Page 27 of A Lord in Want of a Wife (Daring Debutantes #2)

T wo months changed everything and absolutely nothing.

Lucy threw herself into the social whirl and Grace’s wedding preparations.

She learned with her sister how to hire servants and manage a staff.

Lucy would only manage her father’s small household, but her sister was to be a duchess.

Together they undertook a lady’s education in a very short amount of time.

And Lucy shuddered to think of how Cedric’s sisters managed such a thing on a very tight budget.

And she let herself enjoy the men who courted her.

Except none of them stirred her the way Cedric once had. It was damned depressing. Especially since she saw him at her sister’s wedding. He was so handsome in his English finery that he took her breath away. And when he looked at her, she wanted to leap across the room, straight into his arms.

She couldn’t. She didn’t feel that way about him anymore.

And yet, when he at last came to greet her, she nearly melted when he complimented her dress.

It was a form statement, said by nearly everyone here.

But he held her hand longer than anyone else did, and he looked in her eyes when he said she was beautiful. Then he added one more phrase.

‘I’m awed by you.’

There was such feeling in the statement, such intensity when he said it, that her emotions nearly swallowed her whole.

She tried to respond, but had no words. And then the moment was lost. His attention was caught by someone else.

He turned away from her, and she was left wondering if she was reading too much into his words.

If she was hearing what she wanted to hear or if there was something between them still.

Did she want that? Did she want him?

Yes, a thousand times yes. And also no.

And so she turned her attention to the next guest and kept her mind and heart strictly under control.

He left immediately after the bridal breakfast and she saw him no more that day. Or the next. Or for the next month.

At least the wedding was beautiful, and her sister seemed ecstatic.

Husband and wife disappeared soon afterwards on a honeymoon trip while Lucy settled into management of her father’s tiny home.

The first thing she did was dismiss her annoying chaperone.

The next thing was to find a doctor for her father.

He was ailing, his cough continuing, and she very much feared for his life. He, on the other hand, made plans to visit his parents’ graves on a family estate owned by his older brother. And he did not want her to join him.

‘Not this time, my dear,’ her father said. ‘I need to have words with my brother, and those had best be done in private.’

‘He will not approve of me,’ she said quietly.

Her father shrugged. ‘He doesn’t matter. I do.’ He took her hands and pressed kisses into them. ‘It is sooner than I wanted, but you are out now. Next Season you will have the gentlemen clamoring for your hand.’

It hadn’t waited for the next Season. ‘I am well content.’

‘I’m glad. But know that I plan to put a substantial amount into your dowry.’

‘Father—’

‘We have to wait until the next ship returns to figure out exactly how much.’ Then he grinned. ‘Or perhaps I should say you will decide. I am very pleased with how you managed the accounts for The Integrity .’

‘Thank you, but—’

‘No, no. Leave a man to dote on his only remaining daughter.’ Then he sighed. ‘If I could, I would go back there and bring out a dozen more of your kin.’

By kin, he meant all the other half-white Chinese orphans raised at the temple. ‘You are too kind.’ She meant it. All that travel would kill him. And yet, she couldn’t love him more for the good heart he had.

So she closed up their small London place and went to stay with the honeymooning couple. She saw the love between the two of them and her heart ached. And every time she saw their tender looks, she thought about Cedric. And she wondered when her heart would begin to heal.

What a change two months had wrought. Her sister was a duchess and blissfully happy. And how everything ended up the same. Lucy was yet again hanging on, an extra piece of baggage intruding on her sister’s life.

What was she going to do with the rest of her life?

Then came the morning that she and her sister were drinking tea in the parlor and the Duke sauntered in with a big grin on his face.

‘What has you so happy?’ Grace asked as she extended her cheek for a kiss.

‘I have finished with my solicitor, my banker and my steward, not to mention my valet and your maid.’

Her sister frowned. ‘Why would you be talking to my maid?’

‘Because we need to go. Now.’ He tugged her upright. Lucy had already set aside her tea. She would find another book to read. Thankfully, the Duke’s library was extensive.

‘No, no,’ the Duke said as he turned to her. ‘If you will join us please?’

Lucy nodded, confused but all too happy to have something new to do. Her sister followed more reluctantly. She wasn’t as delighted by surprises as Lucy was. Nevertheless, they climbed into a carriage and headed away.

Soon the familiar scents of the docks filtered through the air.

Grace smiled, having spent much of her youth aboard ship.

Lucy, on the other hand, wasn’t as excited as they neared The Integrity .

The ship stood proud, though there were still some repairs to be done.

And Captain Banakos waved a smiling hello to them.

One other person was there.

Cedric.

Lucy’s heart squeezed painfully tight at the sight of him. He looked good, though there was still a leanness to his face. And his clothing didn’t fit well, but his shoulders were squared and his expression…

Well, it was guarded as hers would be.

