Duchess by Chance by Wendy Vella

encounter at the Trengally house party that was to take place in a month’s time in Essex. Daniel had smiled politely and said he was honored but would have to decline. Rather than be put off by his refusal, Lady Louisa had merely fallen on his chest – accidentally, of course – before blowing in his ear.  
    Shuddering, Daniel remembered her thick, cloying scent. He had left the ball to visit his mistress, but Amelia had pouted and cried over his long absence from her bed and then asked after his wife, indicating her displeasure that he had not informed her of his nuptials. He had simply pulled his breeches back up his legs and stalked from her room, aroused, frustrated and bloody furious with the world.
    At present, he was drowning his sorrows at his club - or he had been until his friend Simon, Lord Kelkirk arrived. Having just returned to London, he’d heard of Daniel’s marriage and demanded to know why he had not been invited to the celebrations.  
    “I told you I was leaving London to get married,” Daniel said.
    “Yes, but I did not believe you!” Lord Kelkirk scowled at his friend. “Good Lord, man, you are always saying one thing and doing another. How was I to know this time you were telling the truth?”
    Daniel didn’t respond, just stared into the depths of his glass.  
    “And that, Stratton, is the fourth sigh in as many minutes.” Lord Kelkirk added.
    Daniel had left his estate with the intention of pushing all thoughts of his wife from his head. However since his arrival in London, she seemed to have taken up permanent residency there. He remembered that night in her room, when the darkness had allowed them to speak honestly. Daniel had been surprised how good it had felt to share some of his feelings with her. He could still feel her soft weight in his arms, the swell of her breasts against his chest, the feel of her tears on his skin. She had smelt of roses and every cloying scented woman since had seemed distasteful to his senses.  
    His guilt had steadily risen at leaving her behind, her words replaying themselves over and over inside his head. “At least you had the choice to live your life, your Grace. Traveling here with you is the first time I have left my father’s home.”   He imagined her walking aimlessly from room to room at Stratton with only her thoughts for company.  
    “Five sighs.”
    “Shut up, Kelkirk!” Daniel scowled.
    Viscount Kelkirk and Daniel had been friends since they’d studied together at Eton. Both Simon and Daniel’s fathers had cared more for appearances than their sons’ happiness and so the two of them had formed a bond as close as brothers. Like Daniel, Simon was big, but where Daniel’s hair was brown Simon’s was grey, and had been since he turned nineteen. Women loved his silver tresses threaded with black strands, believing they gave him a distinguished air.  
    “You should just return home and apologize to her,” Simon told him.
    “How do you know I have anything to apologize for?”  
    “Because you are preoccupied and withdrawn, two traits I have never before attributed to you,” Simon stated. “And as the last person you saw before coming back to London was your new wife, I surmised she was the source of your ill humor. So either you owe your duchess an apology or she owes you one.”
    Daniel had not told him the whole story of his marriage, only that his father had been behind it and that his wife now resided at Stratton Lodge. “Haven’t you business somewhere? I’m sure there is someone else you could pester.”
    “Why should I wish for another’s company when you are such a delightful companion?” Simon enquired with a smile that made Daniel’s scowl deepen. “So what is she like, your new duchess?”
    “Timid.”
    “Warts, moles, bent back or other inflictions?” probed Simon, his eyes fixed on his friend’s face.  
    “None of the above. Skinny wrists and a terrible fashion sense.” Daniel took a long swallow