Page 27 of The Duchess and the Beast
“And there you have another reason why you found no invitation on your silver salver,” Simon rolled his eyes.
“And that reason would be?”
“That you’re a prick, old boy. But I appreciate your assistance in making that clear.”
Enough!” Sebastian suddenly bellowed, his voice booming across the room, causing both men to start. “The pair of you prattle on like old gossips at leisure. All talk, yet scarcely a wordworth heeding.” His gaze hardened as he fixed each of them with a stern look, and they noticeably recoiled.
“Apologies,” Simon grinned somewhat sheepishly, putting out his cigar. Meanwhile, Ralph took a swig straight from the brandy decanter as if to hide his face.
Feeling immediately guilty, Sebastian groaned and massaged his left temple. “I appreciate the two of you agreeing to meet with me. Truly. But if all you intend to do is descend into bickering, I may as well have stayed at Greystone and dealt with this problem on my own.”
To that, Simon grinned. “If that was an option, perhaps. But if you’ll recall, it was you who summoned us here, Greystone.”
“And believe me, I am already ruing that decision.”
“Oh, be nice,” Ralph chided. “And you enjoy our bickering. Else, why would you endure our company as you have over the years?”
“Pity?” Sebastian offered.
“And here I was thinking it waswewho pitied you,” Simon jested. “If only I had known, I might have cut you loose some time ago.”
“Don’t let me stop you now, Wellington.”
“Careful,” Ralph added wryly. “We might just take you up on that.”
“So you intend to sweeten the deal, Merchant?”
That had the two men bursting into laughter.
It was all in good fun. Indeed, despite the miserable mood that Sebastian found himself in, he couldn’t help but grin too. There were few men in this world who he would allow to speak to him the way that Simon and Ralph were presently, but there was good reason for that. Firstly, they had a tightly woven history that ran deeper than most and made them more brothers than mere friends. Secondly, Sebastian had few real acquaintances to speak of and wouldn’t risk losing these two on account of a few jokes. And thirdly, perhaps most crucially, he genuinely found himself needing them on more than one occasion—not just their companionship, but their counsel as well.
Sebastian was growing desperate. After what had happened between himself and Virtue a few nights ago, he knew that his marriage couldn’t continue in the same vein for much longer. When trying to rein in his temper, he could barely speak to her for fear of saying the wrong thing. And those few times he had dared to speak, saying the wrong thing was precisely what he did.
Thus, in a moment of clarity amid the chaos of his personal life, Sebastian did what he felt was his only remaining option—he sought the guidance of his two closest friends.
He met them at Adderly’s the following morning; a short two-hour ride to the south from his estate. The two men had already started drinking by the time he arrived, and an hour in saw more drinks flow; loosening their tongues and addling their minds all the same.
Sebastian tilted his head back in his chair. “I am beginning to remember why the three of us don’t spend as much time together as we once did.”
“You, perhaps,” Simon shrugged. “Myself and Relphie here still see one another all the time.”
“Too often,” Ralph affirmed with a wink.
“By all means, continue gentlemen. One mustn’t interrupt such a celebrated meeting of minds—lest the nation suffer for lack of wit,” Sebastian replied drily.
Simon burst into laughter once more, his shoulders shaking, while Ralph clapped him on the back, struggling to contain his own mirth.
Again, Sebastian was forced to wonder if he had made the right call in leaving Greystone and coming here. But he supposed that just spoke to how desperate he was. That was to say, very much.
When he had first married Virtue, Sebastian had assumed the marriage would bear all the hallmarks of a classicmarriage of convenienceand thus have a minimal effect on the life he hadbecome so used to living. A wife who would be happy to spend time on her own. One who desired nothing to do with him. A stranger in his household who he would be friendly with but have little actual contact with.
Oh, how wrong he was.
Barely a week into their union and already Sebastian found himself utterly enraptured by Virtue in ways he couldn’t have possibly imagined. Physically, he found her stunning, a true beauty—full, inviting curves that seemed to beckon his touch, lips that whispered promises of passion, and eyes that smoldered with an unspoken fire. Her very presence set his blood aflame. Even in his days of unmarred handsomeness, he knew he would have been at a loss for words in her presence. Such was the deep, consuming allure she held over him.
Beyond that, she had a temperament about her that was as alluring as it was confounding as it was maddening. She was stubborn and headstrong. She was intelligent and confident. She was capable and dignified, and unwilling to be easily subdued. In many respects, she mirrored Sebastian himself—a counterpart so similar, yet so adept at unraveling him.
Unfortunately, it was this very resemblance, the mirroring of two strong personalities, that was causing some problems.