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Chapter Nine

E arlier that day…

Selina sat at the desk in her room. Dread clung to her, her mind a turbulent mess, and as she had taken to doing, she pulled out a fresh piece of parchment and her ink so that she might write a letter to Ethel.

She had not heard back from her friend in quite a long time, and she ached to hear her voice again.

For now, the letters were all that she had, so Selina would continue to write them, even if they did go unanswered.

Dearest Ethel,

Why have you not responded to a single one of my letters? I am beginning to think that you have lost your ability to read, and I know quite well how that would affect you.

In truth, I miss your company. I have become much closer to Charlotte since we last spoke, but I am in need of my oldest friend.

I have written to you about the new Duke who has now made his appearance.

So many of my greatest fears have become a reality since he arrived.

It is being demanded that I find a husband, which you are aware I do not wish to do, and the man himself is ? —

Selina hesitated to find the perfect word.

—incorrigible. He is rude and completely uneducated in the ways of high society and the ton.

The Duke insists on calling me Selina, though I have not given him permission to do so, and I refuse to call him “Hugh” in return.

I fear for my family if I do not make the Duke happy, but I also fear that he is pushing my sisters out of the estate too quickly.

He is giving them a single season to find husbands once they debut.

That is monstrously short. For myself, I only have a month, less by the time you read this.

I do not wish to be married. I am quite happy on my own, and though I cannot profess to being as much of a bluestocking as yourself, you know better than everyone else in my life that so much of my outward expression is but a show.

I tire of all this. So very much so. I wish to be back in Amelia’s parlor with you, chatting about everything and nothing, hearing you go on about your latest read and pretending not to be wildly interested.

I have finished with all the books in the estate now. An estate that feels less and less like home with each moment. The Duke is using Easton’s study as his own, hiding letters from my husband in the tomes that used to belong to him.

Apparently, Easton wished for me to remarry.

That was the Duke’s motive, at least in part, it seems. I cannot be sure what else drives the man, but there is undoubtedly more.

When I insisted that Easton would understand if I chose not to remarry, the Duke was still unmoved.

He is blind to the world around him, and you will not believe what I have heard about his past.

I would not tarnish the paper with recounting it.

Please return this letter, dear Ethel. I miss you terribly, and I am going out of my mind without your advice.

Your Friend,

Selina

The garden party at Amelia’s estate was lovely, and it was so very clear to Selina that both she and her husband were using this get-together and social event to celebrate their child and the last few weeks they might have alone without the new baby.

Selina was excited to see them, but her nerves were on edge thanks to the Duke’s lovely greeting he’d bestowed on her before they all got in the coach.

The first thing the man says to me all day is a threat to find a husband tonight or else.

Amelia looked as if she was going to burst when she practically waddled like a duck over to Selina, her arms open wide. She hurried over to her friend, not caring that she could feel the Duke’s eyes on the back of her head.

“Darling! Look at you!” Selina embraced her friend, giving Amelia a gentle kiss on the cheek. “My goodness. You must be so excited.”

Amelia huffed, trying to catch her breath, which appeared to be a common occurrence the longer into her pregnancy she was. Smiling, she held her hand over the rounded expanse.

“I am.” Looking over her shoulder as Richard approached, Amelia’s smile brightened. “We both are. Though I will admit that I do feel some rest is in order. Everything is more difficult, even sleeping.”

Selina chuckled, offering a sympathetic grin. “Oh dear, well then we will soak up every ounce of time we get with you this evening and send you off to take the time you require.”

They wrapped their arms around each other once more, Amelia’s belly quite in the way, and then each of them went about to mingle with those attending the intimate garden party.

It didn’t take long for Selina to busy herself with introducing people her sisters and mother had never met to her family, guiding them around the room and ensuring that everyone would recognize them and appreciate their presence.

If the Duke was indeed expecting quick success for both Myra and Lydia when they each debuted, it would do them good to begin acquiring positive attention now.

