Page 26 of A Duchess Bound (Dukes of Dominance #2)

T he next day, Bridget refused to leave her room.

Dorothy had resolved to spend the day working on sorting through the lists of potential suitors, answering all the invitations which had not yet received a response, and making some measure of progress on the cushions which she was embroidering for the parlor.

Instead, she found herself struggling to complete even one of those tasks. She had begun embroidering the cushions but found that her thoughts kept wandering to Bridget.

Dorothy sighed deeply and gazed at the row of nearly finished foxgloves.

Should she try to speak to Bridget, or would that worsen the situation?

Dorothy chewed on her lip, thinking about what her sister had said the night before.

Bridget felt as though Dorothy was smothering her, trying to be her mother, and if she was being honest, Dorothy found that she could not deny those accusations.

She happened to glance in the doorway and found Elias watching her. “Elias,” she greeted.

He smiled thinly. “Dorothy.”

Her brother took a seat across from her. “I do not mean to pry.”

“But you will,” Dorothy said. “That is always what people say before they begin asking uncomfortable questions.”

Elias inclined his head. “That is true.”

Dorothy set aside her embroidery and clasped her hands in her lap. “What do you want to know?” she asked.

“Has something happened between you and Bridget?”

Dorothy inhaled sharply. How had Elias guessed it so easily? “You need not worry so much,” Dorothy said. “It is but a small matter.”

“A small matter,” he repeated, “over which our sister has decided to confine herself to her room.”

Dorothy winced.

“What happened?” Elias asked, his voice softening. “You know that you can tell me.”

Dorothy bit the inside of her cheek and tried to ignore the little pang of hurt she felt when she recalled her sister’s unkind words. “I have been a little distracted of late.”

“Have you?”

“Yes. But last night, I resolved to focus only on Bridget. I wanted to be certain that she only danced with suitable men.”

“Of course.”

“And that upset her. She—” Dorothy cut off abruptly, remembering those awful words, You are not my mother . “She felt as though I was paying her too much attention. She implied that I should not watch her quite so closely.”

“I see.”

Silence, thick and uncomfortable, settled between them. Dorothy reached instinctively for her embroidery and tried to feign as though nothing was amiss, but her hands shook as she tried to make yet another flower.

“What has distracted you?” Elias asked.

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me,” Elias said. “What has distracted you?”

Heat rose to Dorothy’s face. “It is difficult to say. I do not feel as though there is any particular thing. It is just that I have found my mind wandering more of late.”

“I see.”

Her brother’s tone was difficult to interpret. If she had not known him better, she might have assumed that he did not care at all.

“It is nothing that you need to be concerned about,” Dorothy added hastily.

“I am not concerned.”

Dorothy forced her trembling fingers to return to her embroidery, silently praying that her brother might forget the matter. She doubted that he would, but it was nice to imagine that Elias might let well enough alone.

“Have you found someone of your own?” he asked.

Dorothy’s breath hitched. “Why would you ask that?”

He shrugged. “It seems like a reasonable question. You find your attention wandering away from Bridget at balls and soirees because you have found a gentleman of your own.”

“How is that a reasonable question?”

Elias waved dismissively. “You have attended many of the ton’s events before. What else could have distracted you? I do not imagine it was the décor.”

Dorothy pinched the bridge of her nose, silently at war with herself. Her face grew hot. She had been found out so easily!

“It is nothing to be embarrassed by,” Elias added. “If you have found a gentleman whom you are interested in marrying?—”

“It is not like that,” Dorothy interrupted. “I have no intention of marrying any gentleman. I have told you that many times, and my feelings on the matter have not changed. Even if I wished to marry him, he has no intention of ever…he would never be interested in a woman like me.”

“I see.”

For a moment, neither of them spoke. Elias cast her a shrewd look, but if he had any uncharitable thoughts, he chose not to share them.

Dorothy swallowed hard, suddenly afraid of her brother’s judgment.

It was not fair either, for Elias was a rake himself.

He had committed many of the same transgressions as the Duke of Greenway, if not more.

“You must end it,” Elias said.

Dorothy flinched. “What do you imagine I might have that needs ending?”

“I doubt you want an answer to that.”

Dorothy inhaled sharply. Her stomach churned. “Elias, I?—”

He raised a silencing hand. “I do not judge you for indulging in the pleasures of the flesh. God knows that I have done that often enough myself, and truthfully, I have always found it rather absurd that a man may do so with considerably less scandal than a lady might.”

Dorothy dropped her embroidery again, uncertain of what to say. She had thought that her brother might be angry or distraught, and his calm acceptance of a potential affair unnerved her.

“But,” Elias continued. “You deserve better than to be someone’s little secret, especially since you have clearly developed feelings for this man.”

“Feelings for him?” Dorothy exclaimed.

“Yes.”

Dorothy laughed. “That is absurd, Elias. I do not have feelings for him.”

