Page 32 of Starlight and the Duke (Cherish and the Duke #5)
“I was quite expert in going about in Society, for I had attended more than a dozen balls already. We exchanged glances from across the room. That was it. Everyone and everything simply melted away. The orchestra, the dancers, the footmen dashing about with trays in hand—all suddenly vanished, and all I saw was my Jessica. Then and there, I knew I was going to marry her. There would be no other lady for me.” He sighed and shook his head again.
“But my sons need a good and loving lady to take on the role of mother, so I must think of them and do what is right. This means taking the plunge and marrying again.”
As the dinner bell sounded to draw the guests into the dining room, Rob realized he and Fiona had not spoken to Bromleigh and his wife to break their good news.
Ah well. Fiona may have said something to them on her own.
But she gave a light shake of her head to advise him that she had said nothing.
He thought to have a quiet word with Bromleigh during their meal, but he was not seated close enough to him or his wife. To his dismay, he found himself placed between Lady Anne and Lady Cordelia.
Seriously? Was Bromleigh determined to torture him?
He glanced at Fiona in dismay.
She cast him the sweetest, most sympathetic smile, and it lightened his heart.
He no longer minded that he had been given the worst dinner partners ever devised in the history of such parties.
Well, he wasn’t thrilled about it, but he could endure anything knowing Fiona was close by and committed to their marrying.
In truth, they knew each other so well, they often seemed able to communicate with a mere glance. But his feelings were in too much turmoil for him to be certain about any silent signals they exchanged tonight.
Had he made a mistake in encouraging Milbury to confide in Fiona?
The marquess truly seemed a decent and honorable fellow.
Nevertheless, Rob felt a pang of uncertainty when he saw that Milbury had been seated beside Fiona.
Well, Florence Newton, the fake bird watcher—if Aubrey was to be believed—was seated on the opposite side of Milbury.
He would figure out a way to get Florence chatting with Milbury if it looked like he were getting too cozy with Fiona.
If that didn’t work, Rob would somehow catch Reggie’s eye and get him to distract Fiona, for she was seated beside Milbury to her right and Reggie to her left.
He wanted to give Milbury the chance to ask Fiona about her circle of London friends, ladies who were in their thirties, either widowed or spinsters who might be suitable for this lord who was feeling quite lovelorn at the moment.
But was it not prudent to also make certain Milbury was not going to change his mind and go after Fiona?
The sad truth was, Rob did not trust that she was all in on her decision to marry him. Her feelings remained too fragile. She had resisted for so long.
Perhaps he ought to stand up now and blurt out the simple words. Lady Shoreham and I are betrothed.
That would end all speculation. And close that stupid betting book at White’s. Not to mention put an end to Lady Anne and Lady Cordelia’s ability to demolish Fiona’s confidence.
He shook out of his thoughts as he heard Lady Cordelia mutter, “That harlot is all over my brother.”
Fiona and Milbury had their heads bent slightly toward each other as they spoke. They were hardly “all over each other,” as Cordelia was accusing.
But Lady Anne had heard the comment and bared her teeth in a malicious smile. “I’ve heard rumors about her wanton behavior. I hear she has had several lovers,” she said, looking directly at Rob. “Seems she has now set her cap for Lord Milbury…and you may find yourself in need of consolation.”
Was Anne offering her services?
To remove any doubt, she discreetly ran her hand along his thigh. “I am available.”
Rob squelched the knot of disgust forming in his stomach. He did not know whether to ignore Lady Anne or toss her a look that warned he was not amused.
Upon brief consideration, he decided to ignore her, for would it not give her more fodder if she saw that he reacted?
Lady Cordelia leaned forward to stare across him as she addressed Anne. “I will never allow that woman to sink her claws into my brother.”
Lady Anne laughed. “Surely he cannot care about her. She’s too old and dried up to be seriously considered, even for a man of his age.”
“My brother can be foolish about such things,” Cordelia replied. “But I intend to put a stop to her.”
The hair on the back of Rob’s neck began to prickle. What did that evil witch have in mind?
He immediately drew back his chair, stood up, and raised his glass of wine. “A toast to our host and hostess.”
“Hear, hear!” several guests said, also raising their glasses.
Rob cast Fiona a pained stare.
Did she understand what he needed to do?
