Page 3 of Her Duke to Tempt (Wayward Dukes’ Alliance #29)

Two

L ogan stood in the doorway of the drawing room as Enid paced back and forth with a temper that, though fiery, was not often displayed.

Her usual composure—so carefully woven, so meticulously controlled—had frayed under the weight of her frustration.

He hadn’t seen her lose control in all the years they’d known each other, and it was a sight to behold.

He leaned against the frame of the door, arms crossed, a slight grin tugging at the corner of his mouth despite the seriousness of the situation.

“Blast it!” Enid muttered, her voice sharp as she threw a glance over her shoulder toward him. “I have searched every corner of this house, every inch of the grounds, and yet Felicity has disappeared as though the earth swallowed her whole!”

Logan raised an eyebrow. “You’re so certain that she’s run off then?”

Enid whirled on him, her frustration evident in the way her usually composed features tightened.

“Yes, she has most definitely run off, and I’ve no idea where to even start looking for that infernally foolish girl.

” She clenched her hands into fists as her frustration rolled over her.

She was adorable in her fury. He should not find this so bloody appealing, but he was merely a man.

He had faults like the next one and he never claimed to be perfect.

Logan watched her closely as her posture stiff with indignation. “She has said nothing you could use for clues before she disappeared?”

“No.” Enid nearly shouted, her voice rising in pitch.

“And I have looked everywhere. The servants have checked the garden, the stables, the village—and now, after hours of searching I am at a loss. It’s maddening!

” She mumbled something under her breath, but he couldn’t be certain what it was in that moment.

Not that he cared. Oddly, he was just grateful she had come to him after she had finished her searching.

Logan’s gaze softened, though his amusement still flickered through him. Her temper was rarely so evident, and for a moment, he savored the sight. “Perhaps a clearer mind will bring better results.”

Enid snorted in frustration, but to his surprise, she didn’t argue.

Instead, she glared at him as if he had said the stupidest thing possible.

Logan stood there for a moment longer, then turned toward the hearth, thinking over what had just transpired.

He knew Enid too well to think this outburst would last, but it gave him something to ponder.

“It’s morning, Your Grace,” she said with sarcasm.

“The time for clearer heads has long passed. The guests have all departed. I have done what I could to hide her disappearance but there will be talk.” She stomped forward and jammed her finger in his chest. “Your son is responsible for this. You do realize that don’t you? ’

“Do I,” he said in a neutral tone.

“Do not act coy, Your Grace,” she seethed and rolled her eyes. “It does not become you. You considered it last night. Your scoundrel of an heir went off with my innocent niece and now she is ruined.”

“Perhaps,” he said. He kept his own temper in check. It would not do for both of them to be in a rage. “But if he has,” he said calmly, “then he’ll marry her.”

“You don’t know…”

“I do,” he interrupted her. “He might be a rogue, but he’s also a gentleman.

He knows his responsibilities. He does not seduce innocent young ladies.

Ever.” After the conversation he’d had with Aiden before the ball, he knew that his son was fully aware of what was expected of him.

Aiden had not been happy with him after they spoke.

But it was beyond time that he settled down and married.

A man could only run wild for so long before he had to accept, he had responsibilities other than his own pleasure.

“How can you be so certain?” she asked, finally losing some of her temper.

“Because I know my son,” he said simply. Aiden was many things, but he would never take advantage of Felicity. He had too much honor for that.

“Then I will need your help…” She sighed.

Logan simply nodded, gesturing for her to sit, though he remained standing by the window, looking out onto the vast grounds.

He wasn’t surprised she had come to him—it seemed inevitable that Enid would seek him out after her niece disappeared from her debut ball.

What he had not been prepared for was her anger.

He understood her disappointment in Felicity and even Aiden and because of that his amusement was fleeting, replaced by something deeper.

It was obvious from her words; from the way she spoke that her mind had become fixated on something far more complicated than she wished to acknowledge.

“Tell me everything you can. What makes you believe with any certainty that my son is with your niece?” he asked mildly, his voice calm as he observed her from across the room.

“A servant saw them together,” Enid replied shortly, her lips tight with frustration. “In the garden…” She brushed a stray lock behind her ear. “They were kissing.”

He closed his eyes and sighed. Of course they had been.

His son sure did act quickly when he saw something he wanted, and clearly, he desired Lady Felicity Hathaway.

He would strangle that boy. Hell, he wasn’t a boy any longer.

He had wanted Aiden to wed, and well, it appeared he would be soon.

He just wished he hadn’t created a scandal on the way to the altar.

Enid stopped slumped back into the settee. She glanced up at him, meeting his gaze for the first time since she entered. “I don’t understand why she insisted on running off like this. Surely, she must realize how this looks.”

Logan’s expression softened. He had always understood Enid better than most. She’d lost so much—her husband, the life she had known—and her determination to hold herself together was something to be admired.

But now, he could see the strain it had placed on her.

Perhaps the time had come for him to speak what had been unspoken for years.

Well, not at this moment. But soon… She had other more pressing things on her mind.

Like locating her niece and dragging her home.

Though he had a feeling that she may very well be Aiden’s wife by the time they both were found.

He would not be telling Enid that though.

She was already livid and that would only irritate her further.

“You know as well as I that she is much like you,” he said, his voice quiet, yet tinged with sincerity. “She has always been fiercely independent, unwilling to let anyone tie her down. Perhaps it is in her blood, as it was in yours.”

Enid met his gaze, her brow furrowed. “You cannot be serious, Your Grace.”

