Page 63 of The Duke and the Temporary Bride

Is it strange that I feel nervous? Stranger that I am not certain if I wish for things to go back to the way they were or for us to continue in this fashion?

“Oh no.” Benedict chuckled.

“What?”

“Your sister, Diana—” He pointed through the crowd. “Should we call out to your mother or sit back and see what happens?”

Selina followed his finger… and then suppressed a giggle when she saw what her husband was pointing at. “Times were that I would say we should warn her, but…” She shrugged. “Three days later and I do not mind seeing my mother deal with this.”

“You are wicked, Selina.”

She cocked an eyebrow. “You sound surprised.”

It was pure coincidence that the village that sat just one hour down the road from Northwick Estate was hosting a festival today. Diana had been the one to learn of it, begging her mother to let them attend before they left.

Funny that it was Selina whom she should have begged, seeing as Selina was only too aware of her husband’s aversion to such things and figured that to say no early, rather than asking her husband later, was the smarter option.

“He does not like crowds,” she had told Diana.

“But… but…”

“Nor do they like him, for that matter,” Selina added. “I am sorry, but I cannot see him agreeing to attend.”

Although Selina knew that her husband was not the monster most seemed to think he was, few others knew it. And in this part of England, this close to his estate, she was certain that the last thing he would wish for was to spend the morning surrounded by villagers who would only gasp and gawk at the sight of him.

Oh, how wrong she was.

“I would love to go,” Benedict had said when asked. “Truly, it is a wonderful idea.”

Selina frowned and leaned back. “Are you certain? It is bound to be a busy affair. And I know how much you hate crowds.”

He took her hand and gave it a kiss. “Your sisters wish it, and I am dedicated to showing them a good time whilst they are here. And I have learned that a happy wife makes for a happy husband, so why not?”

Her frown had deepened at that statement.

He is only pretending, putting on a show for my mother…

“I better go and help her.” Benedict chuckled, releasing her hand as he prepared to wade into the crowd and after her mother. “Before things begin to spiral.”

“And here I was, hoping for a show.” Selina laughed.

“You might still get one.” He winked. “But I will do my best not to snap and murder anyone. How does that sound?”

She pretended to frown. “You really have changed.”

He laughed as he started ahead. Just like when Lady Langham walked through the crowd, they saw him coming and parted for him. Many gasped. Many gawked. But Benedict ignored them, seemingly unconcerned with the reactions he was receiving.

Selina watched him with that same sense of curiosity that had been building inside her these last few days. His mood should have been foul. Forced to go out in public like this, to feign enjoyment, to not snap at people who had no right to gawk at him the way they were, and it was a wonder he was so composed.

But he was more than composed. He was happy and relaxed, not the stuck-up, cold, dispassionate man she had married all those weeks ago. And now she began to wonder. Was this the real Benedict? Was the cold, callous, angry man whose bed she shared a version of himself that he faked because he did not know any better?

Selina continued to watch as Benedict swept in to save her mother from a fire-breather who had managed to capture Diana’s attention. From the looks of things, he was trying to convince Diana to try for herself, unconcerned about her mother’s scolding. This had given her sisters a chance to run off again, which led to her mother becoming even more flustered.

Benedict was calm as he pulled Diana away. And he laughed as he then swept through the crowd and collected the twins. If this was an act, Selina would learn of it soon enough. But if it was not…

She could not help the way her heart fluttered as she began to wonder if their marriage could truly work. And if she even wanted such a thing.

More importantly, however, did Benedict?