Page 2 of The Duke’s Indecent Scandal (Indecent Dukes #1)

Chapter One

G regory

“You do not know how lucky you are to be able to avoid the events of the little Season,” Sebastian complained with a dark scowl. He’d escaped a supper party with his mother and sister that evening when Gregory had sent him a letter asking him to come over for a private evening. After they’d eaten their meal, they’d retired to the library, where they could indulge in some brandy and talk.

Gregory, as yet, had not made an appearance at any of the small events. He was waiting until the official opening of the Season, the Duchess of Richmond’s ball.

He still was unsure how to go about procuring a bride, to be truthful. Seducing a woman to bed was one thing; wooing a woman to marry him was quite another. As a rake, he’d made it a habit to avoid debutantes, not seek them out.

Truthfully, it was not so much the courting that worried him. He was a duke, after all. Even if he blundered it, the matchmaking mamas would throw their daughters at him. It was the choosing that concerned him the most.

“Perhaps I should join you,” he said thoughtfully. Waiting for the Season proper might be a mistake. “The little events may be more conducive to getting to know the young ladies than the larger balls.”

“Yes, so much more conducive, as you are mobbed for being the only duke in attendance.” Sebastian snorted. “Not that any of them have anything worth saying. They all repeat each other. The only difference is what instrument they’ve learned to play or which is their favorite accomplishment. What embroidery has to do with making a good wife, I have yet to learn.”

“Well, you are escorting your sister so she can gain some polish before the Season, so perhaps the other young ladies are doing the same with you,” Gregory suggested. “Maybe I will wait until they’re spruced up a bit more, with better conversation. How is your sister’s polishing going, by the way?”

It was Tiffany’s first Season. Gregory had yet to see her. The last time he’d encountered her had been years ago, and he had not paid much attention, if he was being truthful. He remembered a scrawny young thing with mousy brown hair in braids and spots all over her complexion. She’d been rather forgettable, poor thing, and from what Sebastian had said, her situation had not improved much.

“She’s still practically silent in any group.” Sebastian shrugged. “She seems comfortable enough with me, but any time Mother introduces her to someone, it’s as though she loses her tongue completely. If she cannot even speak to someone other than her family, I do not know how she is supposed to secure a husband, sister of a duke or not.”

“Some men would probably prefer a quiet wife,” Gregory said thoughtfully as an idea suddenly occurred to him. “What if I married her?”

The incredulous look Sebastian gave him did not deter his thoughts in that direction.

“Marry my sister?”

Well, he did not need to sound so scandalized.

“Yes, she would likely make a good wife for me. She is your sister, so I assume she’s been trained on how to run a ducal household. She’s obviously from a good family with good connections. She understands our Society and the pressures of our station. I do not mind if she does not want to talk to anyone but you or your mother.” In fact, he’d encourage it. If she were not talking to anyone but her immediate family, she would not be flirting with them, either. That and her plainness could prove a boon. He could always darken the bedroom for himself, and a plain wife would not constantly have the rakes of the ton looking to warm her bed.

“What makes you think you would be a good husband for her?” Sebastian scoffed.

“I am a duke, after all. It’s not as though she could aim much higher,” Gregory argued without any heat. He was not truly invested in the idea, but he did enjoy tweaking his friend, and if Sebastian said yes, it would make Gregory’s Season much easier. “She would be able to live as she pleased, do as she pleased, and enjoy all the privileges of being my duchess.”

“What of fidelity?” Sebastian turned a gimlet eye on Gregory, who made a face.

“I would be discreet.” He had no desire to cause his wife any pain, especially if she was Sebastian’s sister.

“Absolutely not. My sister does not deserve to have her heart broken while you carry on your affairs just because she is too plain and dull to keep your interest.” Sebastian shook his head. “She’s too sweet for the likes of you.”

“Breaking her heart would be taking things a bit far. She does not expect a love match, does she?” At their station, such things were highly irregular. Sinclair and Isabella were a singular exception, and look how that had ended—him dead and her grieving like a widow, even though they’d never made it to the altar.

“She is sensitive.” Sebastian glowered at him. “I will not allow her to be hurt.”

“Ah, well. You might have a point if she is sensitive.” Gregory sighed. On the surface, it had appeared to be a perfect solution. Though, it did not seem reasonable that she be plain and dull, yet still expected to keep her husband’s interest. Perhaps Sebastian would be able to find her an equally plain and dull husband who would be happy with the prestige of being married to a duke’s sister and who he could intimidate into fidelity if not love.

Not sensitive was another factor to add to his own list of attributes he was searching for. Though, it might be difficult to find a wife who was understanding of how such affairs worked while remaining uninterested in embarking on her own.

But the notion of taking a plain wife was a good one. A shy, quiet one. Who was not too sensitive. One who wanted to be a mother more than a lover, so she would focus on her children and find her satisfaction there.

Yes. This was good.

Not his best friend’s sister, either, but a family who would not protest his… activities if they became known. He would do his best to be discreet, of course, but the only certainty in life was death. Perhaps a baron or viscount’s daughter.

The door to the library opened, cutting off their conversation. Gregory and Sebastian got to their feet as Gregory’s mother came into the room. As always, she was smiling widely. Most of his memories of his mother included her smile, and the few that did not made him want to ensure that she always had something to smile about.

The household’s steward, Arthur Montblanc, stood by the door, waiting for the duchess. Stiffly holding himself upright, the older man looked at her with worshipful eyes, waiting patiently for however long she would take.