“I am,” he replied, moving to sit beside her. “But more than that, you’re worried about her, yes? Because I see it. I know you, Enid, better than anyone else ever could. It’s why you insisted on launching her into society yourself.”

She looked away, her hands folding in her lap as though she were bracing herself.

“I insisted on it because it needed to be done. Her mother isn’t here to see to it, so someone had to.

My brother certainly wasn’t going to do it.

He is much too comfortable with Felicity at home to ever consider that isn’t what is best for her. ”

“I am sure that is part of it,” he agreed. “But it isn’t the entire reason. You see yourself in her and you knew if you didn’t step in, she would do something drastic.”

“Well, that did little good, didn’t it?” She scoffed.

“The foolish girl still ran off and ruined herself. All my efforts have been for naught.” She sighed.

“But you are right. I do see a little of myself in her. With one difference. I knew that marriage was the only thing I could consider. She seems to think she can live her life like a man and do as she pleases. Women are not afforded the same freedoms, and it will be a hard lesson for her to learn.”

He chuckled softly, almost tenderly. “That may be true, but something tells me she will somehow find a way to get exactly what she wants, but perhaps not in the way she envisioned.”

She sighed. “I pray you are right, but I can’t let that be one of my considerations at the moment. My main priority is finding her and you are going to help me do that.”

Logan reached over, gently placing his hand on hers. “I will do whatever I can.”

She glanced at him sharply, as though she were surprised by his words. “You are not going to argue with me?”

“Why should I?” he asked. “If my son is with your niece they should be found. I will need some time to prepare and make my own inquiries, but it shouldn’t be a problem. Go home and pack your valise. I will pick you up in my carriage in an hour.”

“An hour…” She shook her head. “We shouldn’t wait that long.”

“An hour more will not make a difference. They have had an entire night already. Go. Ask more questions and find out whatever you can. Talk to your servants. Someone must know something. I will be there in an hour,” he said again.

“Now go and prepare. You do not have much time and I have to make my own preparations.” He hated to shoo her off, but it was for the best. She would be by his side again soon and well, he considered this his own adventure with the woman he found most intriguing by far. It would be a glorious few days indeed.

Enid’s lips parted as though she might respond but seemed to reconsider.

Slowly, she nodded and then stood. She left the room without saying another word.

Which worked in Logan’s favor. He rung a nearby bell for his butler.

He had orders he needed filled before he could leave.

Originally, he had been fully prepared to strangle his son for his reckless actions, but he might just owe him for what he’d done.

This gave him an opportunity he never thought he would have.

Hours upon hours alone with Enid. The woman that had kept him riveted for nearly a decade now, and one that also kept him at arm’s length.

Almost as if she knew that if she allowed him to get too close, she’d lose herself in him.

Well, it was about time she did. Logan had been lost in her from the first moment he’d seen her.

Fair was fair, and she should be just as lost as he was, and he hoped this search would lead her where he wanted her.

Where he believed she belonged. In his arms…

Logan leaned back in his chair, his fingers tapping lightly against the wooden armrest as his mind raced.

Enid had left the room, and he couldn’t help but watch her go, the graceful sway of her skirts catching his eye.

The thought of what lay ahead, the long days of travel and the searching, filled him with an unexpected sense of purpose.

He hadn’t realized how much he’d missed being close to her.

There was something in the way she had looked at him—so determined, yet fragile beneath the surface—that stirred something in him he hadn’t felt in years.

He couldn’t deny it. There was a magnetic pull between them that had been there since the beginning, one that had only grown stronger as the years passed.

He had never understood why she kept him at a distance, but today, something felt different.

She had trusted him, if only for a moment, and that trust had ignited a spark of hope he hadn’t known he still carried.

The soft click of the door brought him out of his thoughts, and he turned to see his butler enter. “Your Grace, you’ve called for me?”

“Yes,” Logan replied, his voice steady but laced with urgency. “I need you to gather a few things for me. I’ll be heading out shortly.”

The butler nodded, and Logan dictated him a list of tasks. “I’ll need a few more supplies packed, as well. We’ll be gone for several days.”

"Of course, Your Grace," the butler said with a slight bow before turning to carry out the orders.

Left to his thoughts once again, Logan’s gaze flickered toward the window.

He could hear the distant sounds of the estate stirring with the onset of the day—footsteps in the halls, the hum of activity as preparations were made.

But none of it seemed to matter now. His thoughts kept returning to Enid.

Her strength, her beauty, the way she carried herself with such grace despite the turmoil in her heart.

She had a tenacity about her that Logan found both frustrating and irresistible.

He ran a hand through his hair, the weight of everything that had happened pressing down on him. He had spent so many years trying to suppress his feelings for her. But this—this search, this quest they were about to embark on together—could be the chance he had been waiting for.

Logan knew he couldn’t waste any more time.

This wasn’t just about finding her niece.

It was time for him to make his move, before she could slip away again.

With a deep breath, he rose from his chair and moved toward the door.

The butler returned with the necessary preparations, and Logan’s mind was made up.

He would be with her, side by side, every step of the way.

He wasn’t going to let her slip through his fingers. Not this time.

As the door to the study closed behind him, Logan set his gaze firmly ahead.

Whatever happened during their search, he was determined to make this work.

The clock was ticking, and the only thing that mattered now was Enid.

He would search for Aiden and Felicity with her, but he honestly did not care if they were found.

At least not right away. The more time he had with Enid alone, the better…