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" D o you see her? That's her, isn't it?"

"She's so young! I would have thought she would be older. The Duke was much older, wasn't he?"

"He wanted a young wife. You can hardly blame him can you? But I suppose he paid the price. He should have known that a lady of that age would only marry him for one reason: to get her hands on his money."

"Still, I don't think anyone could have predicted that she would actually kill him!"

The words hit Victoria as if stones were being thrown at her.

No one was even troubling to keep their voices down.

Suddenly it felt very clear to her why she had stayed in the house all these years.

She had forgotten what it was like to be out among people.

This was the same thing that had happened the last time she had gone out in society.

She'd been forced to deal with gossips and rumors, and it had felt unbearable.

"Don't listen to them," James murmured. He kept a tight grip on her arm as they walked along.

"Keep your chin up. Don't let them see that they can bother you.

That's all they want — to know that their words are getting to you.

If they see that they are not bothering you, they'll stop. They'll leave it alone."

"I don't know if you're right about that," Victoria said.

"This is why I don't like to go out of the house.

This is why I didn't want to come into town today.

I could have told you that it would be like this.

I don't think you would've listened to me, but I could've told you.

All anyone sees when they look at me is a killer.

They can't possibly believe that I had nothing to do with my husband's death. "

"That's because the story is so salacious," James told her. "A part of them wants it to be true. It's the best gossip London has ever heard. If that story isn't true, they'll need to find something new to talk about. Something new to keep them entertained."

"I'm not here to entertain them," Victoria grumbled.

"No," James agreed. "You're not."

Victoria raised her eyebrows. "I think that's the first time you and I have ever agreed on anything," she remarked.

James burst out laughing. "Well, it had to happen eventually," he said. "And I suppose if the thing that we agreed on is that you are not a sideshow attraction, that's a place to start."

Though Victoria wouldn't have thought it possible, she found that she did feel a little more at ease. James was right. It was a salacious story. Though it was hard to think of things in these terms, she could admit that if she was on the other side of things, she might have been gossiping too.

She decided to follow his advice. She would simply keep her head up and ignore the whispers as best she could. If she could manage to do that, this outing might not be so unbearable.

Of course, it was still the first step in her reintegration into society.

There was no escaping that fact. And there was no escaping where this was all headed.

James had brought her out here in hopes of finding her husband.

That was something Victoria would never be able to accept.

In a way, it felt as if relaxing and handling things well right now was bringing her closer to that inevitable fate.

Even though it made her feel better to ignore the whispers of the people around her, she couldn't help wondering if she was making a mistake in doing so.

"What about you?" she asked him.

James raised his eyebrows. "What about me?"

"I just mean, doesn't it bother you that people are looking at us? Doesn't it bother you that people are talking about us? I know you came back to London in part because you were worried about being tainted by my reputation. I would've thought that all this gossip would upset you."

"It's not my preference," James told her. "But I'm not going to allow myself to be brought down by it either. The things they're saying aren't true."

Victoria stopped walking and turned to face him. "What did you say?"

"They're telling lies," James said. "Or, at best, they're making false assumptions. You never killed anyone. You're not responsible for your husband's death."

Victoria couldn't have been any more surprised if lightning had struck right at her feet. "I didn't realize you knew that," she managed.

"Of course I know that," James said. "I've been living with you all this time.

I know who you are. You may be stubborn and difficult, but you're not violent.

At least not unless someone surprises you in the middle of the night.

Unless my late cousin broke into his own house and led you to believe that he was a burglar, I can't imagine you lashing out at him in violence. "

Victoria shook her head. "There are just so few people who understand that," she sighed. "I have to admit, it's a relief to have one more person who sees me for who I am. I never expected that you would be that person, but I can admit that I'm glad you are."

James smiled at her. Victoria found herself returning his smile. And, much to her surprise, happiness began to bloom in her heart.

She hadn't imagined that there would be anything pleasant about this outing. She'd thought the whole experience would be dreadful.

And yet, here she was, having a good time in spite of herself.

She hadn't thought that she cared whether or not James believed the gossip about her.

She had told herself that she didn't care who believed it.

As long as she knew it wasn't true what difference did it make?

But now, hearing him say that he knew she wasn't that kind of person mattered more than she would ever have believed it could.

It felt as if the whispers around her had faded. She was sure people were still talking, but she wasn't aware of them anymore. James's belief in her was like a bubble, protecting her from everything going on around her.