“Mother,” Gregory said by way of greeting, dutifully stepping forward and giving her a kiss on each cheek. She was much shorter than him, with a plump, rounded figure that made her look like a small cake when she wore the ruffles she adored.

“Your Grace,” Sebastian said, stepping forward to take her hand and bow over it, making her titter with amusement.

“Oh, stop, Sebastian. You know you are supposed to call me Marguerite,” she said, waving her hand and beaming warmly at him. “You will not stand on ceremony here, not with me.” It was the same thing she told him every time he visited.

“Yes, Your Grace,” he replied, as he always did, making her laugh again.

“One day, you will do so, I hope. You are too tied to proprieties, Sebastian,” Mother said, shaking her head, making the feathers atop it bounce and flutter with the movement. “It is not good to live your life under such strictures.”

As someone who had lived with his father’s strictures for far too long, his mother would know. She had blossomed since his father’s death and was enjoying her first Season back in London since her wedding to the man. Gregory enjoyed seeing it, even though he had begged off on accompanying her to any of the engagements.

She wanted to see him wed and thought herself a marvelous matchmaker, but he did not want to be set up with any of her friends’ daughters or granddaughters. Like Sebastian, it was too close a connection. Also, his mother’s idea of a suitable bride and his were rather misaligned, going by the ladies she’d tried to introduce him to when they were in the country.

Over Christmas, another of his old school friends had visited with a woman who was obviously his lover, and Gregory’s mother had still thought she should be considered. Lady Catherine, formerly the Dowager Countess of Cross and now Mrs. Samuel North, had been a delightful woman and obviously in love with Samuel. His mother had liked her, though, and that was enough for her to recommend the woman as a potential bride.

As his mother liked just about everyone she met, it did cause a bit of a conundrum for him.

“How was your party?” he asked her, drawing her attention away from Sebastian.

“Lovely.” She yawned. “But tiring. I wanted to say goodnight before I go to bed and see how your evening went.”

“Very quiet. Other than Sebastian’s complaints, of course.”

“He is a whinger when he wants to be.”

“I am right here,” Sebastian complained. “I can hear you.”

“See? Whinging again.” Gregory shook his head, then bent it to give his mother another buss on the cheek. “Goodnight, Mother.”

“Goodnight, boys.” She smiled at both of them, then went back to the doorway, where Montblanc was waiting for her. The steward bowed his head as she passed, then closed the door behind them.

“She is enjoying her Season, then?” Sebastian asked.

“She is. Though she also considers it her duty to find me a wife, much to my dismay.” Gregory sighed, turning back to his seat in the plush armchair by the fireside. He paused before sitting down. His mother’s appearance had made him think of his father again, which led his mind to the letters to his father that he’d found at their estate. Threatening letters.

Letters that he still had not told Sebastian about and the true reason for him inviting Sebastian over for the evening, though he had avoided bringing it up.

It was time.

Gregory cleared his throat, leaning against the side of the chair rather than sitting on it. Raising his eyebrows in curiosity, Sebastian lowered himself into his former seat.

“Have you found anything in your father’s papers since his passing?”

Frowning, Sebastian leaned back in the chair, the firelight flickering over his expression.

“I have found a great many things. What do you mean?”

“Wait here.” Gregory straightened and strode to the door, yanking it open and going down the hall to his study. Picking up the box where he’d stashed the letters, he tucked it under his arm and walked back to the library, passing his mother’s lady’s maid on the way. Montblanc was just coming down the stairs to lock the front door after escorting the duchess to her room. “Sebastian and I will be occupied for a while, Montblanc, do not wait up for us.”

The older man hesitated a moment, like he thought he should protest, before bowing.

“Thank you, Your Grace.”

Of all the staff Gregory had inherited from his father, Montblanc had to be among the most capable. He’d been invaluable in teaching Gregory the ins and outs of the estate, all the foibles that his father had either kept from him or considered unimportant. Though Montblanc had originally protested coming to London, he’d eventually given way to the duchess’ pleading that she wanted to be surrounded by familiar faces.

Satisfied that the older man would not attempt to keep the same late hours that he and Sebastian were likely to, Gregory reentered the library and closed the door behind him. Sebastian was no longer lounging in his chair but sitting forward, elbows on his knees, with his hands dangling between them. The frown on his face had deepened.

Gregory took a deep breath. He did not think that Sebastian had anything to do with his father’s death. And he did not think Sebastian would blame him if it turned out that the target had been Gregory’s father, and Sebastian had lost his in the process. But sometimes, people reacted unpredictably.

It was best to just say the words and get them over with.

“My father received threatening letters, including several threatening his life.” Gregory walked back to his chair and placed the wooden box on his lap. It felt heavier than ever against his legs as Sebastian stared at him. “With the evidence that the explosion was not an accident, it seems that there were plenty of people who would have the motivation to kill my father, at least.”

Which was less surprising than it should have been. The hardest part of admitting it was wondering if the others’ fathers had been killed by accident while his father had been murdered.

“You think someone killed seven other dukes in order to kill your father?” Sebastian blinked, taking in the information. “What, exactly, is in these letters?”

Opening the box, Gregory picked up the pile of papers, which he’d tied with a black ribbon, and handed them over to Sebastian. He watched, at first, in silence as Sebastian began to read his way through the letters, then finally looked away into the fire as Sebastian’s expression did not change.

The crackling heat and the flickering flames helped to calm some of his nerves far more than the brandy did. As he stared into them, he wondered which was the more dire plight this Season—his need for a wife or finding out who had murdered his father.