Page 4 of The Guardian Duke (Wayward Dukes’ Alliance #21)

Henry pulled away from the entry and quietly walked back to the library.

It was wrong of him to have eavesdropped and he should have announced his presence and had tea with his cousins and Lady Penelope, but doubted they would have been as forthcoming with him as they had been with her.

He had asked about their home and the town where they had been raised and not once had they described how their life had been. Yet, Lady Penelope had managed to get them to confess with only a few questions.

He had also failed them when he allowed them to take up the role of wallflowers without offering any other options, other than when Bernice attended the theatre on Mr. Peter Storm’s arm as part of a ruse. He had not even kept them at his side so that introductions could be made.

Should he be the one to escort them about London or should he allow Lady Penelope to do so?

Then again, what could he show them? No doubt Lady Penelope intended to take them shopping, to a bookshop, a confectioner and possibly a walk in Hyde Park. Certainly nothing should be a concern. Except, it was Lady Penelope, the most independent woman of his acquaintance and he feared what she might expose his innocent cousins to. And for that single reason, he was waiting to join them for tea when she returned the following day. He would no longer be so quick to slough off his duty again and would put a stop to any activities she may suggest that were not generally acceptable for innocent misses. Not that he could think what any of those would be, but he would if any were mentioned.

As he entered the parlor where his cousins awaited, they grew alarmed and curious.

It was not as if he had not taken tea with them before.

Well…except, he had not since the first week they had arrived. After that, he had absented himself because his presence had not been necessary.

“I am to understand that you are expecting Lady Penelope today.”

“Yes,” Bernice answered with caution.

“I am glad she has befriended you.” He took the remaining chair. No doubt this was intended for Lady Penelope, but there was space on either of the settees.

“As are we,” Judith agreed with enthusiasm.

Blast! He had failed them. “I am sorry that I have not better prepared you for Society.”

“Oh, you must not feel badly, cousin,” Damaris insisted. “Our arrival was a surprise and being a bachelor, you could not have known what to do any more than us.”

Except, he knew far more than they. “Still, I should have introduced you to more people. Instead, I allowed you to…well…become wallflowers when you should be courted.”

“Courted!” Judith stated in alarm. “We do not want to be courted.”

Her words took him aback. “I had assumed that you would each want to marry.”

“Perhaps, in time, but we have been ruled our entire lives and do not welcome a husband doing the same until we have experienced some enjoyment.”

His uncle truly had been a bastard. “I understand and will keep that in mind.”

“Mind for what?” Chloe asked cautiously.

“I promise that if any gentleman asks to court any one of you that I will first discuss the matter with you.”

All five relaxed and Judith blew out a sigh.

“It is certainly not my intention to see you miserable, and I hope that you find happiness. But if a gentleman is not to your liking, then he will not be granted permission to court you.”

“Oh, thank you, Cousin,” Chloe exclaimed just as the butler announced Lady Penelope.

He came to his feet, as did Judith who moved from the chair to settle on the settee between Bernice and Damaris.

“Good afternoon, Lady Penelope.”

“Your Grace,” she muttered and dipped into a curtsey before coming further into the parlor, taking the seat vacated by Judith. This had them facing the other with his cousins on either side.

When the footmen delivered the tea service and cakes, Judith poured.

“Where might you be taking my cousins today?” Henry asked.

There was a flash of challenge in her green eyes right before she answered. “We will remain in so that I can come to know your cousins better, though I do plan on taking them to Bond Street tomorrow.”

“Why?” Jael asked in surprise.

“Your wardrobe is insufficient for what remains of the Season.” These words were said directly to Henry. Her green eyes challenged him over the rim of the teacup.

“I have provided them with lines of credit at the various shops,” he defended.

“But with no guidance on how much or what to purchase,” Lady Penelope reproved as she settled the cup into the saucer she was holding.

“I assumed they knew,” he defended. Really, what did he know of the purchases women needed to make for a Season. His only experience was with his mistresses, which he unfortunately was without this spring. They had not needed his guidance and happily spent the allowance he provided.

“The town of Navenby is far different from London.” She glanced at the cousins before she returned her gaze to him. “Do you know that it has been noted and commented upon that your cousins have been seen wearing the same dress frequently.”

