The Appalling Strangeness of the Mercy of God [M - Hannelorian x DuchessLivilla]

[Hannelorian]

Alice, for all of her insecurities new there was not another prospect for the Duke. Not that there weren't many options for him, he could have his pick being so young, handsome and of course wealthy and titled. Rather, none that he seemed to be actively pursuing at the moment. Save for her, but that seemed presumptuous to think of. But to hear hims ay he thought that by next season he would have already found his Duchess. Well that was enough to make Alice smile and cast her gaze down toward her plate, hiding the faintest hint of blush that had overcome her. When it came to courting, Alice had no real idea. Arthur and Alexandra's case seemed to be somewhat out of the ordinary given the extreme lack of approval from his father.

But Thomas had no, or few living relatives to object. When Alice came to serve the Duchess she was obviously already well married, and her second seemed to be something of a whirlwind that lifted her to Queen, it was out of the ordinary. It was in no time at all that Thomas had asked her what she found surprising. The answers were manifold, it would be difficult to pick just one and still be rather polite about all of it. Alice had no shortage of thoughts that filled her mind.

Thomas had joined her in more of an intimate conversation style, and now she looked upon his face, his angular features, he was ever so dashing. "If I am to be an honest woman, I must confess the warmth has surprised me the most." Alice was careful with her word choice, Alexandra's voice in the back of her head reminding her to act both as herself and as a lady, to make herself into a lady. "I had not expected such a Duke such as yourself to be so kind and inviting. You are a worldly man with unbounded experience in all matters of things." Alice allowed her hands to come to rest in her lap, her fingers tightly interlaced.

"Most Lords would overlook lesser ladies such as myself, or be too sheepish to play host to the Prince and Princess." More like too cheap to play host. Even Alice knew how expensive such things were, it was all anyone talked about aside from the grandeur of the whole thing. "But on the whole, what has surprised me perhaps above all is resounding hope for the future. That one day things may change." Alice looked for a moment at Arthur and Alexandra, then back to the Duke who undoubtedly shared many of his views with the royal couple, even if they had not explicitly been discussed.

[DuchessLivilla]

Thomas smiled. "Ah, maybe I am not like most lords because I made sure I was never here to learn how to be one. As for overlooking 'lesser' ladies...I have no desire to follow silly rules that rank us. I shall, of course, respect those above me and treat them as they deserve in all ways, but those 'below' me shall be treated just as I myself would wish to be treated."

He took a drink of wine then added, "And in any case, Lady Alice, you have more than proved you are, in any way, less than, any other lady." He too then looked at the royal couple and nodded slowly. "We can but hope, my Lady. We can but hope."

Alexandra smiled gently and returned his nod. "Indeed. We can hope and pray..." 'But perhaps action might be called for' was the unsaid part of that.

-

Dinner continued along similar lines, course after course, until finally all dishes were cleared away and the guests retired to the drawing room. It was then that the young Duke offered those who wished to, a tour of his museum. No one would ever know if Alex had arranged it, or if fate intervened, but the ladies were content to sit and gossip and the gentleman, being offered cigars and brandy, had no desire to move and so the 'tour' party consisted of Alexandra, Arthur, Alice and Thomas alone.

The latter did not appear to take offense that no one else wished to see his collections. He was too please at the prospect of being able to show them to Alice. He lead the way upstairs and through a set of double doors into the long gallery like set of rooms he had had commissioned.

The rooms stretched the whole length of the first floor and with the large windows on one side, the rooms would be bathed in light during the day. The walls hung with sketches, framed pictures, portraits, pressed flowers in frames. Cabinets against the walls were full of objects. Glass fronted display boxes stood in the centre of the rooms, some containing whole suits of clothes on dummies.

Alexandra blinked and looked around as they entered. "My word...You did not jest when you said museum, your Grace," she said, in true astonishment. "I do not believe any house in England has such a collection as this!"

Thomas smiled and looked around too. He was not a vane man, but he had to admit, he was proud of what he had accomplished here. "Thank you, your Highness. Yes, I have quite the collection. Shall we begin here?" He took them to the wall directly in front of them. "This section is from my first tour of France..." he said, gesturing to well displayed sketches of scenes in Paris, including the Eiffel Tower, parks, palaces and such. "I do not have much from my first tour," he admitted, "As I was still young and accompanied by my tutor who had a set schedule...agreed with my father, but I managed to gather a few things. I collected yet more when I returned again, alone, the next year."

