Page 17 of Courting Scandal With The Duke

Not what she had expected.

She wasn’t sure what she had expected him to say, but it was not that. After all, she had kissed him.

Much to his dismay, apparently. Well, if he didn’t like it, it was his own fault. He should not keep interfering in her plans.

Perhaps now he would stay out of her business.

She lifted her chin, under that steady and uncomfortable stare. ‘I still need to get word to my brother-in-law, you know.’

He grimaced. ‘I will escort you home and then seek him out to give him your message. I will also do my best to scotch any rumours about your presence outside Boodle’s, should anyone mention it. I do wish, however, that you had brought your maid or a footman.’

She stifled the urge to smile. ‘I shall do so next time.’

‘There will not be a next time,’ he said repressively. ‘It might be possible to plead innocence the first time, but not a second time.’

Clearly, he was prepared to give her the benefit of the doubt, this time, but hopefully his forbearance would not last very long. ‘Very well.’ She tried to look meek and accepting.

His glare said she had not succeeded.

He held out his arm and walked her back to her residence.

It was odd how easily they walked side by side, their steps in perfect harmony. Odd how neither of them felt the need for polite conversation.

Odd how delicious the kiss had been.

Oh, she had not intended to think about their kiss. That had been a moment of madness. And he had clearly disapproved of her forwardness .

Her heart contracted, as if squeezed. An unpleasant, painful feeling.

Why on earth would she care if he found her improper? Indeed, that would suit her purpose very well. Would it not?

A man of his stature only had to give her the cut direct and she would be ruined. Persona non grata. Beyond the pale for ever. Let Father try to marry her off then.

Now was not the time to let her attraction to a man interfere with her plans to avoid being forced into yet another unpleasant marriage.

Indeed, the Duke would be the perfect foil for those plans, if he wasn’t about to become engaged to Miss Simons.

She recalled her promise to her friend.

How would one approach such a delicate matter? Not on the street, that was certain. Nor in any public place. After all, the information would come as a shock. Who knew how he might react.

Anger. Disappointment. Heartbreak?

Was it possible that his heart was engaged? It did not seem so, when seeing them together. He seemed more like an uncle than a besotted suitor.

Perhaps that was because he was good at hiding his true feelings.

‘Do you think love is important in a marriage?’ she asked. Shocked at the baldness of her question, she stumbled slightly.

Catching her up, he glanced down at her with his usual frown. ‘I think there should be mutual liking, certainly.’ His mouth tightened. ‘I am not sure love enters into it. One’s duty to one’s family must come first.’

‘At the expense of one’s heart?’

‘Romantic love is highly overrated. It leads to all kinds of erratic behaviour. Take Caro Lamb, for example. A disaster. All brought about by overheated imagination and nonsense.’

Anger was a hard lump in her throat. ‘You assume one’s family has one’s best interests at heart.’

‘I would assume they have the family’s best interests at heart.’

‘And the individual’s best interests mean nothing?’

‘In time, no doubt the family’s interests and the individual’s will coincide.’

The few warm feelings she had felt towards him dissipated. He understood nothing about the misery an arranged marriage could impose on a woman. Why would he? He was a man.

And he did not deserve such a sweet young woman as Miss Simon. She certainly did not deserve to be married to a man who did not have a heart.

‘What if…what if one of the pair has fallen in love with someone else? Would the marriage not be untenable for both?’

‘Are you saying you have fallen in love with someone unsuitable?’

Ugh. How obtuse. But then she was rather beating about the bush. ‘I am not talking about me, but rather about a friend. ’

‘A friend. I see.’ He sounded as if he did not believe her. ‘While I do not think love is a prerequisite for a good marriage, I do believe a man has a right to expect fidelity in his wife.’

But a woman had no right to expect the same in a husband. No doubt as soon as he was wed, he would be off seeking a mistress, just like Helmut.

‘I am sure Miss Simon will do her best to meet your exacting standards. Perhaps if you did not frown at her quite so much, she might be a bit more comfortable.’

He stopped and turned to face her. ‘Are you saying Miss Simon is in love with someone else?’

He’d honed in on the real import of her words without difficulty. She hesitated. This really was not for her to say, but—‘I think she believes her heart is engaged elsewhere, though it is quite possibly only puppy love and could easily be overcome. Her family considers you the better match.’

‘They would.’ His tone was dry. ‘In any case, I have made no commitments to Miss Simon, so she is free to do as she pleases.’

