Loving the Marquess by Suzanna Medeiros Read Free Book Online

upcoming marriage?
His marriage. Of course, Grandmother had led him to believe she would soon be
making a formal announcement. She had also neglected to mention she’d already
set her plan into motion.
    “I will not be forced into marrying someone I cannot
tolerate, and I most definitely will not be marrying my cousin. James was the
martyr in this family, not I.”
    He ignored the stab of guilt that went through him when he
saw the sorrow that crossed her face at the mention of his older brother. It
had only been a year since his death.
    “I hate to mention this, but you must be aware that I have
not led a monkish life and am not unused to having gossip connected to my name.
Surely you know someone’s speculation that I intend to marry would hardly be
enough to force my hand.”
    His grandmother sighed deeply. “Nicholas,” she said, her
tone now a placating one, “please understand. I have always wished for you to
find someone special. Someone you could love as your grandfather and I loved
each other and as your parents loved. I do not want to do this.”
    “Then why do it?”
    “You are twenty-eight years old. It is time for you to be
settled and beget an heir.”
    Twenty-eight was hardly an advanced age, but he knew his
grandmother was thinking of his father and brother’s unexpected deaths.
    “We already have an heir if something should happen to me.”
    The dowager marchioness grimaced.
    “Edward is my grandson and I love him, but your cousin would
never be a good marquess.”
    “We agree there, but I will not allow you to force me into
this.” He turned and strode toward the door. “I will be returning to London
tomorrow.”
    He was about to leave when his grandmother’s words stopped
him.
    “I have told you my plans in advance this time, Nicholas. If
you do not comply now, there will be no warning next time. The first you hear
of it will be a formal announcement that will include the bride’s name.”
    “I see,” he said stiffly, turning to face her. “I suppose I
should be grateful you’ve allowed me some choice in the matter.”
    “Nicholas…”
    He didn’t stay to hear more. He opened the door and walked
out, closing it soundly behind him. A swift, burning anger had replaced the
concern he’d felt for his grandmother upon entering her sitting room. He
couldn’t believe she actually sought to blackmail him into marrying.
    He wanted nothing more than to head for the stables and ride
off some of his anger. He needed to clear his head and think of a way to
dissuade his grandmother from her current course of action. Instead, he turned
and headed for the library. It would serve no purpose to ignore the fact that
his damned head still ached. He’d managed the ride home from the Evans cottage
because he’d ridden with care, but he was in no frame of mind at the moment for
such caution.
    He collapsed into the armchair before the fireplace. It wasn’t
yet cool enough to light a fire during the day, so he stared, instead, into the
empty hearth. His lips twisted with wry amusement as he remarked how the lack
of warmth from the fireplace seemed an apt metaphor for his own life. He
couldn’t remember the last time he’d been genuinely alive. Oh, he’d made a fine
show of it while in town, but his frivolity had only been on the surface. With
all the death that had surrounded his family, his newfound, never-expected
responsibilities, and now the threat of a similar death hanging over his own
head, he was as cold and lifeless inside as the dark ashes in the hearth before
him.
    He’d recently decided he could never risk marrying. It was
clear some illness was striking down the men in his family and he didn’t want
to pass that illness down to his own children. He wondered if his grandmother
suspected he had come to such a decision. He’d never discussed marriage with
her before today, but she was astute enough to guess at his thoughts on the
subject. He wondered if she would release him from her