Page 1 of Never Besmirch a Wallflower: Dukes and Wallflowers

CHAPTER ONE

EVELINE/HELENA

An introduction should never begin with a lie, especially not one as gigantic as the falsehood Eveline told, but she’d blurted out the words before she could stop herself, and it was too late to change the consequences.

“Miss Rowe!”

Ducking her head, she lifted her skirts and quickened her pace, hoping to reach her house before the Duke of Lennox’s coach caught up to her.

“Miss Rowe!” He climbed from the carriage and chased her down the snow-covered street.

She couldn’t ignore him, not when he’d bellowed her name with such volume that the whole of the ton stopped and waited, holding their collective breaths in the hopes of witnessing a cataclysmic snub.

Pasting a giant smile on her face, she spun around, clasping her hands in front of her waist as she curtsied. “Your Grace, how lovely to see you this morning.”

“Did you not hear me shouting?” he asked, drawing in a ragged breath when he reached her side.

“I apologize. My mind was elsewhere.”

She’d been Miss Helena Rowe for a little over two months, and she still didn’t recognize her name when addressed.

“You must be focused on the wedding events.” The Duke of Lennox offered his arm and, after she set her hand on the crook of his elbow, escorted her down the icy sidewalk toward her home.

“Is that why you’ve come?” she asked, not refuting his theory regarding the reason for her disregard. “You’re rescuing the Duke of Roxburghe from becoming the sole gentleman in attendance this evening?”

“Goodness, no.” The Duke of Lennox laughed, his delight wrapping around her like a warm shawl. “I’m here to liberate him from the fetters of that matrimonial obligation.”

“It’s my impression that he doesn’t wish to be saved from his current situation.”

“He’s going to be abducted whether he wants to leave his fiancée or not.” The Duke of Lennox flashed a cheeky grin. “His friends have great plans tonight, and he’s not allowed to bow out. I’m to bring him through the use of any means.”

“Do you intend to use force against Miss Webb and her sister as well?”

A small line worked its way across the Duke of Lennox’s forehead. “Will I need to?”

“Perhaps,” Eveline—correction, Helena—said, turning at the break in the fence that designated the path leading to her house, “and I caution you against that choice.”

He twitched, irritation spilling across his face, and he drew away from her. “I’ve never struck a woman!”

She’d offended him.

“I apologize, Your Grace,” she stammered, adding a quick curtsy. “I wasn’t suggesting you possessed a violent nature. I was merely warning you of the singular determination of Miss Webb and her sister.”

“And what are they determined to do?” There was an undercurrent of mistrust in his tone.

Helena grinned. “Arrange a night of games in the parlor.”

“And lighten some pockets,” the Duke of Roxburghe said from the doorstep.

The Duke of Lennox leaned around Helena. “However, you’ve discounted yourself from participating.”

“I had not,” the Duke of Roxburghe replied. “It’s a rare occasion that I find myself alone with my fiancée, and tonight, I intend to remind her why she’s marrying me.”

Miss Webb appeared behind the Duke of Roxburghe. “I hope it’s because you believe I love you.”

“That’s one of the reasons.” He spun around and wrapped Miss Webb in a tight embrace. “However, I know of a few others.”

Helena couldn’t hear what he whispered to Miss Webb, but her cheeks flushed a brilliant scarlet, and she lowered her head, hiding her face against his dark gray coat.