Page 19 of The Duke’s Reluctant Muse (The Untamed Nobles #3)

Jonathan sipped at his brandy, his eyes searching through the other guests, fully aware of who it was that he was looking for. Ever since his attempt to speak to Lord Dennington about his interest in Miss Jeffries, his feelings had only grown and he could not deny them. He had no interest in pursuing anyone else, no desire to be in the company of another. All he wanted was Miss Jeffries, to be near her, to have her close to him, to engage in conversation and laughter… and to develop an intimacy that only such a connection could bring.

The soiree was a pleasant one, of course, with guests in the library, music room, parlor and drawing room but despite his search, as yet, he had not been able to find her.

His lip curled suddenly as he caught sight of Lady Ludlow passing through from one room to the other. Stepping back into the shadows a little more, he scowled darkly, aware that the only person who might make him feel a little less than delighted this evening would be her. He had made it quite clear that he had no interest in her company and yet, he feared that she would push back at him nonetheless. Quite what she intended to do in order to bring him shame or discomfort, he did not know but there was certainly a wariness about him when it came to the lady.

A sigh of relief escaped him as she stepped into the library, leaving him alone again in the shadows of the hallway. Sipping again at the brandy – and finding no eagerness to go and speak to any other – Jonathan settled back against the alcove he had found himself in, glad to be away from the glances of the other guests. They did not look at him with any sort of displeasure now, of course, but he found himself entirely unwilling to be in anyone’s company save for that of Miss Jeffries.

I must be in love with her. The thought made him smile, his heart lurching in his chest. That is what these feelings, these desires all point to, surely? He swallowed hard. Though I must hope that she returns them.

As if she had heard his thoughts, none other than Miss Jeffries – with Lady Annette on her arm – came out of the drawing room directly, her gaze sweeping up and down the long hallway. She did not appear to be in the least bit happy, for her eyes were rounded, a paleness in her expression and a twisting of her lips was all that her face held. Jonathan made to move forward, only for her eyes to catch sight of him – and in that moment, relief seemed to melt through her. She hurried towards him, one hand held out to him and Jonathan grasped it quickly, glancing to Lady Annette who had the very same expression of concern.

“Is something amiss?”

“I must speak with you. Privately.” Miss Jeffries swallowed hard. “Annette will stay near the door so we will not be disturbed.”

“Very well.” Somewhat confused by what the lady meant, Jonathan looked up and down the hallway. “I am not sure where we could go. The gardens, mayhap?”

“There is a parlour this way.” Lady Annette gestured to her right. “I have been in this house many a time for my brother is closely acquainted with our host. Come with me.”

Without even waiting for Jonathan to say something more, both Lady Annette and Miss Jeffries walked quickly away from him, leaving him to hurry after them. His heart began to quicken as he followed the ladies, seeing Lady Annette glance over her shoulder to the left and to the right before turning a door handle and stepping inside. Miss Jeffries, taking a candle from the hallway table, went in thereafter, with Jonathan following suit, only for Lady Annette to step back out again.

“A few minutes, Elizabeth,” she said, as Miss Jeffries nodded. “I will knock if there is anything of concern.”

“I thank you.” Miss Jeffries quickly lit a few more candles in the room, sending an illuminating glow over the room before she set the candle back down and then came close to him again, making Jonathan’s heart leap up in his chest.

“Nottingham.” She swallowed hard, her eyes closing. “Lady Ludlow has just spoken with me.”

Anger roared through him but Jonathan kept his voice steady, refusing to let it capture his heart. “What did she say to you?”

“She threatened me.” Miss Jeffries put a hand on his arm as Jonathan scowled darkly, his free hand curling into a tight fist. “But it was only because of my connection to you. She means to do something to injure you and your reputation, I am sure of it.”

Jonathan closed his eyes, trying to battle against the urge to throw open the door, stride from the room and go in search of Lady Ludlow. “What precisely did she say, Elizabeth?” Her hand slipped from his arm but Jonathan caught her fingers in his quickly, the touch of her hand against his soothing him just a little. “Do you remember?”

It took a moment but soon, she nodded. “She told me to stay away from you. She insisted that I did not dance with you, speak with you or even draw near you. When I told her that I would not do such a thing, she stated quite clearly that I would then be caught up in the difficulties that would soon follow you – difficulties that I am sure she intends to bring to you herself. You know that she has every intention of bringing darkness upon you all over again and I see now that she is quite determined to do so.”

“And you did say that you would do as she asked?”

His words appeared to bring a great affront to Miss Jeffries for she reared back, her eyes flaring as a slight tremor ran through her.

“I did not mean to suggest that you would do so,” Jonathan continued, hastily, “only that I would have thought that you might have considered your own standing and security here in society.”

Miss Jeffries lifted her chin, her eyes flashing. “I shall not permit Lady Ludlow to tell me what I must or must not do. I am not about to permit her threats to force me into a course of action that I simply do not wish to take.”

A tiny smile tugged at Jonathan’s lips, his anger beginning to fade away. “Then you do not wish to end our connection?”