He smiled at Alice. "You would love the gardens in the Palace of Versailles, my Lady. Such a riot of colour. Ah," he reached out a plucked a leather book from the shelf before them. "Here," he handed it to Alice. When she opened it, she found the pages were made of heavy paper, and each contained a pressed flower, noted with date and name in both English and Latin, as well as its native place of origin. "You lose some colour in the pressing but it holds up very well."

The young Duke blushed. "I am aware such things are pressing flowers are the preserve of ladies, but my mother had no daughters and loved the past-time, so showed me. When I was on my tour, I realised it would be the perfect way to bring back some of the beauty I found in the flora on my travels."

[Hannelorian]

When the doors to the gallery opened, Alice felt herself like a child again. Her eyes grew wide with wonder and amazement. She had never in her life seen anything so magnificent and transfixing not even once. "I don't even know what to say." Her hands clasped together as she stepped forward onto the floor, her heels clicking lightly against the stone below. Alice had never even been to a museum, not even as a child. The closest she had come were the great palaces where she worked and many different kinds of rotating collections were on display, though largely paintings and a few statues and such, but this was something else entirely.

She hardly had time to process it and as the Duke moved further in Alice felt herself begin to drift as different pieces caught her eye. She felt as though she were floating now. Much like a child she would want to press her hands to the glass case and bring her eyes right up against it to see every detail she could, but knowing better she refrained. By the time she was handed the heavy book with extraordinary pressed flowers inside she took her time to think of the words.

"It's marvelous. Simply marvelous." Alice carefully leafed through the pages, her fingertips as gentle as possible as she went, each flower was something different something she had never seen in all of her English travel. Alice also knew she wasn't really supposed to read the writing, not that she knew any Latin, but her years of training kept her eyes from focusing on the letters before her, only on the dried and pressed pieces of magic before her.

"The things you've seen! I regret you had to see so much alone, but even so... the splendor is just so impressive." It was, Alice supposed she could spend days upon days in here just looking and asking questions. What was this? What was that? Where did it come from? How did he get it? Was it dangerous? Everything was racing through her mind at once and it moved too quickly to really spend any good time on any one part of it.

"Your Highness!" Alice called to the Princess, now pointing at one of the cases, the book all the while now carefully closed and held close to her in her other arm. "Have you seen anything like this?! It's fantastic." Alice considered she was making a fool of herself as she was so giddy around all of it. It was a small collection of arrow heads made of assorted stone, some entirely intact, others damaged from the ages of time. "Your Grace, I... I... um... thank you." Alice finally settled on as she looked at him with such wonder. Arabella would have slapped her if she had asked even a single question to someone such as Duke at one point, but Alexandra encouraged her wonder and love of learning and life.

[DuchessLivilla]

Thomas watched Alice's face, taking in every smile, the way her eyes lit up, he was truly enchanted. No one -not that he had shown many people- had ever been interested this much. He knew she could be lying but no one was that skilled. She really was in awe of the place. He laughed aloud as she looked about, charmed entirely by her.

Alexandra could not help but look around too, her own eyes wide. She, like Alice, had never left England but she had, at the least, been able to read -especially since her marriage- books on the wider world. Even so, it was amazing to see a little slice of the world here, in this house. She followed Alice's excited call and stood before the glass case, staring in at the arrow-heads.

Her gaze slipped to the card and she blinked. "My word...thousands of years old?" She shook her head. "Do these go back all the way to the time of the Bible?"

The Duke, who had spoken to, and still conversed with 'dangerous radicals' in various countries in Europe, and had, like them, come to question the Biblical timeline and much of what they had always been taught, merely smiled. He trusted the Princess, to an extent, but in matters such as these, no one could be trusted. What he said next could see him killed for it. And not just that, for all her doubts, he knew the Princess did believe much of what she had been taught. Who was he to question her faith? He might not believe it, but he had no right to damage hers.

"Yes, Your Highness, I believe so," he replied, with a smile. "Some are damaged from time, others bear distinct marks from battle...so my findings do suggest they have been used in combat."

"Amazing to think what they must have seen," Alex said, squeezing Alice's hand in excitement.

Thomas then turned back to Alice and bowed. "My Lady, the pleasure is all mine. I am most touched you are interested, most...are not," he laughed. "They think I am mad for having all this and 'wasting' such fine rooms on my silly collection but I love it all the same. Thank you for appreciating it, it means more to me than I can say."

