Page 34

Chapter Two

“ O h goodness, is that Lord Byron?” Frederick Felton, Duke of Caverton, pointed to a spot in the distance.

Everyone around him whipped their heads around to look in the direction he was indicating, and Frederick took their moment of distraction to slip quietly away.

The garden of his London estate was teeming with people, and everyone seemed determined to get some little piece of him. He had thought that the crowd would be too busy congratulating his cousin on his son’s baptism to bother him.

Unfortunately, this had not been further from the truth. The last group had cornered him for nearly an hour.

“I cannot believe that old trick still works.” He grinned to himself. “That must be at least the fifteenth time I have used it.”

He ran a hand through his hair, and shook out his shoulders. Straightening his coat lapels, he strode towards the maze and the hidden door in the westernmost hedge that would allow him to make his escape.

A harried looking servant walked past him, holding a plate of small quiches and assorted pastries. The smell caught his attention, and Frederick turned around, flagging the servant down and helping himself to a handful of quiches.

“Thank you.” He covered his mouth as he spoke around the quiche.

Frederick turned around, ready to complete his escape, when he found himself staring down at a woman with an extravagant bun, wrinkles and sharp blue eyes. She was a head and shoulders shorter than him, though her hair was so high that it towered above him.

“Ah, Frederick. Just the man I was looking for.” His grandmother, Agatha Felton, Dowager Duchess Caverton, smiled at him. “I trust I am not interrupting anything.”

She glanced at the maze behind them and arched an eyebrow at him. Frederick kicked himself. Drat – undone by food, again! He would not have put it past his grandmother to have sent the servant there in the first place.

“Grandmother.” His mouth was still full of quiche, it seemed to grow with each chew.

“Do not speak with you mouth full, Frederick. It is a deplorable habit.” The Dowager Duchess looped an arm through his and began to walk in the direction of the garden pavilion and the party he had just escaped.

Frederick’s heart sank. “My apologies.”

The words were muffled by the last vestiges of quiche and his grandmother rolled her eyes. “If you insist on behaving like a school boy, I will treat you as such. Remember, when Colonel Brandon visited last summer?”

Frederick nodded and swallowed his final mouthful. “You caught him about the ear and dragged him down to the scullery. Though I cannot remember what he did to deserve it.”

His grandmother laughed. “He made one too many comments on the quality of the food. Oh, nothing so brash as to outright insult me, but enough that he wore my patience rather thin.”

Frederick had not liked the Colonel much.

The man had been far too loud for his taste, and upset more than one maid.

He had enjoyed watching his grandmother treat him like a child.

Of course, his grandmother could do that, she was the richest person in the ton, thrice a widow and no one with a lick of common sense would upset her.

“This sort of behaviour is exactly why I tried to convince your father not to send you to Eton. Boys come back with all the right social connections, and the table manners of a wild animal.” His grandmother shook her head.

“Though one would think at thirty you would have regained some of that good sense.”

Frederick gave the Dowager Duchess his most charming grin. “What need have I of sense when you have more than enough for both of us?”

She shook her head, but Frederick could see the small smile on her face. “Perhaps I grow tired of being sensible. I am old, and I find it rather tiresome.”

“Then why should I be sensible?” Frederick teased.

His grandmother gave him a flat look. “Because you are young. And a duke. Though it would seem that far too many of the ton have taken leave of their good senses.”

“Oh?” he canted his head towards her. “But you have gathered such a fine cohort of eligible young women today. Surely they cannot all have taken leave of their senses.”

His voice was teasing as he gestured towards the various groups of women who were following him with their gaze. His grandmother snorted.

“No, for some of them had no sense to begin with. And the men are even more nonsensical.” She sniffed and made a dismissive gesture with her hand.

“It is an indicator of how far the youth of today have fallen, that a wonderful woman like Lady Andrea feels she must settle for a match of convenience.”

“Lady Andrea? The one who won your games?” Frederick followed his grandmother’s jerk of her head.

His eyes found a pretty woman in a plain yellow dress. Her green eyes, dark blonde hair and fine features were rather pretty. They would have been more pretty if she had not been glaring at him.

He tipped an imaginary hat to her, his grin full of mischief as he winked.

That almost always gets them to smile. To his surprise, her glare only intensified.

His smile almost slipped from his face, but he caught it in time.

Glowering back will do no good. Remember, light and breezy makes life easy.

“Frederick, have you listened to a word I have just said?” His grandmother’s voice broke through his staring contest with Lady Andrea.

He gave a start and turned to face her. She was looking at him, her lips pursed and eyes narrowed.

“Something about marriages and the moral failings of youth?” Frederick quirked a corner of his mouth into a half smile.

His grandmother gave him a sharp clip about the ear and he yelped. “Do not think you can charm your way out of everything, Frederick. Even you are not that sweet. I was saying that I miss the passion of love. It has been years since we had a good wedding in the family!”

“Cousin Cecil was married last week.” Frederick pointed out.

“I said a good wedding, Frederick. Your cousin is many things, but interesting is not one of them. Nor is his wife. I do not think I have ever been so unamused at a celebration.”

“It was a little slow.” Frederick was not about to admit that he had no idea how dull the celebration had been, because he had slipped away at the earliest opportunity.