Something about what he had said, whether it was the tone of his voice or something else, seemed to bring a change to Miss Jeffries’ expression. There was no longer the frantic energy burning from her, for she stilled and tilted her head just a little, a quietness coming into her expression as she looked back into his eyes and then, after a moment, smiled.

“I certainly do not wish to end our connection,” she said, after a short pause. “In fact, that is the exact opposite of what I want to do, Nottingham.”

Jonathan’s heart swelled with all that he felt for her, washing over him like a wave of warmth and joy and delight. Swallowing thickly, he came a little closer to her, his thumb running over the back of her hand as she looked up at him. “Elizabeth, my sole desire is to be close to you.”

A tender smile crossed her lips, her free hand lifting and pressing against his heart which, in turn, made Jonathan’s whole body tingle with anticipation. “Is it?” she asked, as he nodded. “I must confess that my own heart… ” She trailed off, her brows knotting as she looked away from him, her lip now caught between her teeth.

“What is the matter?” Jonathan pressed her hand, fear now lurching through him. “Elizabeth, if there is something that Lady Ludlow has said which has panicked you, then I quite understand. I will not state that you must turn your back on her and turn to me, I will do nothing to put any sort of demand upon you. Whatever it is that troubles you, please share it with me if it will bring you any sort of respite.”

Nodding slowly, Miss Jeffries lifted her gaze back to his, her lips pressing tight together. “I am afraid.”

“Afraid of what?” He moved even closer to her, lowering his head just a little. “You cannot be afraid of me, surely?”

Shaking her head, Miss Jeffries bit her lip again, her gaze pulling away from him. “I am afraid that if I tell you this, you will step back from me and will not seek to draw close to me again.”

Panic began to swarm around Jonathan. His mouth went dry, trying to find something to say, something that would encourage her to tell him all the same, but nothing came out of his mouth. What was it that she needed to confess? What was it that she was holding back from him?

“My brother has not the same certainty that I do that this must be shared but then again, he is not the one who has fallen quite in love with you.” Elizabeth glanced back at him and even though her words were powerful, they did not bring him the joy he had once anticipated. Instead, he felt himself tense, too afraid to ask her to speak any more and yet unable to step away.

“The letters that you wrote to my brother,” she continued, when he remained silent, “they were all responded to, as you know.”

“Yes, I do. They all held excellent advice.”

She closed her eyes, a tremor in her voice now. “The truth is, Nottingham, that my brother asked me to respond to some of his letters when he was severely unwell with his malady back at the estate. And when I read yours, I knew that I had to answer.”

It took Jonathan some minutes to understand what she meant – but when comprehension came, he snatched in a breath, staring back at her though Elizabeth did not lift her gaze to his. “You… you wrote to me on your brother’s behalf?” When she nodded, Jonathan released her hand from his grip, pushing his fingers through his hair as he let out a heavy breath.

“My brother knew what you had written, always,” she told him, her voice seeming to come from very far away as Jonathan tried to understand all that she was telling him. “He was always aware of it.”

“Then… then it was not only the first letter that you responded to?” he asked, as she shook her head. “You wrote back to me as your brother for all of them?”

“Yes.” A single tear dripped to her cheek. “My heart felt a great deal of sympathy for you, Nottingham. I wanted to help and since my brother was not able to do so at first – and thereafter, suggested I continue since I could give better suggestions than he – I did so.”

Jonathan did not know what to make of this. He felt his heart beating furiously, hearing blood roaring in his ears as he gazed down into Miss Jeffries’ eyes. Something like embarrassment began to creep over him, recalling just how candid he had been in his letters, how much she had known of him without his awareness.

His eyes closed. “Had I known, then I would never have written.”

“But I am glad that you did,” came the reply. “I wanted to do whatever I could to be of aid to you and I must hope that something I wrote was of aid.”

It was.

Jonathan shook his head. “I must think on this. I did not realise – not even for a moment – that it was not your brother. I...”

A knock on the door interrupted him and as he turned, Lady Annette opened the door directly and came in, leaving it open. She hurried to Elizabeth’s side, just as two ladies walked directly past the open door, with one peering inside.

“I think we should take our leave,” Lady Annette said, sounding most apologetic. “There are other guests beginning to come up this hallway.”

“Your Grace, if you wish to continue the conversation, then might I suggest that you speak with me alongside my brother?” Miss Jeffries looked up, holding his gaze and letting her fingers brush his, though Jonathan did not grasp at her hand, his brow furrowed. “Please, do not reject me.”

His shoulders dropped. “I could not do such a thing,” he told her, though his thoughts were still tumultuous. “But I will not speak on this any longer. You have said all that you wish to say, have you not?” When she nodded, her eyes filling with tears, Jonathan forced his gaze away, his heart aching now as though he was already regretting his stepping away from her. “I will come to call very soon.” Making his way from her side, without so much as a backwards glance, Jonathan walked to the door and stepped out into the hallway. As he left – now determined to quit the soiree entirely – he was sure he heard the sound of Elizabeth weeping.