She smiled and rose, also raising a glass to the Bromleighs. “A toast to my cousin and his lovely wife…and to the Duke of Durham, a trusted friend since childhood, and now more than a friend. May we tell them, Durham?”
He nodded. “Please do.”
“I’ll let you make the announcement,” she said, no doubt noting his distress and wanting him to say whatever he felt needed to be said.
At her urging, he proceeded. “Lady Shoreham has agreed to become my wife. I am elated to announce we are now betrothed.”
Those around the table erupted in cheers.
All but the two miserable ladies seated beside him.
He understood Lady Anne’s bitterness, for she had come to this summer house party to snare him. However, Lady Cordelia should have been pleased to learn Fiona was no longer a threat to her standing within the Milbury household.
But no. The woman was as miserable and dour as ever, her lips pursed and body stiff. However, it was the looks she continued to cast Fiona that had him worried.
Did she simply resent anyone’s good fortune? Or was her jealousy particularly fixed on Fiona, who was as lovely and beloved as Cordelia was bitter and alone?
After the meal, everyone moved onto the terrace to watch the sun set over the water.
The waspish pair must have been hovering in wait for just the right moment when his back was turned to make their move and approach Fiona.
Rob noticed the pair sidling toward her as he finished a conversation with friends at the opposite end of the terrace, and was about to return to Fiona’s side when they caught his eye.
Fiona was speaking to other guests, unaware and engaged in lively conversation while standing beside the balustrade. Everyone was looking upward, distracted by the evening’s display, for the sunset was a particularly magnificent blaze of reds and yellows tonight.
Rob had been standing with several of the Silver Dukes on the opposite end of the terrace, accepting their congratulations on taking the leap to marriage, when he noticed those two suddenly position themselves on either side of Fiona.
“Excuse me,” he said, his heart beating faster as he made his way through the crowd toward her.
He did not have far to go, merely the length of the terrace.
However, impeding his movements were the distracted onlookers oohing and aahing at the sky, and Bromleigh’s footmen, who were circulating among the guests carrying trays laden with champagne glasses to hand out for Bromleigh’s formal toast in honor of Rob and Fiona’s betrothal.
Rob’s breath caught in his throat when he saw the pair nod to each other and place their hands to the small of Fiona’s back.
Did they mean to push her off the terrace?
Fiona was standing up front with Margaret and Cherish, her hands on the stone balustrade as she marveled at the sunset. None of them were paying attention to those two jackals.
He was only halfway through the crowd when Margaret suddenly noticed what was happening and must have given Anne a sharp elbow to the ribs, because the woman suddenly doubled over.
In the next moment, Cordelia let out a cry as Fiona also realized what was happening and dodged out of the way at the same moment the shrew attempted to shove her.
Unable to stop herself, the wretched harpy found herself pushing air, lost her balance, and tumbled over the balustrade into the bushes below.
“My ankle!” she screamed amid the gasps and cries of others who had seen her topple off the terrace, which was raised a little higher off the ground on that side.
The fall would not have been deadly, but still precipitous enough to cause injury.
Cherish, Margaret, and Fiona held Anne on the ground while several gentlemen rushed down the steps to reach Cordelia.
Too bad that witch had merely broken an ankle, Rob thought. This was no doubt what she had hoped to do to Fiona—have her break a limb because she could not bear to allow any happiness to go unpunished.
“Fiona! Are you hurt?” He found himself trembling as he took her into his embrace.
“I’m fine, Rob. Truly.” She hugged him back, but quickly eased out of his arms to return to assisting her friends in holding down Anne, who was still struggling and now attempting to kick her way free.
Oh, gad. These ladies were with child.
Rob took over, urging Margaret and Cherish to back away while he drew Anne to her feet. However, he kept a firm grip on her arm as he called for her parents to attend him in Bromleigh’s study.
But he did not notice them in the crowd, and no one seemed to know where they had suddenly disappeared.
Rob called over Potter, Northam Hall’s ever-efficient head butler. “Will you please find Lord and Lady Hastings and deliver them to the study? Once there, do not leave them unattended. I will arrive shortly to speak to them.”
“At once, Your Grace,” Potter said, and ordered two footmen to follow him.
Aubrey came over to take hold of Anne, leaving Rob free to see to Fiona.
She nestled in his arms. “Wasn’t Margaret splendid? And Cherish, too?”