“Besides, he is a third son of a minor lord. And I am far less invested in the future of his line than I am with the future of the Caverton line.” His grandmother fixed him with a narrowed look.

So, this is what she wanted. Frederick held in a sigh, forcing himself to smile instead. “There is plenty of time for our line to continue, grandmother.”

“Frederick, you are thirty! If you were a woman, they would call you a thornback.” His grandmother shook her head. “Besides, who knows how many years I have left? I want to hold the future of Caverton in my arms before I die!”

“You can hold me.” Frederick teased, which earned him another flick on the ear.

“You are not a baby. Though if you continue acting this way, I may be forced to treat you like one.” She looked him up and down.

“I have been called far worse than a baby.” Frederick laughed. “Besides, you would not treat me that way, it would be far too boring for you.”.

His grandmother gave him a wolfish grin. “I might. Do you wish to test me?”

He ran a hand through his hair, repressing a shudder that went through his spine. “No.”

“Good. So, when are you going to get married?” Her blue eyes seemed to pin him in place, as though he were a particularly interesting insect that she wished to display.

“I… It is as you said, too many people are looking for marriages of convenience. I am one of the richest men in the ton. I want a woman who loves me for me, not my money.” Frederick shrugged.

It was not entirely a lie. He loathed the idea of being married to one of the status hungry women of the ton. The thought of someone caring only for his money was unbearable. But I have no wish to be in love or to be loved.

He shifted from foot to foot, tugging at the collar of his shirt. He swallowed and ran a hand through his hair. His father’s face floated to the forefront of his mind, but he pushed it away violently.

“That is sensible. And you know I abhor such arrangements. They are so droll.” The Dowager Duchess sniffed, her disdain drawing him back into the conversation. “It is a pity you are so recognisable, though that is impossible to avoid when you have taken such pains to be so friendly with so many.”

His grandmother’s tone made her implication clear, and Frederick shifted from foot to foot. The woman was altogether more wily than any one person had a right to be.

“I thought you liked my sociability?” Frederick swept a lock of hair from his face. “Besides, surely it is no bad thing to be so well liked.”

“I did not say it was a bad thing. Simply that it is inconvenient. If you were not already the ton’s favourite bachelor, I would suggest you disguise yourself and win a woman’s heart as a nobody.

Then you would know she loved you for you and not your money.

” His grandmother patted his arm reassuringly.

“That sounds rather like the plot of one of Cousin Cecily’s novels.” Frederick narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

“Does it? Well, even the most trite novelist is bound to have a good idea eventually.” She grabbed a flute of champagne from a nearby servant, leading them away before Frederick had the chance to help himself.

“And do not think I cannot tell that you are trying to change the subject, my dear Frederick. We were talking of marriage, not novels.”

“As I said, grandmama, I have no wish to spend the rest of my life shackled to a woman who sees only my fortune and estates. And I doubt you wish for such a woman to be my duchess.” Frederick gestured to the small path that led to the house and the Dowager Duchess’s rooms.

“Of course not. That would be a most tedious endeavour.” She smiled at a woman who was approaching them, dismissing her with a wave of her hand before she could come another step.

Frederick could see the look of disappointment on the woman’s face, but was relieved that his grandmother seemed intent on having him to herself. At least for now. “Then you see why I am not in want of a wife.”

“I see why you have no desire for a match of convenience, not why you have no wish for a wife. For love.” The Dowager Duchess shook her head. “At this rate, I fear I will be dead and buried and you will still be unwed!”

Frederick gave her a look, arching his eyebrows and letting a small smile steal across his face. “You are healthier than most women half your age. I suspect you will outlive us all.”

“You flatter me, but that does not change the creaks I feel in my joints. Besides, I have no desire to outlive my grandchildren, three husbands is quite enough.” An unreadable look stole across the Dowager Duchess’s face, and for a moment, Frederick thought he saw pain there.

Before he could say anything, the look vanished and in its place his grandmother fixed him with a steely gaze. “Come now, tell me, why are you so reluctant to get married?”

He stumbled, and tugged at the collar of his shirt. “I have already told you.”

“You have told me part of it, but I suspect only the smallest.” His grandmother pursed her lips. “I would understand your reluctance to marry.”

He swallowed. I cannot tell her the truth. “If I promise to look for a bride this season, will you promise to leave the subject alone?”

“Are you promising to search for your future wife?” Her eyes brightened and a smile spread across her face.

“Yes.” He hastily continued before his grandmother could speak, “Though I will not settle for anyone. She must be the right woman.”

This last part was a lie. As far as he was concerned ‘the right woman’ would never come along; he had absolutely no intention of courting the kind of passion his grandmother seemed determined for him to find.

And without love, his only option would be to settle for one of the many women who only wanted his fortune.

He hid his thoughts with an easy smile as his grandmother nodded. “Very well, I shall let the matter be.”

“Thank you.” He felt her slip her arm from his as they walked into the centre of the pavilion.

“Thank you, my boy. You have brought an old woman joy.” She stepped away from him, raising her voice so that her next words carried across the lawns. “How wonderful that Duke Caverton is finally looking for a wife!”

Frederick’s eyes widened but before he could do anything, his grandmother slipped away and at least a dozen women crowded around him.

She is too wily by half.