‘Why is Lord Domac here?’ she said, her voice coming out as a strangled kind of squeak. ‘I will not—’

‘Oh, I remember now!’ her sister cried. Then she squeezed Lucy’s arm. ‘Don’t worry. You will love this.’

She wasn’t so sure. Coming face-to-face with Cedric again was something she wanted to prepare for. But there was no time as the Duke helped them exit the carriage. And then they all climbed aboard The Integrity .

The greetings passed quickly enough with Cedric glaring at his cousin. Honestly, she couldn’t blame him. If she felt discomforted by the situation, he had to be furious. After all, the two men had reached an accord in the last month. To be summoned like a servant was humiliating.

‘Sorry, this has been abrupt,’ Declan said by way of apology.

‘I’ve been occupied with other matters.’ He waited as his wife stopped inspecting the ship and turned her attention to him.

‘I shall make this quick, shall I?’ Declan continued.

‘Miss Lucy Richards, your father and I have discussed things and have come to an arrangement. The repairs on The Integrity are underway. It will take another month at least, but then she will be ready to set sail with a new cargo.’ He leaned towards her with a mischievous grin. ‘Would you like to choose it?’

Her heart leapt into her throat. Was he truly trusting her with an entire cargo? Then the Duke turned to Cedric.

‘I’m willing to give you a portion of that cargo, cousin. I’ll let you supervise it, sail with it and sell it in China as you had initially planned. Any profit will be allotted to you and your sisters’ dowries evenly.’

‘What?’ Cedric gaped at the Duke.

‘One condition though,’ he said as he turned to Lucy. ‘She will be the one deciding on the cargo. She will be the one to set the price. And you will work under Captain Banakos and her. Prove your mettle and we can discuss the next sailing.’

‘You want me to be her lackey?’ Cedric asked, bristling.

‘Yes,’ the Duke answered. ‘For the next two months. If you want the boat.’ The Duke’s expression softened as he stepped closer to Cedric. ‘I am trying to help. You hurt us all deeply, but you are my cousin, and I care for you.’

‘I apologise, Declan. Truly, but—’

‘I didn’t know about the roof. If I had, I would have taken care of it.’

Cedric nodded. ‘It’s done—’

‘I know. I also know you’ve been looking for a boat—’

‘I have investors. I don’t need—’

‘But there’s none better than this one.’ His gaze lifted to The Integrity . ‘You chose well with this.’

Cedric’s jaw firmed, but he nodded.

‘I want you to have your chance, Cedric. But you risk a great deal—for all of us—if Prinny’s investment goes sour.’

‘I can do it.’

‘I hope so. This is your chance.’ He looked back at Lucy. ‘But if she wants to punish you, I’ll allow it. You certainly deserve it.’

Cedric’s gaze turned to her, and she didn’t know how to respond. Her heart still ached for him and for his pain, and yet all her darker emotions remained.

‘She’s not vindictive,’ Cedric said in an undertone.

‘Lucky for you.’ Then the Duke squeezed his cousin’s arm. ‘If you don’t want this, just say so. I mean it to be a help, not a punishment.’

The two men’s eyes met and held. And then Cedric grimaced.

‘I cannot leave my sisters without help. I found them a banker and a new steward. Men who will treat them well and not be so easy on my father, but—’

‘I’ll see to their care while you’re gone. I swear it.’

‘They’re damned independent.’

‘It’s a family trait,’ the Duke said with dry amusement. ‘They’ll be safe. Even the new babe.’

Lucy jolted. One of his sisters was pregnant? She hadn’t known.

‘Simon was born last week,’ Cedric said, a pleased flushed to his expression. ‘A healthy boy.’

The Duke grinned. ‘Congratulations, Uncle.’ Then he turned to Captain Banakos. ‘I trust you will treat my cousin as he deserves?’

‘That I will, your grace. That I will.’

Then the Duke grabbed Grace’s hand and pulled her off the boat. Apparently, he had other plans for his wife, and they pertained to the sleek pleasure craft docked alongside. On the side of it, The Duchess was written in bold letters.

While the three of them stood gaping, the Duke swung his wife up into his arms and carried her up the gangplank. And once aboard, they paused long enough to wave a cheery goodbye.

‘They’re sailing on the evening tide,’ Captain Banakos said.

‘What?’ Lucy asked. She was still trying to understand what the Duke had asked her to do. Manage the entire cargo? By herself!

‘Yes, sirree,’ the captain said with a grin. ‘He asked me to see you got home safe. But for the moment,’ he cast a sidelong glance at Cedric. ‘I expect the two of you have things you want to discuss.’

Then with a broad grin and a very loud chuckle, the man tipped his hat and withdrew. Leaving her face-to-face with the one man she’d never wanted to see again.