Page 78 of Dukes for Dessert

“We must thank the duke,” Lady Cosford noted, looking toward him with gratitude.

“I suppose so,” Juno murmured as she sent him a stunning glower that should have eviscerated him. Instead, he felt strangely and wonderfully alive.

And if that wasn’t absolutely terrible, he didn’t know what was.

“I’ll walk back to the house with you,” Lady Marina offered in her timid voice as she put her hand on her companion’s arm.

“You can’t go back,” Lady Wetherby said, appearing winded as she drew sharp, fast breaths.

“I’m sure the duke must also return to the house, Mother,” Lady Marina snapped in a rare display of emotion.

Juno looked upon her with a glow of admiration. “I need to get out of these wet clothes.”

Dare nearly groaned at the thought.

Lady Marina and the goddess—she could be Aphrodite now, he realized a bit absurdly—started toward the house, but not before Juno sent him another perturbed glance. She was annoyed with him, and why shouldn’t she be? He’d knocked her into the lake in the first place. He owed her an apology. Yes, he’d make sure to do that later.

First, he needed to get out of his wet clothes. And probably make use of his hand lest he spend the rest of the day with a towering erection.

4

Juno had emerged from the lake smelling like a pair of boots that had sat outside in the rain for a week. Perhaps a month. She felt much better after a warm, fragranced bath. She felt better physically, anyway. Mentally, she was still angry with the duke. Not because he’d accidentally pushed her into the lake, but because he’d behaved like an obnoxious boor while promenading with Marina.

There was simply no way Juno could support a match between her charge and the Rigid Duke. And now she needed to convey that to Lady Wetherby.

Squaring her shoulders, she marched to the countess’s chamber and knocked on the door, hoping she wasn’t disturbing the woman’s predinner toilette. Her maid answered and admitted her inside. Lady Wetherby sat with her hair half-styled.

“You’re dry,” Lady Wetherby said. Was she surprised that Juno had cleaned up after falling into the lake? “What a mess that was, ruining Marina’s picnic.”

Juno gave her head a light shake. The countess could be rather difficult to track. “Yes, it was quite frustrating, but I suppose we have the duke to blame for that.” Juno was not above pointing out that he’d been the one to cause the “mess.”

“Why would we blame him?” Lady Wetherby waved her hand as the maid returned to styling her hair for dinner. “Oh, he knocked you in, didn’t he? I heard mention of that.” It seemed an afterthought to her.

“Yes. That was after he was quite uncharitable to Marina when she was being harassed by a bee.” Marina had been stung several times a few years ago—a story she’d related after they’d had a similar encounter with a bee last month—and was deathly afraid of them.

“Goodness, Marina needs to stiffen up. She was stung a few times and recovered quite well. That girl is stronger than she thinks.”

Juno blinked. While she didn’t always agree with Lady Wetherby’s demeanor toward her daughter, it was moments like this that reminded Juno of two things: the countess didn’t have a poor opinion of Marina, and she knew her far better than Juno did.

Moving closer to where Lady Wetherby sat, Juno changed her approach. “I wanted to speak with you about this proposed match. I’m not at all sure it’s working out.”

Lady Wetherby narrowed her eyes. “It’s only been a day, Mrs. Langton.”

“While that’s true, I just can’t see how it’s a good match. Marina and the duke are far too alike. With both of them being so…guarded, one wonders how they will get on—not just with each other but in Society. Though it’s difficult to tell, neither seems very interested in the other. Furthermore, His Grace was quite rude to Marina while they walked today. She deserves a husband who will treat her with respect and be a supportive partner.”

“He possesses a gruff nature,” Lady Wetherby said dismissively. “The fact that they are so alike is why they are a perfect match. From what I can tell, they’ll sit in companionable silence and won’t trouble each other at all. Honestly, that sounds like a splendid marriage indeed. Especially for Marina.”

Again, Juno blinked at her employer. Perhaps she was right. Juno didn’t like the duke—well, she didn’t like his treatment of Marina—and she was allowing her emotions to cloud her judgment. She should talk to Marina and see if she was still open to marrying him. Was he even considering proposing? Given his behavior that afternoon, it might be that he didn’t care to wed Marina.

Which was shortsighted on his part. Marina was lovely—smart, kind, and capable of running a household. Probably. Her mother was right that Marina was stronger than she realized. Juno would remind her of that at every possible opportunity.

“Do not be concerned that there doesn’t appear to be a spark between them either,” Lady Wetherby said. “Most marriages don’t begin with such rubbish.”

While Juno had enjoyed quite a spark with Bernard, she’d learned it shouldn’t be the primary objective in a marriage. Still, it was important. “I would hate for Marina to be unhappy.”

“Her happiness isn’t your goal—her marriage is.” Lady Wetherby exhaled. “I don’t mean to sound uncaring, and I do appreciate your concern for Marina, but she will manage. You must agree that a man like the duke would be much better for her than someone else. Someone who, say, enjoys conversing.”

While it sounded insulting, the countess wasn’t wrong. She knew her daughter and her discomfort with people she didn’t know. Even when Marina did get to know someone, she could be rather reserved.