A Portrait of Love (The Academy of Love #3) - Minerva Spencer Page 0,59

have your own life: Freedom, Miss Keyes; I will not stand in your way and you will not be tied to either a husband or a home.”

So, these were her two options: she could destroy her dearest friend’s life or live a childless, loveless existence—not that she had cherished any expectations for either of those things for many years. But not cherishing them and being told you would never have them were two different matters, entirely.

Still, if Simon were actually willing to take such extreme measures to exact revenge on his brother then he was the last man on earth who should have children.

They would suffer together.

The anger inside her was so potent and cold it surprised even Honey. There was no point to any of this soul-searching—it didn’t matter what she wanted. The duke would crush the people she loved if she did not do what he said. Subject closed.

Honey had too many questions and most of them she didn’t want to put into words. She picked the least repulsive one.

“Where would we live?”

He looked surprised, as if he’d expected more resistance.

“Wherever you like. I will have Everley as soon as we marry. I will also have access to my inheritance, so if you want to live in London, we may buy a house, or you may continue on as you are.”

Honey could only stare; she could not believe this is what her life had been reduced to. And she truly could not believe that she had ever thought she was in love with this man. How could he marry her for no other reason than to foil his brother?

She wanted to kick him out her front door and down the steps of her house, but she had already seen what the duke could do in only a few weeks.

She thought about Serena, Miles, even Portia, Annis, and Lorelei, although they were far away from London. The duke would be a man with a long reach.

Honey forced herself to look at the man beside her, the man who would probably be her husband for as long as she lived. A man who wanted no children of her body—who wanted that part of their marriage not even to exist.

It was insulting—no, it was beyond insulting. But she told herself she no longer cared. Being married to him—as much as she now hated him—would present no problems. At least not like it would have if she had still loved him.

“So, we shall get married and then return to our respective residences and go about our lives?”

He nodded. “Just so.”

“And people will not consider this strange—us living in separate houses? Separate cities? This won’t make people talk?”

“What do you care?”

“Part of the reason I’m doing this is to preserve some vestige of my reputation so that I might continue my work.” She didn’t bother keeping the sarcasm out of her voice.

“Fine,” he said shortly. “There are over twenty bedrooms at Everley and other rooms that would be suitable for painting. We can cohabitate and yet never actually see each other’s faces.” He gave vent to an irritable sigh. “Trust me, Miss Keyes, if you wish to project an image of a normal aristocratic marriage, we shall be able to do so with little effort.”

Honey knew he was right. She’d lived at Whitcomb long enough to witness an aristocratic marriage first-hand. She had never actually seen the duke and duchess in the same room, yet nobody seemed to notice anything untoward.

Regardless of how the duke and duchess chose to live, projecting an image of a normal marriage would be important for Honey.

She never wanted her friends to find out why she’d had to marry. She already knew that Freddie would fight this wedding tooth and claw if she learned that Honey was only agreeing to this sham to protect Freddie.

And if Miles ever learned what the duke had done to Freddie?

Honey recoiled at the thought; she knew Miles would call out the duke for attempting to destroy his friend.

Her friends loved her and would rush to defend her, ruining themselves in the process.

She eyed Simon, who was waiting with a mildly interested expression.

Honey had to force herself to say the next sentence. “And we will have lovers, just as all members of the aristocracy seem to do?”

The undamaged side of his face darkened and Honey was more than a little surprised that such a man could still blush.

After a long, awkward moment, he shrugged. “You may have as many lovers as you wish,