Page 85 of A Virgin for the Duke of Thorns

“But I did not come here for that harridan,” Daniel smoothly replied. He set the package down on the table and slid it over to Colin. “I believe that its contents might be of great interest to you.”

Colin frowned as he turned the package over in his hands. It was neatly wrapped in brown paper and held a little weight. A piece of string bound it, so it did not open and spill its contents.

“I was not aware that you are now in the habit of giving random gifts.”

Daniel smiled at him from across the table. “I never do anything without a good reason.” He nodded at the package in Colin’s hands. “I came here because I needed to talk to you, but first, you have to read that. I have a feeling you will find its contents particularly enlightening.”

Colin eyed his friend warily. He had never seen Daniel acting so cryptic before. Other people, perhaps, but Daniel had always been straightforward with Colin and the other Wolves.

As he pulled the string that held the package together, he could not understand why his heart beat so fast.

Just what had Daniel Stanton brought him this time?

CHAPTER 35

Alice found the ton’s so-called love for the opera absurd.

For them, an opera was simply nothing more than an avenue to see and be seen. Young misses would flock to its hallowed halls, garbed in their most exquisite finery, displaying a sense of being cultured in their appreciation of the arts, when the main goal was for them to display themselves to prospective suitors, who may or may not actually be dallying with the actual stars of the show—the opera singers.

Sadly, they couldn’t truly know the depths of a gentleman’s heart just from a few dances and a promenade or two. Alice had been collaborating with a known rake, and it had taken him no more than a fortnight to shatter her heart and cause her to question her desire to go on living.

But armed with the lessons she had learned from her brief encounter with the Duke of Thorns, she managed to salvage most of her pride and dignity, even going so far as to bolster her popularity. Gentlemen now called on her at Brandon Estate, and there was simply no end to the choice of dance partners she now enjoyed.

If her mama had not been so pleased with her recent success, she would have bemoaned the state of Alice’s poor dancing slippers.

“I have it on good authority that this particular singer gives a heart-wrenching rendition of Spontini’s La Vestale,” Lady Brandon told her two daughters with a great smile. “Alice, dear, since you like these stories so much, I think you will enjoy tonight’s performance the most.”

“Yes, Mama,” Alice replied dutifully. She did not have the heart to tell her mama that the opera singer she had just mentioned was also rumored to be the mistress of one of the Wolves. As to which one, she and the rest of the ton could only speculate.

For all she knew, it could be the Duke of Thorns himself, and Alice furiously tamped down the suffocating pain that started to spread through her chest when she thought of it. It would simply not do for her to be moping around like a lovelorn idiot when she was supposedly the one who called off their betrothal.

Lord Brandon chuckled lightly as the carriage came to a stop before the opera house. “Perhaps it is only dear Alice who cares for the plot of La Vestale. Truly, a cultured young lady our Alice is.”

There was no attempt on his part to hide the pride in his voice as he looked on at his eldest daughter with a twinkle in his eyes.

Alice managed to smile back.

In the weeks that followed after the end of her betrothal, she had feared that the blow would weaken her father. However, the Marquess seemed to have recovered well to the point where he could even escort his wife and two daughters to the opera and other social events around London.

When they stepped off the carriage, a cool breeze blew past them, and she pulled her cloak tighter over her dress. Ladies and gentlemen in their finery were beginning to make their way up the steps of the opera house, and she even spotted Scarlett, who beamed at her.

They had made it to the door when a passable-looking gentleman greeted her father warmly. However, it was not the man but the ravishing woman who stood beside him who caught Alice’s eye.

She was of average height with brilliant golden hair and thickly lashed blue eyes. She wore a deep red dress overlaid with delicate black lace that clung to her seductive curves, and when she moved, the numerous beads sewn into the fabric glittered. When her eyes met Alice’s gaze, her red lips curled into a deeper smile as if she knew some secret that Alice herself did not.

“That is the Viscount Pembroke,” her mother whispered discreetly to her and Phoebe. “And that is his Viscountess, formerly known as Lady Esther Swinton. A pity that after three years of marriage, they still have not had any good news.”

The good news she was referring to would have been the conception of an heir. After all, an unmarried woman’s duty was to get married; a married woman’s duty was simply to provide her husband with heirs to inherit his titles and fortune.

Looking at the gorgeous woman before her, Alice was certain it was not for lack of trying on their part.

As she watched the Viscount treat his wife with a great deal more gentleness than was customary in the ton, she felt a brief stab of jealousy. Before she had left Colin’s room at Fitzroy Hall, she had asked him about the kind of woman he wanted to marry.

Was the Viscountess the kind he would have liked? She could not have been farther apart from Alice. The only similarity they shared was that they were both women, and that was that.

Before she could delve more into her dark thoughts, however, her papa had turned back to usher them into the opera house, and they made their way to their box with just a little more time to spare before the first act started.

Alice sighed as she turned her gaze towards the stage instead. There was no use in thinking about Colin, but she could not help it. It was almost as if he had engraved himself on her heart, and no matter what she did, she just could not be free of him.

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