“People actually notice?” he asked. He couldn’t recall anything they had worn, or any woman for that matter. Well, except for the azure gown Lady Penelope had worn the other evening and how it complemented her skin and hair, and how the bodice had hugged her perfectly. Nearly as much as the lavender dress she had chosen for today. It was quite fetching as was she. Then there had been the moss green that she had worn to one of the first balls of the Season that had him watching her for a good deal of the night. Not only had the color been complementary, but the material in the gown, especially when waltzing, hinted at her shape when it pulled against her skin and then away. Oh, there was also a pale yellow that she had worn just last week…

“Yes!”

Her firm declaration pulled him from his thoughts.

“People do notice even if you do not.” She set her teacup and saucer aside.

How was it that he remembered dresses she had worn but not how anyone else had been clothed?

“Do you wish to be known as a cheapskate or as a guardian who is too miserly to see that his wards are properly presented?”

“Of course not!”

“Then I have your permission.” She gave a pleased nod and lifted her teacup and saucer once again.

“Permission for what?” Henry asked slowly. What trap had she just laid that he willingly walked into because he was thinking about what she had worn this Season instead of giving the conversation the attention it required?

Lady Penelope drew in a deep breath through her nose. “To take them to the necessary shops to see that they are outfitted from their dancing slippers and kid boots to ribbons and hats and everything that must be worn in between so that they are turned out in a manner that is befitting the wards of a duke.”

“Yes, of course.” He also dreaded how much this may cost. A mistress, if not given a strict budget could spend ten thousand pounds in one afternoon, not that he had ever been so generous. But he did not want Society to see him as parsimonious. Further, he was quite wealthy and his coffers should not suffer overly much. “How much do you need?”

“Given they have already acquired some of their gowns and such, it should not be more than seven hundred pounds.”

While his cousins gasped at the amount, and likely because they had not spent so much in a lifetime, he understood. “Very well.”

“Each!” she added.

“No,” Judith objected.

“That is too much,” Bernice insisted.

They may be quite shocked at Lady Penelope’s proposal. He, however, was not.

“I will provide a letter of credit so that the necessary purchases can be made. However, do not spend simply because you have been allowed to.”

Lady Penelope drew herself up. “I do not waste funds, Your Grace,” she bit out with irritation. “Your cousins will only be allowed to purchase that which I deem is necessary for their station.”

“I apologize for any insult,” he offered with sincerely. “However, I know how my sister enjoyed shopping and have reviewed the bills my father often received.”

“She was also the daughter of a duke and her appearance reflected not only on her, but your family and thus was judged on it. Which is why I am going to make certain that your cousins are not seen in a poor light.”

Their eyes held for a moment and he tried to determine if Lady Penelope was challenging or censuring him. Not that it mattered because he was grateful that she was taking this matter in hand. Henry just wasn’t certain if he would thank her and that would be decided after he received the accounting and saw how his cousins were attired.

* * *

The first meeting with His Grace and the cousins had been a success. Penelope truly did not expect to spend more than five hundred pounds on each, which was still far less than what most wealthy and titled families spent to outfit their daughters for a Season. However, one never knew when the unexpected may arise and it would be easier to spend less and have His Grace appreciative than to be forced to ask for more and need to explain.

Tomorrow they would begin at ten, where Penelope had already arranged for fittings with her favorite modiste. By the end of the day, dresses should be ordered, feet measured and gloves purchased. Thankfully, the Season was already underway so the modiste would be less busy than the weeks leading up to the first ball when everyone was in London early for the very purpose of being outfitted.

She was also excited for tomorrow. It would be enjoyable to see the Simpson sisters outfitted to perfection with fabrics that complemented their features and coloring better than the gowns they currently wore.

Not that they were ugly or ill fitting, but Penelope knew they could look better once they were turned over to a more experienced modiste and perhaps one who was warned not to go to too much expense.

With those thoughts, she stepped out onto a balcony overlooking the ball in search of them. But when she did not see the sisters with the wallflowers, she looked for them throughout the ballroom but they could not be found. Thus, she made her way to the retiring room but it was empty. With a frown, she returned to the balcony and looked again but the only person she saw from that household was His Grace, the Duke of Eldridge.

This was very odd as they had been with him at every other ball so she made her way to the ballroom and approached.

“Your Grace,” she greeted with a curtsey.

“Lady Penelope,” he returned with suspicion. Did he not trust her?

“Where might your cousins be this evening?”

“They requested to remain in so that they may retire early and be rested for your shopping excursion tomorrow. Their conversation at dinner led me to believe that they were excited and concerned.”

“Why the concern?” She was not surprised that they would be excited. Most misses were when they knew that they’d be acquiring new dresses.

