Page 69 of His Accidental Duchess

“What is it, Sirs?” Theo snapped. “You seemed eager to enter.”

The first footman flushed, glancing at his friend for support. “Forgive me, Your Grace, but the door was locked. The library door is never locked. It is… ahem… off-limits to guests tonight. I do beg your pardon, Your Grace.”

Theo heaved a sigh. “I see. Her Grace and I came in here for a bit of cool air—it is so very warm in that ballroom—and Her Grace was a little faint. How are you feeling now, dear?”

He glanced over his shoulder to see Anna sitting demurely on the window seat, her face turned away to look out the window. She was as modest and cool as anyone could wish, and he had to bite back a smile.

“I am feeling better now, dearest,” she responded, without turning around. “I did not know the library was off-limits, although I’m sure our hosts will forgive us.”

The footmen flushed, shifting their weight from foot to foot. No doubt they were lower footmen, allowed to perform easier duties such as checking the rooms for errant guests, chatting and laughing as they went. They clearly hadn’t expected to come face to face with a duke and duchess.

“We will leave now,” Theo said, and he bit back a smile at the relief on the footmen’s faces. “Come, dear.”

Anna glided across the room, taking his proffered hand. They walked past the footmen without a second glance, and Anna managed to keep a straight face until they were out of earshot.

“Oh, Lord!” she gasped, leaning heavily against him. “Did you see their faces?”

“Well done for acting so haughty,” Theo whispered. “Acting entitled is, in my opinion, the best way to get what you want.”

“If you say so. Theo, would it be terrible if we went home? I… I don’t want to stay here.”

Her eyes were large in the gloom, fixed on him, and Theo felt a thrill of desire go through him.

He couldn’t remember the last time he had been so aroused, and his groin was still tight. The arrival of the footmen, of course, had changed his mood vastly, and probably for the best. Opening the door with a bulge in his trousers would have been very difficult to explain away.

Perhaps it was best that they did not consummate their marriage in the Tethers’ seldom-used library. Theremustbe better locations.

“Of course, we can go home,” Theo found himself saying, entranced by the way Anna’s eyes bored into him. “I shall call the carriage, and I’ll tell them all you have a headache.”

“Beatrice won’t be fooled, but I could tell her about the Earl. She… she understands some of what is happening. Not all,” Anna added quickly, “but some.”

Theo conjured up an image of Anna’s round-faced, plump little friend with sharp eyes that missed nothing. Yes, he did imagine she would see straight through any lies he might have to tell.

He collared a passing footman as they got closer to the ballroom, which seemed unbearably hot and obscenely crowded after the privacy of the library, and asked the man to fetch the carriage. The footman bowed and scurried away, and Theo had no doubts that his order would be executed right away.

“You go and find the carriage,” he whispered in Anna’s ear, “and I shall make our goodbyes and apologies to our hosts. It’ll look more believable if you’re not there, on account of your headache.”

She nodded eagerly, something that looked a lot like desire glittering in her eyes. Theo watched her weave her way through the ballroom, and let out a long, slow breath.

Their evening was not over. He could not wait to get his little wife alone in the carriage. It wasn’t his imagination—she had enjoyed what they’d done together in the library, and that made it all so much easier. They might be destined for separate lives, but in the meantime, why should they not enjoy each other for a while? A frisson of desire rolled through him, quickly smothered when he was obliged to plow through a noisy crowd to get to Lord and Lady Tether, who were holding court in the middle of the ballroom.

Lady Tether was understandably disappointed—she seemed to have taken to Anna nicely, and was exactly the sort of friend a new, young duchess ought to have—but was mollified when Theo promised that she would be invited to their home soon. He felt eyes on him when he turned to leave and found Miss Beatrice Haversham watching him, her eyes narrowed.

He flashed her a quick, tight-lipped smile and did not speak as he passed by. The woman didn’t have the gall to follow him, but it was fairly clear that she, as Anna had warned him, did not believe the megrim story.

Or so he thought, at least.

“Your Grace! Do wait a moment.”

Theo was obliged to stop, very nearly at the door, his hand extended to take his coat, gloves, and hat from a footman. He forced a smile and turned to face Miss Haversham.

“Miss Haversham. Beatrice, is it not? What a pleasure to see you. However, we are leaving. As you may have heard, Anna is quite unwell, and so…”

Miss Haversham folded her arms tightly. “If you make my friend unhappy, Your Grace, you will be sorry,” she said stoutly.

He blinked, sure he must have misheard. The words refused to rearrange themselves in his head, however, and Miss Haversham held her ground.

He took a few steps forward, just close enough tolooma little over the short woman.

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