Free Sarah's Duke: and Ellie's Gentleman (The heir and the spare, book 1) by Georgiana Louis Page A

and that stopped. He had a hot temper but he loved his land and his family. Oliver admired him.
    “He has a bit of a fortune too, from what I understand. So, who has he found? He didn’t stoop to finding an heiress I hope.” That would definitely not fit with the picture he had of Jamie.
    “No, he’s about to offer for a lady of good but low born family and no money,” Rupert confided in hushed tones.
    They all knew that beauty was indeed the most important thing in a wife, but breeding and a dowry came close behind that.
    “Good on him, although I’m sure she makes up for it in beauty. Do you know her name?” Oliver asked the question, although it would be unlikely he knew the young lady.
    “A Miss Sarah Collins.” Rupert announced as Oliver was taking a drink of his own whiskey.
    Oliver choked and spluttered, coughing half his brandy across the beautiful polished wood of the table. Air wasn’t getting into his lungs properly, a moment of panic assailed him as he wheezed and slammed his hands down.
    “Are you all right?” Rupert helpfully bashed Oliver on the back with his large fist making his lungs seize.
    It took several minutes for Oliver to get his breath back, and for the footmen to get the table cleaned and reset. He took several long breaths, concentrating on the flow of air into his aching lungs and attempting to calm his thundering heart.
    “Sarah Collins you say?”
    “Yes, it seems she’s quite a beauty and with half a brain as well.”
    “She has more than half a brain,” Oliver yelled across the table, scowling at his friend.
    Rupert’s eyes flickered dangerously and Oliver swallowed the lump that rose in his throat. He had a wicked temper when roused.
    “You know her?” Rupert asked, flicking a piece of lint from his jacket sleeve in an obvious attempt to defuse the situation.
    “Yes I know her,” Oliver snapped again, unable to hold in the torrent of emotion pouring from him. His heart was galloping in his chest and a hot sweat had broken out on his forehead. He took a long drink of his whiskey and embraced the burn that slid down his throat, draining the glass before he could speak again, gasping against the alcohol’s effect on his mouth.
    How had she found someone so quickly? It had only been two weeks.
    “I met Sarah Collins a month ago at Lady Charlotte’s birthday ball. She was attacked by that animal Millington in the gardens, and I found her and helped her to get home unnoticed.” Oliver confided in his friend, eyes darting around the room quickly to make sure no one nearby heard him.
    “Are you serious? I hadn’t heard anything about that.” Rupert whistled low and his eyes widened in surprise.
    “No, we tried to keep it quiet for obvious reasons. She needs to marry this year.”
    “Well, she’s found her husband it seems. McTavish is working out a settlement before he talks to her father. Sounds like he’ll have to travel to Somerset, though. The father never leaves.”
    “Yes, she told me.” Oliver said absentmindedly, not concealing his knowledge of Sarah to his friend.
    So the beautiful little vicar’s daughter had found a decent husband all on her own. She could not have chosen better and pride fluttered in his chest. Jamie had a small but profitable estate and enough money to look after her brother and sister if he so chose. He was also not even thirty and a nice man. Yes, she’d done well indeed. His stomach was knotted, but he tried his best to ignore it.
    “How well do you know her?” Rupert twirled his glass between his fingers and stared into the golden liquid as though it contained the secrets of life.
    “Well enough to know she’ll be a wonderful wife,” Oliver admitted quietly. He couldn’t say that about any lad of his acquaintance.
    “She won’t care about being buried in Scotland for the rest of her life?” Rupert asked.
    Oliver shook his head. No, she would not. She would be happy as long as her family was set up. She would watch over