He waved a dismissive hand. “I disagree.”

“You are welcome to disagree, but you are incorrect.”

Elias smiled wryly. “My dear sister, I know you better than you know yourself. It is apparent to me that you are quite taken with this gentleman. If it were only a physical matter, you would not be so distracted.”

“You are wrong,” Dorothy said.

Elias bowed his head. “So you say. Both of us have responsibility for Bridget, and I will support you both, no matter what might happen. But you need to see to your own situation, Dorothy.”

Dorothy wrung her hands in her skirts, guilt blossoming in her chest. Her affair with the Duke of Greenway had complicated matters far more than she had intended. It had seemed so harmless when it began.

“I am sorry,” Dorothy murmured. “I did not mean for my desires to hurt Bridget’s chances for finding a husband.”

Elias reached across the space and squeezed her hand. “You have not hurt her chances. Our sister is still the most popular lady of the Season with legions of suitors falling at her feet. I have no doubt that she will marry well. That is not my concern.”

“No?”

“No. My concern is your happiness. While you might be enjoying your affair, I doubt that is what you want forever,” Elias said. “If you are involved with a gentleman, I imagine that you want him to love you and only you.”

Dorothy bit the inside of her cheek. “I do not think this gentleman is capable of loving me and me alone.”

“Nevertheless, that is what you deserve.”

Her breath hitched. “Elias, there is no gentleman in the ton who would love me. In case you have not noticed, I am a lady of six-and-twenty years.”

“I have noticed,” Elias said. “And I have noticed that you are kind and intelligent. Any man would be fortunate to have your love, and my only wish for you is for your gentleman to be deserving of you.”

Dorothy smiled slightly. “But would you ever care for a lady of my age with so many young misses to choose from?”

“I might.”

Dorothy searched his face for any sign of deception.

Although she found none, she found that doubt still gripped her chest and threatened to steal her breath away.

She had known that His Grace—Gerard—had no interest in her beyond that of fleeting pleasure.

Dorothy had thought that she might be content with that.

Their arrangement worked because they both knew what the rules were, what the other expected, but?—

Elias believed that she had developed feelings for the Duke of Greenway. Her heart raced. Had she?

No, that was impossible. She only enjoyed Gerard’s company because of the pleasure that he could give her. That was all.

“Dorothy.” Elias rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand. “I will not condescend to you, for you are the wisest of us all. I do not doubt that you can make your own decisions.”

“I am pleased to hear you say so.”

He sighed. “However, I would advise you to take as much care in choosing your suitors as you insist that Bridget does with hers.”

Dorothy forced a smile. She had not taken as much care in choosing her suitors as Bridget did, and the admission made her feel wretched. Was there any way of justifying that error in judgment to Elias? How could she explain that she had developed affections for a rake?

“That is all I wish to say,” Elias added. “I want you to be happy.”

“Even if it causes us a scandal?”

Her brother frowned, considering her carefully. “Even then. But are you truly happy with this gentleman of yours? Men will promise you the world and seldom deliver. I want to be certain that yours will give you what he promises.”

“He will,” she said promptly. “I know it.”

She did not know it. In truth, she had no reason even to think that Gerard might deliver on what she wanted. Had he not made it apparent from the start that he was only a lover? Did he not have a litany of ruined ladies left in his wake?

“I hope so,” Elias said. “If he disappoints you, know that I will never blame you. More than most, I know that men can be…disreputable. Ruled by their passions.”

“I know,” Dorothy said softly, “and I appreciate your care. Truly.”

“But not enough to tell me your lover’s identity?” Elias asked, smiling wryly.

Dorothy laughed anxiously. “I am afraid not. You might wish to duel the man.”

“I would not.”

“You say that, but you do not yet know the man’s name,” Dorothy pointed out.

“Do you have reason to suspect that knowing the man’s name might change my mind?”

“It might.”

Elias withdrew his hand and considered her for a long moment. “I would have never thought that you might desire a disreputable man.”

“What if I do?” she asked, her pulse quickening. “Would that lower your opinion of me?”

He frowned. Dorothy scarcely dared to breathe as he weighed the matter in his mind.

She had always anticipated that her brother would be displeased if she chose to have a dalliance with a rake, so his rejection should not be a surprise.

Dorothy found, however, that the threat of his rejection filled her with a sudden and insurmountable dread.

“Well?” she asked at last.

“I suppose not,” he said delicately. “You are my sister, and I love you. If you choose to bestow your affections upon an unworthy man, I should be concerned for you. But I cannot say that I would judge you for that. As Shakespeare said, ‘the true course of love never did run smooth.’ Why should I assume that you have any control over who you favor?”

Dorothy slowly nodded, her heart pounding so loudly that its echo reverberated inside her skull.

She had to do something. While Elias might not know everything about her affair with Gerard, he knew enough to care.

End it , her brother had said. She supposed that she must, but Dorothy strongly suspected that she lacked the will to do so.