Page 19 of Diamond of the Season (Heiress #1)

Chapter

Nineteen

A t Rosalind's words, Nathaniel saw red. Instead of ripping Lord Issacs from his perch atop his carriage and tearing his arms from his person to stop him from ever touching Rosalind, he simply stepped back. He attempted to gain some semblance of control, although that was far from possible at that moment. What on earth was wrong with him these days? Every waking hour was filled with images and thoughts of Rosalind. He lived for the moments when he caught a glimpse of her in the house—reading a book quietly in the drawing room, playing the piano, or heading out on one of her many shopping expeditions with Lady Smithe.

He was obsessed, and his preoccupation needed to end. Here and now.

She turned and started for the carriage, and it was not long before she was perched against Issacs, her arms safely linked with his. He bit back a sharp retort that sat on the end of his tongue and instead waved them off, forcing a serene smile onto his lips as he did so. Not that he believed Rosalind thought he was happy she was gallivanting about London with a rogue who had once been as busy in the boudoirs of London as he had been before inheriting the dukedom. Nathaniel knew this better than anyone, since Issacs was one of his closest friends.

He stormed inside and sat at his desk, staring out the window for several minutes as he thought, planned, and chastised himself for the fool he was being. He told himself he was not interested in his ward. The lie taunted him for the falsehood it was. He was interested in Rosalind and, damn it all to hell, she seemed to be enjoying his company and the time they spent alone together.

He shifted in his chair until he caught sight of a missive on his desk. He picked it up, broke the seal, and scanned it quickly. Before he had finished reading the note, he was striding through the house, then yard, heading for the mews. It took only minutes for his stable hand to saddle a horse, and soon he was on his way to Cheapside. The ride through Mayfair and into the surrounding area was thankfully brief and without incident.

Nathaniel stared up at the modest yet clean and tidy dwelling. The houses here resembled those in Mayfair but on a much smaller scale. Far more people lived in this community than his own, many engaged in trade or law. He rapped on the door and heard people in the house. He waited patiently, but when the door opened, Nathaniel felt the blood drain from his face. A young woman opened the door, and he stared, unable to comprehend how similar in looks and coloring she was to Lady Rosalind. They could be sisters… He chastised himself for the fool he was. They were sisters, half by blood.

Nathaniel rallied his resolve and attempted to school his features. "Good afternoon, I'm the Duke of Ravensmere. I was hoping I could come in so we can discuss the missive you sent…" He offered a small smile. "If you're willing?"

The young woman opened the door wider and stepped aside. He moved past her and she closed the door, locking it before retreating deeper into the house. Nathaniel followed. Two other young ladies, younger than the one who had opened the door, sat on the stairs watching him. Both were too similar in appearance to the Ravensmere daughters back in Hampshire. The duke's blood obviously ran deep in his daughter's veins.

He followed the elder sister into a small sitting room where a modest fire burned. She sat, placed her hands in her lap, and gestured for him to do the same. He complied and looked around, noting a few expensive pieces of furniture that might have come from the ducal London townhouse before they lost everything they had ever known.

"So, Your Grace, you are the new duke. How fortunate you are to inherit a most worthy title."

He narrowed his eyes and nodded, unwilling to share that the late duke had left barely enough funds to keep the London house running, let alone his country estate. A worthy title it may once have been, but not under the late duke's watch.

"Thank you." He met her eyes and was again startled by how much she reminded him of Rosalind. "I'm sorry to speak so bluntly, but I understand you're the late duke's illegitimate family and you wished an audience with me."

"We are," she said as she raised her chin, her defiance uncanny to Rosalind’s. Nathaniel sighed inwardly. Even here in Cheapside he could not stop thinking of his ward—a woman who, at that moment, was enjoying another man's company. The slight was unbearable.

"I'm Miss Helena, but there is no need to apologize for your words, Your Grace. Do not great men such as yourself always speak with a blunt tongue?"

He did not respond, but he knew all too well how true that statement was. "Is your mother here? Perhaps I could speak to her regarding the situation in which we now find ourselves."

The young woman's face paled as she shook her head. "Our mother passed only a few days after our father. A broken heart, the doctor said."

Nathaniel had not known that, and it shamed him. "I'm sorry for your loss."

"Thank you, but it was some time ago now and we're trying our best to manage."

Again Nathaniel looked about the room. "And that brings me to your missive…"

The young woman glanced at her hands, wringing them together in her lap. Nathaniel could tell she had not wanted to reach out to ask anything of him, but with two younger sisters to care for, when one was desperate, one was willing to do anything, he supposed.

"Yes, the letter." She adjusted her seat and gathered herself. "I'm desperate, Your Grace. I've taken in laundry to try to bring in some income to help with food, but I've had to let go of our one maid, and soon I shall have to let go of our cook as well. We are barely surviving, and I'm fraught with fear for me and my siblings."

"Did the duke leave you with any financial compensation?" he asked, already knowing the answer, for it would be the same as what the late duke had left his legitimate children.

"No, only this house, which I'm thankful cannot be taken away from us. I do not wish to bring in any boarders, not with my sisters here. One can never quite trust anyone in London, and well…" She bit her lip as tears welled in her eyes. "Please help us. With Mama gone, the stipend my father left us ceased with her passing. An oversight I’m sure His Grace had not thought of."

Nathaniel sighed and glanced out into the foyer where the two younger sisters remained on the stairs, watching him through the banister.

"Of course I shall be of assistance, but if I am to help you until you are all married and settled, you must refrain from letting it be known who your father is and the connection you have with his daughters. I am their guardian now, and I am attempting to have each of them married over the coming years. I do not wish the scandal of the duke having a second family to injure their chances."

The young woman looked at him, her features brimming with hope for the first time that day. "Oh, of course, Your Grace. We have always been a secret of sorts, and we understand. We do not wish to be known as illegitimate or bastards in society either. We could not bear such shame that was not of our making."

"Very well then, it is settled. I shall bestow a sizable living on your household and a small dowry for each of you should you wish to marry. It will not be much, but it will help you find matches that are more becoming than perhaps those you might have married otherwise."

"You're too kind, thank you, Your Grace. I do not know what to say." Miss Helena fumbled for her handkerchief and dabbed at her cheeks and nose. "I've been so terribly worried and not knowing what to do." She paused. "Shamefully, I had a gentleman at the markets just last Sunday ask my price, and for a shocking moment I panicked at the thought of what I might become."

"No, I shall not allow that. You are the late Duke Ravensmere's daughters, legitimate or not. You do not deserve such disgrace. I shall do right by you, even if your father did not."

"Please do not be too harsh on Papa. He was a kind and loving father, even if he was unable to care for us once he passed."

Nathaniel stood, and so did Miss Helena. "I will have to disagree with you on that point I’m afraid. Your father, while kind to you and your mama, was not the same with his legitimate daughters. They may have the titles and grand homes, but you had the love of a father that they never received and are far poorer for it."

Miss Helena nodded and escorted him to the door. "Thank you again for coming. I know you were not obligated to, but I thought it best to ask you to come here instead of the Mayfair home."

"You are right. The late duke's daughters do not know you exist. His Grace never told them, and I think it would be a shock and hurt them dearly to learn he had another family entirely. I do hope you'll keep your promise and remain secret, for both you and the Ravensmere family."

"Of course, Your Grace. We promise to be discreet."

Just as he preferred. “Thank you.”