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Selina was outraged. The Duke was lacking in all manners, it seemed, and the foul words he spewed were so at odds with the truth that it made the grief over losing her dear friend burn all the harder.

Yes, it was true that her husband had been much older than her, and they had not tried to conceive at all, for that matter, but the man had no right to speak to her like that.

“How dare you.” Selina stepped forward, refusing to make herself small and silent in the face of such a man.

“The late Duke might have been a distant relative, but he was your blood. And you insult him so? Insult the woman who has received you into her home with not a beat of disrespect or animosity. I have been as amenable to your arrival as possible, and yet you stand in front of me and reduce me to nothing more than a vessel for an heir to my face.”

Something flickered in the Duke’s eyes. Selina was sure her instincts must be off.

She had witnessed similar expressions on the faces of men she chatted with at balls and Season events, but there was no way that the Duke was looking at her like they had.

Those men’s faces had lit with flirtation and intrigue, and this man was not interested in her.

Still, Selina couldn’t deny that the expression he wore now almost resembled those charmed stares, though darker— hungrier .

You are being ridiculous. He is toying with you. Working an angle to get his way. Do not fall for it .

“It is Hugh.”

Selina shook her head, reeling from the abrupt change of subject. “Pardon?”

“My name is Hugh. Hugh Bosley. And you are Se?—”

“I am the Dowager Duchess of Soulden, Your Grace.” He smirked at her as she cut him off, that devious glint in his eyes flaring brighter. “And Selina Arnold, if you must know.”

“Selina.” The word slipped from the Duke’s lips like velvet poison delivered from a cunning snake as he roamed his stare over her.

“It is Your Grace.” She narrowed her eyes at him, refusing to drop her chin.

That smirk didn’t die down. If anything, it only ticked up the corner of the Duke’s mouth higher.

“Call me Hugh, Selina.”

Her stomach twirled inside her, butterflies swooping chaotically at the use of her name like that. She matched his stare, still unwilling to be the first to back down or break, but Selina also shook her head, folding her arms in a mirror of his stance.

“I will be calling you ‘Your Grace,’ and I expect the same treatment.”

Curse the devilish twinkle that remained glowing in the Duke’s eyes like a hungry ember looking for the proper fuel that might allow it to turn into a blazing inferno. And curse the way the man dared to chuckle, the sound low and deep, rumbling from his chest like a dark promise.

“Suit yourself,” he paused, dropping his chin so that his stare could bore into her all the more, “ Selina .”

Her irritation took to the sky, a level she’d never reached before. Every word that the man uttered grated on her nerves, raising her hackles like no one ever had. She was ready to snap at him, so on edge that she truly worried she might do something she regretted.

Does he not understand? Can he not see how serious this is for me? How I stand here, my future in the hands of a complete stranger?

“Our names or use thereof is of little consequence of course.” The Duke sucked in a breath, the tension that clung to him evaporating some in exchange for an air of superiority. “You will not disobey me again.”

It took all she had to bite her tongue and keep the fevered words from spilling out. And still, as much as she could keep herself from ruining things much more than she already had, Selina remained tremendously concerned about the fate of her family, of herself.

“Your Grace,” Selina began, flicking her gaze to the floor and then back up once she’d gathered herself, “I wish to speak more about what you intend for the future. It should come as no surprise that I am concerned about the livelihood of my mother and sisters as well as myself.”

The man actually waved his hand at her. “Another time, Selina. I am exhausted from the hours of travel I’ve only just recently finished. We can discuss this when I am better suited for it.”

He’d used her blasted name again, and Selina was ready to blow, pressure building within her like a bottle of champagne that was being furiously shaken.

“Your Grace, I?—”

“You are dismissed. We can discuss this another time. For now, I wish to acquaint myself with this study.” He met her eyes harshly. “In private.”

Do not, Selina. Do not break. Not here. Not now. Just…leave.

Inhaling so that she might find the strength, Selina lowered in her head, offering a pisspoor version of a curtsey. As the silence hung, she straightened and met the Duke’s stare a final time. It was in her best interest to leave, and she turned from him, heading for the door.

But before she could exit the room entirely, Selina felt an inescapable need to leave the Duke with more to consider.

He was clearly the type to expect everything to go according to his plan, but this was an active estate before he arrived, and there were plans already in motion that he couldn’t disrupt.

“In addition,” Selina looked back over her shoulder, offering the Duke an expression of mock serenity, “there is a ball being put on in your honor that is to be held in two days’ time in case my mother failed to mention it to you.