He smiled warmly then said, "Now, I know ladies have a love of fabrics...If you'll come with me," he took them a little down the room and stopped before a tall, glass-fronted display that, inside, upon a dummy, showed a stunning gown. "It is a genuine Russian Court dress, from about the 18th Century, about 100 years old. The cost," he laughed, "was then and when I bought it, eye-watering, but I had to have it. The Lady who sold it to me was the granddaughter of the first owner, Baroness Graevenitz. The detail is simply exquisite...All done with read gold thread."

Alexandra was struck dumb, mouth slightly open for a moment before she laughed. "My word, do not let my sister see this. She would desire it at once. It's beautiful...Such detail, and craftsmanship. If a mere Baroness could afford such a gown, I dread to think what the Tsarina and her daughter's might have worn! Did they just wear diamonds all over themselves?"

Thomas laughed too, "You are not far off, Your Highness. Some ladies, the Tsarina, included, had gowns that weighed so much they could scarcely move. Earrings so heavy that wires had to go about their ears to take some of the weight!"

[Hannelorian]

Ultimately what was intriguing, from Alice's perspective was the careful dance it seemed the Royals and the Duke were playing. Each one carefully approaching their responses on more controversial matters, such as history and the bible. It was clear the one did not entirely trust the other, which was only natural. Though Alice was speculating ever so slightly, she only suspected Thomas' beliefs, as much as knew Alexandra's. Still it paid to be careful particularly in this court when no one really wanted to be on the outs, a place where that could well mean death. A truly nasty prospect.

"Does anyone really need another room to sit?" Alice wondered out loud when the Duke made his comments about the thoughts of others. "When you have this... who could sit down?" Alice was all smiles, there was too much to take in, she felt like it would take her a life time at this rate. Granted, Alice did not mean to belittle the assorted sitting and drawing rooms that she had been in so many of, they were often beautiful and comfortable, certainly grand but this was worth so much more in her opinion. This was a cultural awakening, an explosion of information just waiting to be pieced together. When the Duke offered his thanks, which he seemed to truly mean Alice flushed once more. She was bashful, and she could hardly see why, it was rather clear to her where Thomas was coming from, she could see no other way.

Then there was the dress, that beautiful red dress. Red was a color that could not be warn by everyone, lest the wrong message be sent. But it was one of the most magnificent thing she had ever seen. "I cannot pretend to know how the Baroness Graevenitz is..." She didn't, Alice was not learned or well educated. "But she must have been very important for something such as this." Alice found herself moving from side to side, taking in the different angles of the outfit. They did not make them like this in their lands, and that was perhaps truly disappointing. She could hardly imagine wearing what she was now, let alone something so gilded and regal.

"Her Majesty would kill for that sort of thing." Alice wasn't serious that the Queen would actually kill, though she had done it before. The King would likely stop at nothing if he knew that is what his beloved wife coveted. The facts about the Tsarina and her daughters were astounding, Alice knew something of Russia but mostly what she'd heard in stories as a child from her parents. The maid was so excited she could have thrown her arms around the Duke and squeezed him for dear life to show her thanks, her entire world had suddenly been opened. Suddenly she felt so small in this world, so painfully small that she didn't just want to be a part of it, she wanted to know more of it.

"Please, my Lord, if you'll indulge me." Alice realized once more it was not her place to ask for things, but here she thought it was worth a try. "Might you show me your favorite piece." Alice wanted to know more about him, and she thought if he was compelled to pick one thing she might learn just a little about him. It was almost as though the Prince and Princess were rooms away, Alice remained with such a singular focus. "It must be impossible to choose, I'm sure." Alice didn't quite know how to phrase what exactly she wanted, other than to be lost in this grand gallery forever. This was it, Alice was now entirely smitten if she hadn't been before. But in her own mind, there was no way he would marry someone like her, it just wasn't done.

"I suppose I'd just like to hear you talk of what makes your eyes light up like that." Alice had watched his eyes and his expressions, in the comfort and safety of his own world he could truly be himself. Something Alice didn't feel entirely free to do though certainly she had become more accustomed to having her own personality. Alexandra had been terribly supportive.

Arthur took his wife's arm into his own and stopped them from moving, he raised his hand out making a delicate sign that suggested the couple pause. "Let's give the two of them a few minutes." Arthur suggested in a rather hushed tone, the smile on his face ever so wide, he was reminded of his courtship with Alexandra, and he reflected on how she was the only person who could bring out the best him, much as it seemed Alice was beginning to do for the Duke.

