Page 32

F or a week and a half, Juliana vacillated between calling off her engagement to Victor and hoping against hope his affection for her would grow.

Releasing him was the right thing to do, no matter how much her heart argued against it.

But each time she summoned the courage to broach the subject, Victor quickly provided a counterargument.

Three days before the ball, as they strolled through St. James Park, their conversation was no different.

“Victor, our time is running out?—”

“We should wait. Lady Miranda is investigating the connection Lady Montgomery found to Lord Middlebury. If we can unmask the perpetrator, we have an excellent chance of restoring your reputation.”

“According to Bea, Middlebury does seem to be at the center of numerous reports. But Lady Charlotte doesn’t believe he is connected to the scandal leading to her marriage.”

“He’s still a viable candidate. Middlebury kowtows to Edgerton, so surely he could have received a whiff of the Beckhams’ scandal that way.

Not to mention your Aunt Kitty said Lady Whyte has tea with him regularly, and Lydia’s mother and Middlebury both love gossip.

Ours in particular paints Lydia in a sympathetic light. ”

“I suppose.” With only six days to their wedding, Juliana’s confidence waned that she would actually be able to cry off at the last minute. And Victor had promised he would marry her if she didn’t.

No matter how much she loved him, could she trap him into a marriage when he still loved another? In her mind, that wasn’t love at all. It was selfish.

But she couldn’t paint Victor as a scoundrel, either. Saying Victor had used her ill would only compound the lie that she didn’t want to marry him.

Once again, her mind swung to hope. Hope that by some miracle, Victor would truly see her and not an imitation of another woman. Would grow in true affection for her.

“Patience, Juliana. The ball may provide an excellent opportunity to expose the scoundrel. If we can do so and prove the allegations against us are fabricated, we can admit the betrothal was a pretense to catch the culprit.”

Drake and Simon had concocted a plan to discreetly feed harmless misinformation to those Lady Montgomery had identified in her analysis.

“I’m aware of that scheme. Honoria said she sent out additional invitations to all the suspects.

Both Lady Charlotte and Lady Montgomery were averse to the idea of inviting Middlebury and Lord Felix, but they understood the necessity. ”

Victor chuckled. “Mr. Beckham mentioned he planned to indulge in an overabundance of whisky and position himself close to Davies should he find the urge to cast up his accounts.”

A reluctant smile tugged at Juliana’s lips.

“I should like to see that, and I expect Lady Charlotte would as well.” The change in Lady Charlotte’s demeanor had been nothing short of transformative.

Although Juliana didn’t know her well, she’d never seen the woman smile as much as she had since their return from their wedding trip to Wiltshire.

Hope poked at the vulnerable spot in Juliana’s heart again. Everything had turned out well for the Beckhams. Could she also have a favorable outcome with Victor? Regardless, she needed to keep a clear head.

When they returned from their walk, Victor lingered at the door. Frampton had long since learned to give them privacy, although, since Victor uttered Adalyn’s name, each time he lowered his head to kiss her, Juliana turned her head and stepped away.

Victor exhaled a sigh, and when Juliana met his gaze, she saw hurt rather than anger in his eyes.

“Unless we succeed in our efforts against The Muckraker or you cry off, we will marry, Juliana. Won’t you ever forgive me for my slip and give us a chance?”

How could she tell him she wasn’t angry with him? That she wanted nothing more than a chance at love with him, but she needed to protect her own heart?

“I do forgive you, Victor.” It was the best she could manage and remain truthful.

He brushed her cheek with the back of his fingers. “Then won’t you allow me to kiss you?” His lips tipped up in a playful smile. “I really want to.”

Oh, how she wanted him to as well. She dreamed about it every night—until the beautiful image popped like a soap bubble on a strong breeze when Victor whispered Adalyn’s name.

“Please?”

Victor’s forlorn expression broke through her barrier of self-defense, and she gave the smallest of nods, then prepared herself for the onslaught of sensation and emotions she was certain would follow.

His lips barely brushed hers, and her knees buckled, the anticipation and longing she’d been fighting for nearly two weeks taking its toll.

Victor slipped an arm around her waist, holding her upright and deepening the kiss.

Her chest tightened as she waited for the name that was no doubt on his mind.

But when he broke the kiss, he merely smiled, then kissed the tip of her nose. “Thank you, Juliana. I would say it was worth the wait if I hadn’t found the wait interminable.”