They were charming as ever, as their mother taught them all to be, and Selina was proud of Myra for doing her best to put on a good face.

She knew it was difficult for her youngest sibling to pretend her fascination with the ton and the latest gossip.

Still, she did well enough, not being rude or dismissive.

The Duke, on the other hand…

Selina could not imagine a man more contrary to herself than he.

He was stoic and kept to himself. His greetings were short and brusk, walking the line of being downright rude.

She knew that she had been born and bred to be the perfect lady, and she stuck to those teachings as a means of protecting herself from a worse fate.

The Duke was abrasive and uninterested. He didn’t try once to appeal to the people at the party by complimenting them or at least making small talk. He was frankly terrible at socializing with the upper class. There was no way around it.

He cannot even disguise his comments with false praise.

It was one of the first things Selina had been taught by her mother: to decipher what people were truly saying. The trick was one used by the entirety of the ton.

They would eat him alive.

As Selina took a round about the room by herself, she could hear the conversations about the Duke being held by several of the less friendly acquaintances of Amelia and Richard.

“Oh, good evening, Your Grace,” the Viscount of Canterbury offered. “Such a lovely evening for the happy couple. I see that quite everyone you brought with is enjoying themselves.”

Selina could hear the man’s tone. “Indeed. I am so glad for my dear friends that they will be welcoming a babe shortly. We all are.”

She tried to return the Viscount’s insinuation in kind. He cocked a brow at her.

“Oh, truly. Well, that is a relief. I will admit to hearing that there is some tension within the Soulden estate as of late.”

Steadying herself, Selina straightened her spine and smiled. “On the contrary. We are all settling in well, and the Duke has been a gracious host. If you’ll excuse me, I have yet to speak with the Duke of Aldworth. As he is a dear friend, I wish to converse with him.”

“Of course, Your Grace.” The Viscount tipped his head, his smile much that of an uncaring sneer.

Selina hurried away, her heart fluttering over the conversation. The Duke, Hugh , was making such a terrible impression. He was going to ruin her prospects of a good marriage just by association. Didn’t he realize that?

She needed a distraction, and Magnus would suit that purpose nicely.

As she approached him, Magnus turned her way, noticing her arrival, and offered a kind smile.

“Good evening, Selina. It’s been some time.” He greeted her with a polite kiss on the hand and nodded his head. “How have you been fairing under the care of the new Duke?”

As much as Selina wished to use this opportunity to destroy the man’s reputation, she was still required to find a husband. That kind of gossiping could backfire on her extraordinarily.

“Life in the estate is quite smooth. It has been some time since I’ve spent so many days with my sisters and mother. I have missed them.”

Magnus cocked a brow, regarding her. “Oh, is that so? Because I seem to recall you comparing a full household with them to a barnyard during mating season?”

Selina chuckled, nodding as she gestured in agreement with Magnus.

“I did say that, yes. Perhaps I was being a bit too harsh on them. They are still so young after all.”

Together, they looked across the room toward Lydia and Myra, where they stood with their mother. The girls were having a terrible time listening to a lord’s words, Bridget resorting to elbowing each of them in the ribs so that they would pay attention.

“Though perhaps not.”

Magnus joined Selina in a laugh and then swept his arm out toward the adjoining room.

“Would you like to accompany me to acquire a refreshment?”

Selina grinned, taking Magnus’s offered elbow. “Thank you. That would be lovely.”

The man had seemed to relax somewhat. He was such an uptight sort of fellow, but at least now that Charlotte was settled, and the matter of their “secret” was not quite so dire, he appeared to be happier which suited him.

As they walked toward the servants, offering trays of full goblets, Selina lowered her voice to whisper to him.

“I hear that you are in search of a wife, Magnus. Is this true?”

Magnus faltered only briefly, taking two glasses from the attendant and delivering one to Selina. After clearing his throat, he took a sip of his wine and nodded. His expression was rather grim, however, and Selina took note of it.