We look forward to seeing you celebrate your arrival in Soulden among all the ton in attendance.

And there should be several going by the returned invitations. ”

Just as hoped, the Duke’s expression hardened at the news. He did his best to keep it neutral, but Selina could read the slight tick to his brow and the hard set of his jaw as the irritation built within him.

“Do as you please regarding the ball. I shall not be a part of planning it.”

“Not to worry, Your Grace ,” Selina smiled, but it did not reach her eyes, “we have everything well in hand.”

“You’re dismissed, Selina .”

With that, she left. And while the flame of annoyance and dislike still burned brighter than it ever had, it was softened by the tiny victory she’d just claimed.

The Duke remained out of touch with the estate for the next two days.

Almost no one saw the man aside from his solicitor, a Mr. Jonah McMills, whom Selina only learned about through asking the staff.

Both of them were aloof snobs who didn’t so much as look at the rest of the household.

The Duke didn’t even bother to dine with them, taking his meals in the study and only leaving when he turned in for the night to sleep.

To say that Selina was unimpressed would be a gross understatement.

She was enraged by the Duke’s cold attitude and the way he had so casually demanded things of her.

It was an easy hypothesis to assert that the new Duke of Soulden and his solicitor were likely the two most conceited and rude people to have ever existed.

And Selina was fed up with it.

It was the day of the ball, which was still being held in that pompous ass’ honor, and the unfortunate duty to welcome guests had fallen on Selina as well as her mother and sister.

Standing there at the front door of the estate with a gracious smile on her face had been perhaps the hardest thing Selina had done in her entire life.

At least in this place, a party where the attention was focused on her, Selina felt in her element.

This was precisely what she trained her entire life to do.

Of course, the training had been the dutiful tutelage of her mother.

Still, Selina remained an expert at chambering her feelings to be dealt with at another time and carrying on for all those around her in the brightest, most appealing way possible.

This, she knew how to do.

From the corner of her eye, a few times, Selina had spotted the Duke roaming about, seeming to drift from conversation to conversation as quickly as he could.

He’d yet to approach her or her family once, and while she was secretly glad for it, Selina also knew how that might look to everyone who had come for the party.

His introduction to the assembled was approaching. It, of course, fell on her to do as the Dowager Duchess of the estate. As much as Selina dreaded it, she needed to locate the man and gather him up to be presented.

And perhaps giving him a piece of my mind before his introduction will stick some sand in his craw .

Scanning her eyes across the expanse of the foyer and the halls beyond, Selina decided to begin her search for the Duke on the veranda. He appeared to be attached to his pipe in nearly every situation she saw him, so he might very well be outside taking in the air and smoking on it.

“Mother, please excuse me. I shall retrieve the Duke for his introduction.”

Her eyes flared, glancing briefly at the large clock on the wall before flicking her attention back to Selina.

“Of course. Make haste, darling. We shall not keep the guests waiting.”

Selina offered a slight nod and a curtsey, hurrying off toward the veranda.

As she peered outside through the large glass windows that led up to it, she saw no sign of the Duke.

With a frustrated sigh, Selina turned on her heel, raking her mind for another location where the man might have gone off to hide.

And then, from her position, Selina could see that light spilled from the library just down the hall.

The door was cracked open as well, and she wondered if someone had left it that way by accident.

The library was to be off-limits during the party as it contained several more of Easton’s prized books—items that Selina, too, had come to treasure.

Whoever might be dallying inside would be shooed out at once, and Selina took off down the hall to ensure it herself.

And should it be an accident and the room vacant, she would close the French doors and lock them using the key she’d procured from the housekeeper which she now wore on her chatelaine.

I request one simple thing: that the library and study be kept closed and off-limits to guests. Must I do everything myself?

Determined to ensure her cherished library was untouched, Selina moved as quickly as possible to the door, slipping inside the cracked doors in an attempt to not draw attention to herself. But as soon as she was inside and glanced up from the floor, Selina froze in shock.

The Duke’s stern glare met her immediately, and Selina fumbled over her words as she tried to process what she was seeing.

“Y-Your Grace?”

The man was across the room, his back against the far wall near the window that sat in the middle of the wall. The Widow Darrington was plastered all over him, and Selina could make out the shape of his hand on her lower back, his skin fair compared to the dark swaths of fabric that she wore.

He is in my library… with that woman… alone .

Stare as sharp as a blade, the Duke focused his attention solely on Selina, demanding, “And just what are you doing here?”