[DuchessLivilla]

Alexandra, who had had the same thought as her husband, smiled and hung back, both pretending to admire the contents of a nearby cabinet. She rested her head on Arthur's shoulder and watched, smiling to herself as Alice and the Duke moved further away. "I think each will be perfect for the other," she said softly. "If each of us has a perfect half, waiting to be found to complete us, I think they have found theirs, as I did mine," she looked up at him and, standing on her tiptoes, kissed him softly.

Thomas, taking Alice's arm as she spoke to conduct her about the room, smiled. He did not even notice that the royal couple had dropped back and then stopped entirely. He, like Alice, would likely not have noticed if God himself had walked into the room. He was delighted by Alice, in all ways. She was, he was convinced now, really interested in his work. He watched, smiling, as she expressed awe at the gown, her eyes lighting up like a child's a Christmas.

He decided, there and then, he was going to host a costume party, where all guests would come in outfits from European lands, and he would gift this gown for Alice to wear that night, with full regalia. He reasoned then, as he thought it, that...to do something like that...He would have to likely be married to her first. At that he flushed and ran a hand through his hair at the thought of it.

He could not rush it. It would be unseemly and ungentlemanly behaviour. Lady Alice deserved to be courted, in every way.

"My favourite?" He smiled and said, "Ah, I know exactly which I would grab if there was a fire." He walked onwards, passed rows of displays, past things that must have cost a great deal, until he reached a small plinth in the second room. Sitting atop it, under a glass case, was a quite innocuous item...And, compared to the others, rather underwhelming at first glance.

It appeared to be a small stone tablet, of shorts, well weathered and with a chunk broken off towards the upper corner. It was about the size of a small book and the surface, though scuffed, showed clearly the marks of writing, though not in any language Alice could read.

Thomas smile and removed the glass then gently lifted it. He held it out for her to take. "I found it on an exhibition in a little village outside Rome...It was a writing tablet, letters would be scratched into it. Sadly, it was the only thing left after a Roman grave had been uncovered and robbed many years ago. My companion whom I met there, had been working on the grave for some weeks and had discovered it was the grave of a young woman. Most of her bones had been broken and or disturbed or stolen but a few remained. He translated this for me, what we could see anyway. It is a letter from her child, written to her in death, asking her to wait for him or her in the afterlife, and telling her they miss her greatly but know she will be welcomed by the Gods."

He smiled down at the tablet. "It not being of value, it was left in the rubble so I took it. I knew if I did not, it would be lost there...Here, I can preserve it and it's message of hope. I find myself looking at it often, and hoping that child, many years later, was reunited with his or her mother, after living a long life."

[Hannelorian]

Alice took the stone table into her gloved hands and just stared at it. Her eyes taking in each engraved mark, though she could not read it she certainly had an appreciation for it. Fingertips of her right hand traced across the surface slowly, gently, the most gently she had perhaps held anything save for an actual child. Her fingers retracted as the tips fell into each of the paths, not quite like she was afraid but rather she was amazed. Alice had never held anything so old, so ancient. It was truly a piece from another world, another time. One long before their England existed as it would centuries later, a rather intolerant religious state.

"I hope..." Alice began, taking her eyes off of the stone only to look at Thomas she began. "I hope it brought her comfort as she entered the next life." Alice had no idea if there was a next life, or really if anything happened when one died. It all seemed a bit too mysterious to speculate on, but assuming this is what these people had once believed, she hoped for their sakes there was some truth to it, or at the very least a sublime comfort for those who were left behind on the mortal plane. Yes, mostly comfort for those who survived. It was almost reassuring.

There was something serene or perhaps almost mystical about holding the stone. Alice knew it had no real power or perhaps no real worth, but the fact that it had been saved by Thomas somehow bestowed it with such a rare quality she could not describe it. "Thank you for preserving this. It would be a shame to think something so precious would be lost to the sands of time..." Alice smiled brightly as she looked at the Duke once more and nodding in affirmation. "I think something like this is worth so much. Perhaps not monetarily... but certain in spirit, in the notion of history itself. Pieces of people's lives, of their deaths. One cannot put a price on that, can they?" Alice certainly hoped this was true.

After all the Americans, or she had heard, had fought a war over putting prices on lives. But nor could one put a price on memory and the tokens of the past that offered a window into the lives of those long gone. "It's rather comforting is it not? To know it survives and tells us a similar story to what we'd still hear today?" Slowly Alice handed the stone tablet back to the Duke. "I should not want to keep you from your guests." She did, Alice did want to keep him from his guests and all to herself, but she knew that wasn't to be, at least not yet. "I suppose that was a lie." Alice, after reflecting on her own thoughts decided to be more honest, after all, if she did not confess something of her feelings it might go to waste.

