Page 28 of A Lord in Want of a Wife (Daring Debutantes #2)

C edric could not stop staring at Lucy. He hadn’t spoken with her in two months, beyond two sentences at his cousin’s wedding.

In that time, she’d seem to grow. She stood taller and didn’t look on the verge of running anymore.

It was a subtle change. She was a strong woman before, but now there was a subtle calm presence about her that was new.

As if she could indeed command a fleet of ships.

It looked good on her.

And it required him to be the one who spoke first.

‘You look lovely,’ he said. ‘You’re wearing colours now that you’re out. It suits you.’

She said nothing. Of course not. Lucy was never one to show how she truly felt. Not at first. ‘I behaved abominably. I cannot tell you how much I regret it. I think back and I cannot believe I did it.’

He had apologised before, but some things needed to be repeated.

‘Lucy—’

‘One of your sisters had a son?’

‘Yes.’ He shoved his hands in his pockets.

It was the only way he could stop himself from reaching for her.

‘You were right. They found ways to survive. Cora is married now, and the babe is healthy.’ Not to mention legitimate.

‘If I can get dowries for my other two sisters, they will have the life they ought to have had from the beginning.’

‘So you no longer fear for them?’

He arched a brow. ‘I didn’t say that. But I have helped all I can. Now I need to have a successful cargo.’

Her gaze went to The Integrity , but she said nothing. Just as well, he had more to say.

‘You know,’ he began as he settled onto a barrel. ‘It doesn’t matter what Declan decreed. I was coming to you anyway. I needed your help.’

‘My help?’ Doubt laced her tone.

‘Yes. I have investors. I have a cargo planned. But I cannot negotiate like you do. And you have a better understanding of the buyers than I do. You should set the prices.’ He looked up, hope lacing his tone. ‘I thought we might work together, but now I accept Declan’s offer. With gratitude.’

She was silent a long time, studying him. He tried to be as open as possible with her. No artifice. No attempt at charm. Eventually, it worked.

She scrambled onto a barrel set near to him. Not within touching distance, but close enough for discussion.

‘You have changed,’ she said.

‘For the better, I think.’

‘Or you have learned how to lie more convincingly. I cannot tell.’

‘Of course you can,’ he said. ‘Of everyone, you have always seen me clearest.’ He wanted to touch her but knew better. She was too wary, and he had not apologised enough for what he had done. ‘I will do whatever you want. I swear it.’

She stared at him. ‘You are not a humble man.’

He was now.

‘You are a brash man with joy in his step and confidence enough to let another shine.’

He wasn’t sure he was that man still. ‘I have had my confidence knocked aside.’

She snorted. ‘No, you haven’t. You have found investors. That is no small feat.’

It had been exhausting, difficult work, but he knew the English ton . He knew how to talk to them. He knew how to persuade them to stoop to commerce. After all, if a future earl could work, then they had no excuse.

It helped that Prinny thought him the most brilliant of fellows. He just had to live up to the promise.

What he didn’t have was a boat. He’d spent the last two months looking for one in between trips home to help his sisters and to greet his new nephew.

Declan was right. None matched The Integrity .

And as much as he made it sound to others like he had a couldn’t-possibly-lose cargo, he wasn’t sure about it.

Which is why he’d been planning on talking to Captain Banakos. And to Lucy.

‘Punish me however you want. I deserve it. But after you’re done being angry—which you have every right to be—then I hope we can talk. I hope you will give me advice.’

She didn’t even speak. She looked at him, her dark eyes liquid with thoughts he couldn’t fathom. But in the end, she nodded.

‘We can talk?’ he asked.

‘Yes.’

Relief poured through him. He hadn’t completely destroyed what was between them. She didn’t completely hate him yet.

‘What do you want me to do first? Tell me and I shall do it.’

Her feet kicked out a bit, thumping the barrel as she sat in silence. It might have been a childish motion if it didn’t draw attention to her shapely calves and ankles. It also told him that she was relaxing around him. Then she said the most wonderful thing.

‘Tell me what you have been doing.’ Then she threw him an arch look. ‘Tell me what you have promised the Prince.’

They began to talk. Or rather, he talked and she listened.

He loved that she understood what he was trying to build.

Not just understood but helped with his dreams. She rarely interrupted him, but when she did, she asked something important.

She made quiet suggestions, and he quickly learned to think about her words before he spoke again.

It was a kind of rhythm of discourse that he didn’t have with anyone else. It helped him settle his racing thoughts and taught him to think with something more than just his passion and excited dreams.

And every time he chewed on her words or worked with her ideas, she flushed with pleasure. Bit by bit, he watched her blossom. It was such a simple thing to listen to her words, but she became more animated every time he did it. And how beautiful she was when he engaged with her thoughts.

That made for a good discussion. And when the captain finally came up top, they were both arguing without heat in a way he had never experienced before.

Imagine having a disagreement without anger or insult!

It didn’t solve the question about which cargo went where, but it also didn’t require embarrassment or groveling.

‘It’s time for the lady to head home,’ Captain Banakos said when the two of them paused long enough for him to get a word in edgewise.

‘But there are things we still need to decide,’ Lucy said as she looked up at the late afternoon sky.

‘True,’ Cedric said, ‘but they are not our decisions to figure out. They are yours to ponder.’ He took a deep breath, startled to realise how easy it was to swallow his pride when it came to her. ‘I have stated my case. You get the final decision.’

She looked at the captain as he nodded. ‘Aye, miss. That’s what the Duke said.’

Then he watched with pleasure as a slow smile spread across Lucy’s face. ‘Then I will make the decision,’ she said. ‘Tomorrow. At teatime.’ She looked to Cedric. ‘Would you care to join me?’

Such a demure invitation, just like a true society lady. ‘I would,’ he said, his heart beating a little faster. ‘With pleasure.’

And so they set another rhythm between them. Teatime. The most polite time of the day where rules of behaviour were strictly observed. He could not importune her. She could not act anything but proper. Especially since there was always a chaperone in the room with them.

And yet, he could think of no better way to spend his time.