Page 71 of Stealing His Duchess

“You have already reminded me of it no fewer than three times this evening alone.”

“And I shall continue to do so at least a dozen more times before the night concludes. Consistency, Hudson, is the mark of true friendship.”

“I begin to suspect true friendship and relentless torment are, in your particular case, indistinguishable from one another.”

“A distinction without a difference,” Owen agreed cheerfully, entirely unrepentant.

“I shall look forward to it,” Hudson stated dryly, though his arm found its way around Anna’s waist regardless, drawing her close against his side.

“And you, Your Grace,” Owen continued, turning his attention to Anna with an exaggerated bow, “Have accomplished what I confess I once believed impossible. I have known this man the better part of fifteen years, and I do not believe I have ever once seen him smile so freely, nor so often, as he has these past weeks. Whatever manner of sorcery you have employed, I heartily approve of it.”

“It required no sorcery,” Anna said, shaking her head coyly, laughing. “Only a great deal of patience, and an unfortunate willingness to bite him when the situation called for it.”

“That,” Owen tutted solemnly, “Explains rather a lot.”

Hudson rolled his eyes, though the fondness in his expression undercut whatever irritation he attempted to project. “You are enjoying this far too much, Owen.”

“Immensely,” Owen agreed cheerfully. “I have waited a long while for the opportunity to see you thoroughly and happily outmaneuvered by a woman. I intend to savor it for as long as you will permit me.”

When the musicians struck up a waltz sometime later, Hudson claimed Anna’s hand before any other gentleman present could dare think to request it, drawing her onto the floor with a possessive certainty that made her laugh even as she allowed herself to be swept into his arms.

“You are meant to ask, Your Grace, not simply commandeer,” she teased, settling her hand against his shoulder as they began to move.

“I have already asked you to marry me twice,” Hudson complained without heat. “I believe that grants me some liberty regarding the smaller courtesies.”

“That is not at all how courtesy functions, but I shall allow it, given the circumstances.”

“You are remarkably lenient with me this evening.”

“I have decided lenience suits our marriage rather better than the alternative,” Anna said. “Though I reserve the right to revoke that decision the moment you next attempt to commandeer a dance from some unsuspecting gentleman on my behalf.”

“I would never dream of it,” Hudson gasped, entirely unconvincingly, and Anna laughed despite herself, the sound bright enough that several heads turned in their direction.

They moved together easily, the steps long since familiar to them both, though Anna found herself distracted rather more by the warmth of his hand at her waist than by any concern for the dance itself. Around them, the other couples spun past in a blur of silk and candlelight, but Hudson’s attention remained fixed entirely on her, steady and unwavering in a way that still, even now, made her breath catch slightly.

“Everyone is watching us,” Anna murmured, catching sight of several curious glances tracking their progress across the floor.

“Let them watch,” Hudson told her without looking anywhere other than. “I intend to look at my wife exactly as besotted as I feel, whatever the ton makes of it. I have spent quite enough of my life concerned with appearances at the expense of honesty. I find I have very little patience left for the habit.”

“That is a rather significant change of philosophy, for a man so recently obsessed with propriety.”

“I have had excellent motivation to reconsider my priorities,” Hudson said, spinning her deftly beneath his arm before drawing her close once more. “She is rather difficult to ignore.”

Anna felt her cheeks warm, though she made no effort to hide her pleased smile. “I am glad to have proven such a distraction, Your Grace.”

“The gladdest distraction of my life,” he murmured, and when the dance concluded, he did not release her hand, keeping her close as they made their way toward the edge of the floor, entirely unbothered by whatever whispers followed in their wake.

Later, once the dancing had properly continued and the ballroom had filled further with the swirl of silk and the bright chatter of the assembled guests, Hudson found Rowland near the edge of the room, watching the proceedings with the particular wariness of a man who had spent the evening successfully evading no fewer than four separate introductions.

“You look thoroughly miserable,” Hudson observed, joining him.

“I am attempting to appear sufficiently occupied that no further matchmaking mamas approach me before the night concludes,” Rowland admitted. “It is proving a considerable challenge.”

“Perhaps you require a distraction of a different sort,” Hudson said. “Owen and I have been discussing the matter of your new estates. There is a great deal to manage, I understand, particularly regarding the tenant farms your predecessor rather neglected.”

“You understand correctly,” Rowland nodded, his expression a tad wary. “I have scarcely slept properly since the inheritance was confirmed.”

“Then allow us to help,” Hudson offered. “Owen has a talent for untangling exactly this sort of administrative difficulty, and I have rather more capital than I know what to do with at present. Between the three of us, I suspect we might resolve the worst of it within a month or two, rather than the year you are presently dreading.”