A laugh bordering on a giggle rose to the surface at his hyperbolic statement, and Juliana pushed him out the door. Closing it, she stood with her back against it and breathed a sigh of relief as well as satisfaction.

Hope nestled down in the crack of her armor and made itself at home.

The next few days passed in a blur as servants hurried about rearranging furniture and cleaning each room until wood glistened and crystal sparkled. Juliana did her best to stay out of their path, for the most part staying confined to her room, or curled in a chair in the library reading her book.

By the afternoon before the ball, she’d almost reached the end, and things appeared bleak for poor Elinor when Edward Ferrars confirmed his engagement to Lucy Steele. An attachment, he admitted, that was made during the impetuosity of youth. Juliana could feel Edward’s regret leaping from the page.

And Marianne fared no better when Willoughby turned out to be a scoundrel and threw her over for the wealthy Miss Grey.

Ugh! As if money could buy happiness! Juliana almost threw the book against the wall in fury, especially when dear Colonel Brandon adored Marianne to distraction.

Why couldn’t Marianne see what a good man he was and how much he loved her?

She wasn’t certain which sister had the most dire situation.

Juliana almost regretted reading the book, but Honoria encouraged her to continue, promising the ending was well worth it. However, when Marianne became deathly ill, Juliana put the book down. She needed a pleasant diversion and some laughter.

Little Kitty’s soft cries drifted from the large parlor, and Juliana rushed in to see if she could offer assistance. Lady Charlotte was doing her best to calm the infant, but her frantic expression had Simon hurrying to her side and lifting the baby from Charlotte’s arms.

“I don’t think she likes me,” Charlotte muttered.

“Nonsense, pudding cup. Just pretend she’s Trifle.” Simon kissed his wife on the cheek.

Honoria raised a hand to stifle a laugh, but Juliana had no such compunction and giggled at Simon’s odd endearment.

Juliana took a seat next to Honoria. “Do you allow him to call you such ridiculous names, Lady Charlotte?”

“I would gladly show him my displeasure if he weren’t holding an innocent babe.”

A wide grin spread across Simon’s face. “There is method to my madness, my darling.”

Within moments, Simon had calmed Kitty, and the child stared up at him in wonder.

Charlotte shot her husband a murderous look. “I think I hate you.”

Simon snorted a laugh, disturbing Kitty, who began to wail again.

Frampton appeared at the door. “Your Grace, Lord and Lady Nash Talbot are here to see Lady Charlotte.”

“Nash!” Charlotte’s surprised expression was almost comical.

Honoria rose and straightened her skirts. “Please show them in, Frampton.”

A knot formed in Juliana’s stomach. According to Honoria, Adalyn had married Lord Nash. Why were they in England?

On legs that felt as numb as if she’d been riding Sunshine all day, Juliana forced herself to rise. With less than a week until her wedding, the timing couldn’t be worse for the previous object of Victor’s affections to appear.

A tall, dark-haired man entered the room. He had a dangerous appearance, with his slightly hooked nose and brooding features. In his arms, he held a small child, not much older than little Kitty. His gaze immediately landed on Simon, and his eyebrows quirked over his almost black eyes.

Close behind, a woman and a young girl followed. Both blonde, the woman was taller than most, while the girl was diminutive in stature. Unlike her husband, the woman—Adalyn—smiled warmly as she approached, arms extended toward Honoria.

“My dear friend. How good it is to see you again. You look wonderful. Motherhood suits you, as I knew it would.”

Lord Nash glared at Simon, who wore his usual broad smile. “Is this him? The duke?” Lord Nash’s gaze never left Simon. “I don’t care what your rank is, you had better treat Honoria with love and kindness or you will answer to me.”

The grin instantly fading from his face, Simon paled and took a step back.

“No, brother,” Lady Charlotte said. “That fine specimen unfortunately belongs to me.”

Simon’s grin returned. “Oh, buttercup, you called me a fine specimen.”

“Did you miss the unfortunately ?” Although Charlotte’s tone was sarcastic, her lips twitched. “Nash, allow me to introduce my husband, Mr. Simon Beckham. Simon, my brother, Lord Nash Talbot.”

Lord Nash threw his head back and laughed, the reaction not one Juliana expected given the glares and scowls the man demonstrated so far.

“Oh, Lottie. He’s perfect for you. But,” he said, his glower returning as he nodded toward Kitty in Simon’s arms, “it appears the scandalous reports leading to your marriage might have had some bite. Weren’t you just married several months ago? ”