"Allow me to rephrase, I think your guests are going to miss you." Alice smirked and found herself now looking at the floor, the bright flush once more painting her cheeks.

The Prince held onto his wife and returned her kiss gently. "You've never been wrong yet my darling." Arthur meant those words, in all the time he had known Alexandra she was never wrong, ever. This of course was no exception, he agreed that it seemed like this was a perfect match. "To think if I hadn't met you when I did, you could have been the Duchess of Kent." Arthur laughed, of course he was not serious, Alexandra was on to something. Everyone had their match, and she was his and always would be.

[DuchessLivilla]

Thomas smiled, delighted, again, by Alice and her mind. Even if he did not find her physically beautiful -which he did- he though now that he would love and want her all the same for her mind alone. He blushed again and shifted shyly.

Love.

He knew nothing of the girl, not really. How could it be love? This was the second time they had seen one another and yet...As she spoke, he glanced, briefly, through and his gaze found the Prince and Princess, looking at each other. He watched as Alexandra kissed the Prince and he returned it. They way they looked together, it was as if the world had vanished. He wanted that, he realised, with a start.

The Duke resolved, there and then, to find out all he could. He would court Alice, find out what gifts she would like and give them to her. He would take her promenarding, as courting couples did, carriage rides about the parks...He did not even care a maid or someone else would be there watching. He wanted to know all he could about her.

He took the tablet back and replaced it, smiling again. "Yes...exactly," he nodded. "It means nothing in terms of wealth. It cost me nothing to pick up and take home. But, as you say, to that child and his or her family, to the mother, watching from wherever she was, it meant the world. It was as good as saying 'you are not alone, because I go with you' and that is more valuable than any gold."

The Duke turned back to her fully and chuckled softly, "You have not been to many parties, have you, my Lady? I assure you...No one will have noticed. The gentleman will be ensconced in plush chairs, cigars and brandy in hand, talking business and the world in knowledgable tones, while saying nothing in reality, and the ladies shall be similarly camped around one another, talking of their own matters. I shall not be a topic of conversation, aside from perhaps, if Lady Mary is in charge and is talking of what I said at dinner."

He blushed again. "Besides, I would be content, if you'll permit me, to show you more of my collection. But of course, if you wish to return to the guests, I am at your disposal in that regard too. You must always be honest with me if you grow bored. I shall not take offense, I promise."

-

In the next room, Alexandra laughed softly and laid a hand on her husband's chest, "I fear you underestimate my sister in that regard. When we met, she was a Duchess, not a Queen. She could never have allowed me to marry a Duke and be on equal footing with her. Not then, anyway. It would have been beyond her to allowed it. Besides," Alex sighed, "before we met, and a little afterwards, there was talk of my being given to the Marquis of *. Old enough to be my father, married several times already, too fond of his food and his drink, and lacking in any desire to bathe regularly." She cringed. "That was to be my fate...Not a Duchy. If I had been lucky, he would have died of exertion on the wedding night and left me a widow at one-and-twenty, and then my sister would have put me away in a convent for the rest of my days..."

She shook her head a little, a smile forming. "Funny, no? How life changes. How what we think will be our lot suddenly changes with a look and a smile." She dropped her hand to take his. "I know you did not do it on purpose but thank you, for saving me, from that fate. I do not know what I did to deserve your love but thank you."



(*OO I have forgotten entirely lol him anyway!)

[Hannelorian]

The Duke was proving to be every bit the gentleman she imagined him to be. He was considerate, kind, always rather charming. He wanted to do right by her, and that was something Alice did not take for granted. Much like the Prince and Princess had only love for one another, Alice too long for such affection and perhaps she had found the beginnings of it right here. Alice had only seen two examples of love in her adult years, that was the Royal couple, her friends that she adored and Arabella and the late Duke. Though the latter two were an odd pair, significant age between them, no one ever doubted his love for her, or vice versa. Even when Arabella was at her cruelest, it would only take one word from Richard and suddenly the storm was calmed into placid seas.

Not because she feared him, not because she was bowing down to a man who governed her, but because she loved him and because he knew exactly what to say on every last occasion to reach his wife in her soul. For a moment Alice wondered what they were like when they met and married. Just for a moment.

