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“I Helped a Duke Find His Lost Dog,” She Told Her Mother — Then the Garden Gate Opened

“I Helped a Duke Find His Lost Dog,” She Told Her Mother — Then the Garden Gate Opened

Chapter 11

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Alderwick pulled the sheet of vellum toward him and picked up his pen. The scratching of the nib against the paper was loud in the quiet room. He did not write to Eleanor; he wrote to Mrs. Vale, formally requesting permission to call upon her daughter that afternoon. He folded the letter, pressed his heavy signet ring into the hot red wax, and set it aside.When the footman returned an hour later with a brief, favorable reply, the Duke rose from his desk. He did not call for Bracken. He did not pick up a book to return or a gift to offer. He left the house empty-handed, the heavy front door closing behind him with a definitive thud.When Alderwick arrived at the Vale residence, Mrs. Vale received him in the parlor with quiet, approving grace. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, she suggested that the afternoon air was particularly fine, and that Eleanor was currently walking in the garden. She remained in the parlor near the open French doors, preserving the propriety of the meeting while allowing them the privacy to speak.Eleanor was standing near the stone wall, tracing the pattern of the ivy, when the gate latch clicked. She turned, her breath catching slightly as the heavy wooden door swung open.The Duke of Alderwick stepped through. He was alone.He walked down the path toward her, his stride purposeful, stripped of the hesitant, careful observation that had marked his previous visits. He stopped a few paces away, removing his hat."Miss Vale," he said, his voice steady and remarkably clear."Your Grace," she replied, her heart beginning to hammer against her ribs. She noted his empty hands, the absence of the dog trotting at his heels."I have come today without an excuse," Alderwick said, holding her gaze with unwavering focus. "I used Bracken because I did not want to presume that my attention would be welcome. I thought a practical reason would make my presence less of an imposition." He paused, the rigid control he usually maintained softening into something open and deeply sincere. "I see now that I left you in the unfair position of having to interpret my actions. I apologize for that."Eleanor watched him, the tight knot of anxiety that had gripped her for two days finally beginning to loosen. He was speaking the truth she had needed to hear, taking the risk he had previously avoided."I do not wish to be a friend of the house, Eleanor," he continued, speaking her given name for the first time, his voice dropping to a low, quiet intensity. "And I do not need a dog to give me a reason to walk through that gate. I wish to know you as a suitor. I have come to ask if you will accept my courtship."
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“I Helped a Duke Find His Lost Dog,” She Told Her Mother — Then the Garden Gate Opened

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