and how much was guilt she was not so certain.
She remained in the corner, watching on in silence. It would not be a good thing for her to say anything and draw attention to herself; she knew that much from experience. Margaret had already made an attempt there, but fortunately her father’s gaze remained unmoved.
“Margaret, you know the agreement.” Their father continued, “The duke was promised to my oldest legitimate daughter. The deal was made years ago, and it was through kindness that you were allowed to debut and spend some time out in society. You did not find another match at all, let alone a better one, and so this is how it must be.”
“But he is deformed,” Margaret argued. “Is that what you want for me? I thought you loved me too much to send me away to some wretch such as him.”
“Margaret, you know that I love you, but the Ashford Hastings agreement has existed for longer than you have. The late duke was my best friend, and I cannot simply call it off because you are unsure of the man.”
“I am very much sure of how I feel about him. We are all more than aware of the rumors. He is crippled, an awful and unkind man, and frightening. I cannot put myself in such a position as that, no matter the deal.”
Their father groaned, leaning back in his seat. Eliza pitied him greatly; he had always been a man of his word, but it was no secret that Margaret was his pride and joy. Any other man would have longed for a son, so that he would at least have an heir, yet he had been grateful to have her, nonetheless.
Then again, perhaps he was simply pleased that this time, his child was not born out of wedlock.
“Margaret, you do not know if the rumors are true or not. They are just that, rumors. He has scarcely been seen since that day, and there have been no real stories of him having done anything untoward.”
Eliza’s stepmother sighed, “He has been seen with his cane many times, ambling around with difficulty. We cannot force our daughter’s hand, dear. It isn’t right.”
“Then what do you propose that we do instead? You know as well as I do that this was a vow I made years ago; one I assured my friend of on his deathbed.”
“Well, it is not as though you haven’t broken vows before.”
Eliza saw the pain in her father’s face as Clarissa said this.
“As for what we could do instead,” she continued, “We could solve two problems at once.”
“And what might those be?”
“Margaret does not wish to marry the duke, and Eliza will never marry given her… status. I therefore propose that we give him Eliza instead.”
At last, Eliza could not keep quiet and let out a gasp. Margaret turned to her with a faint smirk.
“That would never work,” the earl sighed, “And either way, it is not fair to Eliza. She is blameless, and deserves the opportunity to find a husband regardless of any mistakes that I made.”
“She is older than me,” Margaret pointed out, “Even closer to spinsterhood than I am. I agree, Mama, we should send her in my place.”
“Of course you would think that is a good idea,” Eliza snapped, “That would not be possible. Everyone knows what you look like, Margaret, and what you act like.”
“Except for the duke,” Clarissa nodded, “Yes, he became a recluse, and has not seen the two of you in years now. He would not know the difference. Besides, the two of you look similar enough. I have always said, Eliza, that it is a good thing that you look nothing like your mother. As always, I have been proven right.”
Eliza hated to admit it, but her stepmother had been right about her looks. She never knew her mother, but she had to admit that she was almost a mirror image of her father; auburn hair, blue eyes, and a pale complexion with a few freckles. Margaret had taken after him too, though she did not have as many freckles. Would that difference be enough for her to be recognized?
She shook her head gently. Already, she was thinking about whether or not the plan would work when they had not even agreed that they would be doing it, and she was positive that they would not go along with it. It was preposterous, impossible, and relied on the duke being a fool.
But then she saw her father’s face.
He was in thought, which could only mean one thing; he was considering it, and that was the most frightening thing of all.
Her father loved her, she was certain that he did, but that love paled in comparison to what he felt for his wife and his legitimate daughter, and that had always been the case. There was no unconditional love left for Eliza, and while it killed her inside it was not as though she could have expected anything else. She was a nasty stain on their perfect family, and she had arrived before they could even be a real family without her, given that she came before Margaret.
Even so, she had thought that she had been punished enough during her life without some great punishment such as this. However, if her father was considering it, then she would have no choice but to agree. He was the only ally she had in that household, and she could not lose him.
“How do you suppose this plan of yours would work?” He asked, and Clarissa smiled sweetly at him.
“You see, given that they have not seen one another in years, we could send Eliza to his estate in Margaret’s place, so that they can spend their courtship together. With any luck, he will fall in love with Eliza, and then by the time he discovers the truth, he will not care.”
“And what if he does?” Eliza asked, “What do you suppose we do if he finds out too quickly, and then I am left with an apparent monster of a man?”
“Chance would be a fine thing.” Margaret muttered.
“He will not. The two of you look too similar, and he has no way of knowing how you behave.”
She gave a pleading look to her father, hoping that he would agree with her that it was an impossible plan, but he was already nodding.
“It might work,” he agreed, “And should it not, then he will likely be too angry to marry Margaret and call the deal off himself, thus freeing you both from it. I see no harm in this.”
“Except that I could end up married off to a man that is cruel.”
“But you do not know that,” Clarissa reminded her, “Besides, we all know that you will not have this ideal of a suitor again– that is, unless you wish to marry Lord Grenville.”
Eliza’s blood ran cold.