“The amount of funds we discussed was beyond their comprehension. They did not even spend that amount amongst the five of them when they first arrived.”

“I have no doubt because they visited an inferior modiste,” she offered quietly. “They likely compared the cost in the shops with no mind to the quality.”

“May I ask, is a wardrobe all you have planned?”

Did she dare tell him everything that she had listed?

No, she quickly decided because he might not approve.

“That will depend on what I learn tomorrow. However, I would suggest that you hire a dancing master.”

He frowned, his eyebrows drawing together over his dark blue eyes. “Why?”

The answer should be obvious, but Penelope tilted her head. “Have you seen them dance?”

“Well, no, other than Bernice, they have not been asked.”

“A situation that will be rectified. However, in the meantime, they must first learn, as it was not taught previously because your uncle thought it a sin.”

“Yes, well, he likely thought the same of breathing,” His Grace grumbled. “Where might I find a dancing master?”

“You do not know?” Penelope asked with a half-smile when she knew that he likely did not. It was also rather enjoyable to vex His Grace. From the moment she first saw him, he had exuded confidence, but when it came to the situation that he now found himself in, Eldridge was quite lost and rarely was a woman offered the opportunity to prove that she might be wiser than a gentleman.

“Why would I? When my sister needed a dancing master, she or my father engaged one and I have no idea where they found him.”

“I will see that it is arranged, Your Grace, and have him report to your home the day after tomorrow.”

Eldridge narrowed his eyes and studied her. “Are you trying to manage my life, Lady Penelope?”

“I would never presume so much, Your Grace,” Penelope answered sweetly as she batted her eyelashes. Like all other gentlemen, he was susceptible to charm and flirtation used to disarm when they were suddenly suspicious. “However, I will step in where others have failed. In this case, your cousins are in need.”

It truly wasn’t meant to be an insult, but she told the truth. “Will you also need lessons?” she asked simply to provoke him, even though she did not know what possessed her to do so.

“In what?” he asked aghast.

“Dancing,” Penelope answered with a grin. “I have not seen you do so in a very long time. Perhaps you have forgotten.”

“If you were paying any attention at all, you know that I danced with Lady Johanna, now Mrs. Peter Storm, earlier in the Season.”

Penelope snorted. “Yes, I recall.”

He drew back as if insulted.

“Your Grace, I watched the entire ruse play out and I was not fooled once by your sudden attention to Lady Johanna so that Mr. Peter Storm could court her in secret with your assistance.”

“Not once?” He arched a brow with the question.

“No. Though I promise that all of Society was fooled for a fortnight and many misses and ladies of marriageable age were quite distraught at having lost their opportunity to gain the attention of a duke who was still young enough not to suffer from gout.” She studied him for a moment. “Therefore, you do remember how to dance, you just do not.”

“I fear that my doing so will only encourage when I have no intention of courting anyone while Society looks on.”

“Oh, you prefer to court in secret as Mr. Peter Storm had done?”

“I prefer not to court at all!” His voice rose, then he quickly looked around, probably hoping that no one had overheard.

Such were the sentiments for all bachelors of rank and title, required to wed for an heir and a spare, and putting off the inevitable for as long as possible.

“Then you should ask me to dance.”

Goodness! Why had she suggested such? The thought had not even crossed her mind before it was voiced.

“You are bold, Lady Penelope. More so than when you were younger.”

Few people approved of her directness, not that she paid them any mind. “If I waited, you would never ask. And, as a waltz will play next, and I enjoy the waltz, I thought to encourage you so that I did not need to seek out another partner. Further, as neither of us wish to be leg-shackled, you are safe with me.”

Besides, she had never waltzed with Eldridge before and Penelope had often wondered what it would be like to be partnered with His Grace.

Goodness, just thinking about it increased her pulse and Penelope lectured herself not to be silly. He was simply another man, even though he was a duke, and it was only a waltz and no different from what she had shared with anyone else.

“You would ask another?” The question he nearly sputtered revealed how shocking her statement had been.

Penelope shrugged. “No. I do not make a habit of asking gentlemen to dance. You, however, are an exception.”

The muscle in his jaw ticked with disapproval.

Much to her disappointment, it was clear that the duke would not dance with her. “Very well,” Penelope finally said. “I shall leave you in peace, Your Grace.”

However, as she turned to leave, he gently touched her elbow. “Lady Penelope, I believe this dance is mine.” He offered his arm and as she stared up into his deep blue eyes, slipped her hand onto his sleeve and allowed him to escort her to the dance floor.