But how could that be? How could she have come to care what he thought?

And how maddening that the one person who believed in her was someone she didn't even like!

She had grown used to the idea that the only people on her side were her closest friends and family members.

She had accepted that. But if it was possible for someone else to see her for who she was…

What did that mean? If James could see that she was a good person, that she hadn't killed anyone, didn't that mean other people should be able to see it also?

Maybe she had judged James too harshly. It was possible, wasn't it, that he was better than the rest of society?

Maybe the two of them simply hadn't gotten off on the right foot.

It would have been impossible to form a good impression of anyone who had broken into her house in the middle of the night.

But then, James hadn't broken in. Little though she liked to admit it, James was the rightful owner of the house.

He was perfectly entitled to be there. He had frightened her, and he had angered her.

That didn't necessarily mean he had done anything wrong.

And as for the fact that he wanted to see her married… Well, for someone who didn't know her past, was that truly so awful? Anyone who didn't know her would likely assume that she secretly wanted to be married. It wasn't an outlandish thing to think.

Maybe he truly was trying to help.

She found she liked the idea. It was a relief to try and believe the best of him.

Disliking him as strongly as she did took energy.

It took stamina. And she had to admit that it hadn't made her very happy.

Ever since he had come into her life, she had felt torn between her desire to be rid of him and the exhilaration she felt in his presence.

If she could allow herself to accept him as a good man, she could let go of that tension.

And maybe there was even some hope of persuading him that marriage was not a good solution for her.

If she had been able to persuade him that she wasn't guilty of murder, perhaps she could get him to believe this as well.

For the first time since she had discovered James in her home, she felt truly glad to have met him. The things he was saying to her…they mattered. It meant something to her to know that someone could see her as innocent. She had been so sure that it wouldn't.

James took her arm. "Come this way," he said.

"There's a bookshop up here that might interest you.

After all, you are such an avid reader." He gave her a rather saucy grin, and once more, Victoria found herself smiling back at him.

She knew he was referring to the time he had found her reading Voltaire.

When he had teased her about it then, she had felt the need to defend herself.

Now, though, it felt like a shared a joke between them.

"Well, I do love books," she replied. "I would like to see this bookshop."

"And perhaps I'll even buy a book for you," James said his smile growing ever more broad.

"If you did," Victoria said, "would the book belong to me? Would I be permitted to take it with me if I ever leave the house? Or would you expect it to join your permanent collection?"

"I see," James said, winking at her. "So this is what it took. Finally, you're ready to admit that the library and everything else in the house truly do belong to me."

It was a comment that would have annoyed her greatly mere days ago, but today, Victoria found herself laughing.

"That's truly all you're concerned about isn't it?

" She giggled. "You must feel that you've won a great victory in getting me to admit that the items in the house belong to you.

Well, yes, I do admit it. You are the rightful Duke.

You are the inheritor of all your cousin's possessions — all my late husband's possessions.

" It felt all right to say so, she thought.

Perhaps if she acknowledged his rightful position, it would go some way toward convincing him that there was no harm in her staying in the house.

Now that he knew she wasn't a murderer, maybe he would accept that her reputation could be restored without a marriage.

Maybe he wouldn't want to be rid of her.

And if he allowed her to stay in the house, she didn't need to be recognized as the owner of everything that lay within it.

She would settle for keeping her chambers, and for keeping her solitude.

"If I buy a book for you today," James told her, "that book will belong to you. It will be yours to do with as you wish."

"In that case, I accept," Victoria said.

They made their way down the road. Victoria began to be aware once more of the fact that people were looking at her.

It was clear that they were still gossiping about her.

She did as James had told her and kept her chin up.

It wasn't something she needed to concern herself with.

If restoring her reputation was the ticket to remaining in her home, she would work on doing that.

But it didn't need to be done all in one day.

Even James would understand that fact. Even he would know that putting a halt to a rumor like this one was something that would take time.

"Oh," James said, pulling them off to the side of the path. "I see Lord Blackburn."

Victoria frowned. "You see who?"

"Lord Blackburn is an Earl and an upstanding member of society," James said. "Come. We ought to say good day to him."

Victoria followed in the direction he was leading her, though she had an uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach. Something about this didn't feel right, she couldn't shake the impression that she didn't want to meet this Lord Blackburn at all.