“No,” she replied softly, “No, I see now. You are right, this is the best opportunity that I could be presented with. Very well, I will go along with it, if that is what you want.”
She received a smile of gratitude from her father, and that one look alone was almost enough to make it all worth it. She craved his approval, his affection, and she so rarely felt as though she had received it.
It also meant that she would be able to live without Clarissa and Margaret, and she had to admit that it was very tempting, indeed. That alone was reason enough, as far as she was concerned, to at least try.
“Well, then,” Clarissa grinned, “As we are all in agreement, we shall arrange for Lady Hastings to visit.”
“Aunt Prudence?” Eliza asked, “Why would we need her to visit about this?”
She was excited, of course; her aunt was a wonderful lady who had always managed to look past where she had come from and love her as if she had been any other niece.
“Well, as you would be courting, while staying with a gentleman no less, you shall require a chaperone. She has already told me that she was willing to do it, she simply does not yet know that those services will be necessary from next week onward.”
“Next week?”
“Would you rather it were tomorrow?” She snapped, “You are fortunate to have been afforded the luxury of staying in my home, and we all know that you have been ungrateful for that.”
“How would you have liked me to show gratitude? I have smiled and been polite and done all of the correct things. What more do you want from me?”
“Do not talk back! We will see Lady Hastings in the morning, if you are so desperate to no longer be here.”
Eliza nodded and left the room, Margaret’s smirk not leaving her mind.
The following morning, Eliza dressed herself for the visit and followed her father out to a carriage. It was a rare occasion where Clarissa did not insist on coming so that she could hear everything that was said and control the situation entirely, and Eliza was grateful for that. She was scarcely given any time alone with her father, and she enjoyed it.
“Last night was… difficult,” he said slowly.
“It certainly came as a surprise.”
“Eliza, if there was any other way through this then you know that I would do it for you.”
“There was. All that was necessary was keeping to the deal you made. The oldest legitimate daughter.”
“I have always considered you my real daughter.”
“But I have never been treated as such. Not until now, it appears, when it is convenient for you all.”
“Please do not be angry with me.”
Eliza sighed. In truth, she was completely furious with him, but that would not help at all. After all, what had she expected? He had always put her needs below his wife’s wants, and so this would never have been an exception. It was done, and she had to see the good in it.
“You are to be a duchess!” Her aunt exclaimed when they explained the situation to her, “My little Eliza, the Duchess of Ashford. I could cry, truly.”
“As could I, Aunt Prudence.”
“Now, dear, you mustn’t see it like that. You should be grateful to Margaret for giving you this opportunity. You never know, you might be surprised by the duke and fall for him regardless.”
“Let us not be too optimistic,” Eliza sighed, but she was smiling at least.
Aunt Prudence had never married, and she had been perfectly happy all her life. That was one of the reasons that Eliza loved her so much; she would undoubtedly be a spinster, which was supposed to be this frightening thing, but her aunt had loved every day of her life.
“In any case,” Aunt Prudence continued, “I shall be with you, and we can pretend it is a holiday. Perhaps the duke will not like the Margaret that is presented to him, and he will change his mind and send you back regardless?”
“One can only hope.”
“He will not,” her father said, at last being kind about her, “Eliza, you are a pretty girl, with a sizable dowry, and you are kind and intelligent. He will fall for you.”
“I will also be lying to him. Am I to be myself there, or Margaret?”
“For the sake of the match,” Aunt Prudence laughed, “I believe it would be wiser to be yourself.”
She then gave her brother a smirk. Margaret was not as kind to her aunt as Eliza was, and Lady Hastings ended up having a favorite niece even though she swore she didn’t.
Eliza believed that it was deserved on her part—someone had to like her more, even if it was not the kindest thing to be glad about.
“When will we be leaving?” Aunt Prudence asked.
“Within the week,” the earl explained, making Eliza’s stomach hurt all over again, “We are hoping to have the arrangements made by Wednesday, and to leave on Thursday.”
“Then I ought to prepare. Brother, do you mind if I speak with my niece for a moment?”
“Certainly.”
But he did not leave the room.
“Alone,” she said gently, and at that he seemed to understand.
“Of course.”
When the two of them were alone, Aunt Prudence stroked Eliza’s back. At last, Eliza felt able to say how she truly felt, comforted by the kindness.
“It is all so awful,” she said suddenly, “I did not want this. It was Margaret’s burden to bear, the only one in her life, and still it was handed to me. Is this all that I will ever be good for? Bearing the brunt of their choices?”
“I wish there was more that I could do, but I have already tried to talk your father out of this. I tried years ago, when he expected it to be Margaret’s duty. Even then, he said that it was the correct thing to do, and therefore nothing that I said would change his mind.”
“I wish I hated him.”
“No, you do not. You and I both know that this is not what you want, nor is it what I want for you, but it is as I said. Perhaps the duke will surprise you?”
Eliza nodded, but she was not so convinced.
No, she was terrified.
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Grab my new series, "Love and Secrets of the Ton", and get 5 FREE novels as a gift! Have a look here!
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