The chill in his voice sent a shiver down her spine. Surely he could not be hurt by her revelation?

‘I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news.’

‘Did she ask you to reveal this piece of information?’

‘She asked for my help. But she is terrified of upsetting her family.’

He sighed. ‘Then I see I shall have to carefully withdraw from the lists. I would prefer you to say nothing to her about our conversation today. I think perhaps she does not have the wit to carry off such a delicate matter.’

Surprised, she stared at him. She had half expected him to be angry and dismissive of the idea of a rival. Perhaps even hurt or…affected somehow.

The man really did not have a heart. Or if he did, it was frozen beneath the weight of honour and duty.

The thought caused her an unexpected pain in the region of her heart.

They arrived at her front door. ‘I will keep my counsel,’ she said, though Miss Simon must surely guess Barbara had spoken with him. ‘And thank you for your assistance this morning. I do hope you can get my message to the Count.’

He blinked, clearly noticing the change in her demeanour.

‘I will do my best.’

‘Shall I see you at the Andersons’ drum in Chelsea tomorrow?’

‘Chelsea?’ He frowned. ‘I do not recall if I received an invitation, but if I accepted, I shall attend.’

Always so dutiful. She felt a surge of pity. The poor man needed to have some fun. The question was, could he be lured out of his armour for long enough to enjoy himself?

And might she be the woman to help him do so? Their kiss hinted that she might very well be and if so, now he would no longer be pursuing Miss Simon, it would help her own plans along very nicely .

Having seen her to the door, the Duke bowed and strolled off down the street.

Inside, Barbara handed her outer raiment to the footman who opened the door and found her aunt in the drawing room embroidery hoop in hand.

‘Who was that with you?’ her aunt asked, trying to look as if she hadn’t picked up her embroidery a second before Barbara arrived.

‘You saw it was the Duke.’

Her aunt cast the embroidery aside. ‘Where did you meet him? What did he say?’

‘Um… He walked me home from Green Park.’

Her aunt’s eyes grew round. ‘How very kind of him.’

‘Supremely.’

‘Did you tell him about Miss Simon’s illness?’

‘He already knew. Her mother wrote to him before she left London.’

‘Oh.’ Lenore picked up the fabric she’d been working on and put it down again. ‘Was he terribly upset?’

‘Not particularly. He did send her flowers, I gather.’

‘Oh.’

‘What are you thinking, Aunt?’

‘It occurs to me that some men do not like a woman who is ill all the time.’

‘Are you saying I should use the opportunity to engage his attention?’

‘Well, when you put it like that, you make it sound rather scheming, which I cannot like, but something of the sort.’ She patted at her perfectly coifed hair. ‘I heard from your father this morning.’ She was trying to sound casual and failing. ‘He will be with us in two weeks’ time.’

Two weeks? That was not a great deal of time in which to get herself banished from Society. ‘I wonder why he did not write to me?’

‘He said he was in a hurry, on urgent business, but would write more later.’

He was always on urgent business, and Barbara wasn’t going to hold her breath waiting for a letter that would never come.

‘I shall look forward to it. By the way, the Count of Lipsweiger and Upsal will probably call on us later today. I wish to speak with him.’

Her aunt gave her a sharp look. ‘There is something I do not like about that young gentleman.’

‘Really?’

‘There is something calculating in his eyes.’

Her aunt was such a bad judge of character. She thought the cold-hearted Duke was wonderful and took exception to a man who had always been kind to Barbara. ‘Nonsense. He is a good friend as well as my brother-in-law, and I hope you will treat him as such.’

‘I am not so rag-mannered as to treat him any other way, my dear.’ She popped to her feet. ‘I shall ring for tea and you will tell me all about your conversation with Derbridge.’

Not a chance. Or about her plans for the cold-hearted Duke.

A scandalous liaison revealed at some important public event, preferably with a member of the royal family present, the recently married Princess Charlotte for example, would suit her purposes very nicely.

Or since the newlyweds were rarely in town, perhaps an event attended by the Prince Regent. There was bound to be something on the royal calendar.

Xavier strolled around the vacant cottage. It had been rented out furnished to his last tenant and, as he had expected, everything was in order. It could be rented out again immediately.

Hopefully the next tenant would be as satisfactory as the last.

Normally his man of business would have inspected the place before advertising it for lease, but Xavier had decided to visit it on the way to the Anderson event, since the cottage lay nearby their house.