"I've been to a few parties." Alice confessed when coming back to the present moment. That was true, Alice had been to many, many parties but never as a guest. "But none such as this." There was that hint of honesty that broke through the surface. "I've never really been one for the gossip of the Ladies." Alice smirked and found herself chuckling lightly. Servant's gossip was useful. It told you who was in a bad mood, who you should avoid if you could help it. Which of the members of the family was feeling exceptionally ornery or perhaps incredibly jovial. But the kind of things that society ladies spoke of, that was rather mean spirited often, and something she heard but tried her best not to absorb. "Lady Mary seems rather lovely, have you known her long?" Was this fishing? Was this something that people did when they wanted to get to the bottom of a matter or a feeling?

Alice had no reason to be jealous, but she was ever curious, especially if by some off chance this too would be her world one day. "I would much prefer to stay by your side and take in some of these treasures." Alice concluded, looking up at the Duke she took his arm into hers, not forcefully but certainly determined.

--

"If there's one thing I've never done... it is underestimate your sister." Arthur's tone took a turn for the rather serious as she stayed close to his wife. He sighed as he listened to Alexandra discuss what fate had been in store for her if things had not gone as they had. "I know him." Arthur added and rolled his eyes. "Vile man. Absolutely." It saddened him in truth, it tugged at his heart strings that someone could so willfully thrust one's own sister into such a dark fate. "It is things like that which lead me to believe that Arabella is incapable of true change, and she is just waiting for her opportunity to strike at us like some viper in the desert."

Indeed if Arthur ever saw the throne and Arabella still walked the planes of the Earth he would guarantee that she would pay for her sins, no, for her crimes. One who would bring such harm to his beloved was not one he wished to allow to continue, after all she had been the one to spend years spreading rumours, wreaking havoc and was undoubtedly the root cause for his father's obsessive paranoia about Alex. It was enough to make his blood boil, but there was his darling to bring him back to a moment of calm, "All you had to be was yourself." Arthur smiled brightly and took his wife's arm and slowly began to walk through the large room, taking time to view assorted pieces, still giving the young pair ahead of them plenty of time to be as private as was possible.

[DuchessLivilla]

Alexandra said nothing to his talk of her sister. What could she say? She too, had her doubts about it all and never, even when alone, felt 100% at ease with Bella. It pained her to admit it, because, Arthur and Beatrix -who as an infant hardly counted- and until her own children were born, Arabella was her only family. But she could not look at her sister without, just sometimes, seeing the 'old' sister. Not the childhood friend, but the bully of Suffolk who delighted in cruelty.

Yes, she owed likely her life and her marriage to Bella, but still...

And voicing this would not have helped her husband. She knew he disliked the Queen and distrusted her still more. Who could blame him on that? Certainly not her. But she knew too that she could not afford, for the sake of his and their family, and future, feed into it. If that meant keeping things from him and saying silent, so be it.

Instead, she stroked his hand and resumed strolling with him, talking of happier things, and asking about his own tour. This was safer ground. Every young man of good family went on one. It was a right of passage, and a Prince especially was sent on such to train him for his future role as King.

-

Thomas smiled and linked arms, willingly and happily, with her. The spread of her skirts kept any closeness to a minimum but just to have her arm in his was thrilling. "Ah, Lady Mary? Yes, she was a friend of my mother's. I do believe they came out in the same season. She caused something of a scandal herself," he chuckled. "My mother did things 'correctly' and wed the best choice of the season; a Duke's first born son, heir to the duchy...Lady Mary wed the second son of a Baron because she loved him, and he her."

He sighed slightly. "I think my mother might have been better to follow her example than society's wish. She and my father were very ill-matched in terms of everything that matters. A glorious match on paper, a failure in reality, as it were. I do not think, even after twenty years, my father could have told you what colour her eyes were or what her favourite flower was. Nor would he have cared to find out. He would have laughed if asked why he did not know."

The Duke smiled again. "I think Lady Mary hopes I do one better," he added, "She speaks of me finding a suitable match, meaning a fellow Duke's daughter or perhaps, if I am very 'lucky' a foreign Princess, well jeweled and moneyed. But I would put £50 on her hoping I find a love match, society be damned." He flushed and bowed his head at the swear word. "Excuse my language, my Lady. I should not speak as such before a Lady but the point stands."

As they strolled, Thomas pointing things out, he paused and said, smiling, "Speaking of doing better than my father...What is your favourite flower, Lady Alice?"