Page 11 of The Wrong Duke

The Duke... that kiss... she could not stop thinking about it. But she met her sister’s eyes down the table, she saw the fear in them, the knowing that if Amelia failed, she would be the one put up for marriage. And it was unlikely that the man their father chose for her would be anything close to Lord Malnor. One of his friends as he put it. Gamblers. Rakes. Rich but without any worth. True detestables and not worthy of her sister’s hand.

“I look forward to it,” Amelia said suddenly, a little too loudly. Her father balked, surprised by the assertion, but then he smiled and nodded his approval.

“Good,” he said with a final warning glare that spoke to how seriously he was taking this request. Not one to be ignored, that was for sure. “I hope that you do.”

CHAPTERFIVE

“You really didn’t have to come,” David reminded Evan as their carriage approached Lord Brundel’s estate. He was looking out the window, eyeing the modern-styled manor with a sense of foreboding. “I know how much you hate these dinners.”

“I don’t hate them,” Evan said, unable to muster any amount of conviction in his voice. It must have been obvious too, for David leaned back from the window and cocked a disbelieving eyebrow at him. “I don’t!”

“You do,” David said simply. “I never understood why — it’s half the reason for your reputation, you know.”

“What reputation?”

David rolled his eyes. “Superiority. A sense that you think you’re better than everyone else.”

“Oh, you know I don’t think that.”

“I do, but try telling anybody else that.”

“Maybe that’s why I’ve chosen to come tonight, then? To dissuade such notions and remind thetonthat I’m one of them.” He couldn’t stop himself from grinning. “Pompous. Arrogant. Unable to remove the stick from my rearend because of how far up it has been wedged.”

David chuckled and shook his head at the joke, but he smiled also, fixing Evan with a grateful look. “I am glad you decided to join me. Truly. I think it will be good for you. Holed up in your manor every other day. Reading and avoiding people. It can’t be good for you.”

“I’m glad too,” Evan agreed, returning the smile. “Couldn’t be happier, in fact.”

That was a bald-faced lie of the highest order. If Evan had his way, he’d be home right now, doing exactly as David had suggested. Reading. Sharing a drink with himself. Avoiding his contemporaries because there were few who he could stand to be around, and whenever he found himself in situations that required such, he became crabby and discontented, remembering almost immediately why it was he chose to avoid these people in the first place.

Unfortunately, for tonight at least, that simply wasn’t an option. It was just this morning that David had stopped by to see Evan, a social visit in which he let slip that he’d been invited to a dinner tonight at Lord and Lady Brundel’s home. It was said that a who’s who of dignitaries would be attending, and it only took a few carefully asked questions to learn that one such dignitary would be none other than Lord Lindstone.

The Season had begun just last week which meant that every lord and lady in England would be flooding through London with the sole aim of shopping their daughters and sons about in the hopes of pairing them with a partner worthy of their station. Balls. Promenades.Dinners. These were but some of the events hosted specifically to achieve such goals. And seeing as Lord Lindstone was attending a dinner known to feature a bevy of viscounts and counts and marquesses, plus their offspring, it was reasonable to think that Miss Baker would be there also.

Evan didn’t think for a moment that the warning he’d given the young lady might have worked. Especially if her father was behind it all. And if she was there tonight, let loose on David without Evan’s watchful eye... well, there was no telling what might happen.

Not that Evan needed to guess!

And so, he sucked up his pride and asked David if he might join him at the dinner. He wasn’t invited, but one advantage of being a duke was that there were few who might dare to turn him away from their door if he was to try and walk through it. It might be awkward. It might be a long evening. But as things stood, he didn’t have a choice.

Indeed, the shock present on Lord Brundel’s face when Evan climbed from the carriage was impossible to miss and almost made the entire evening worth the effort.

“Yo — Your Grace!” he blustered, those three chins of his wobbling, those great big jowls jiggling. He looked like a frog who had accidentally sat on a burner. “I had no idea you were — Lord Malnor didn’t inform me that — if I had known —”

“I hope it’s not too much of an inconvenience,” Evan said with a friendly smile as he approached the bumbling lord and his wife. He reached them both and offered a low bow. “But when Lord Malnor told me of this evening, I knew I must attend. At the very least, a chance to feast my eyes on your lovely wife. Lady Brundel...” He reached out and took Lady Brundel’s hand, giving it a kiss.

“Oh my...” she fawned.

“And your home,” Evan continued, going a little overboard. “I’ve heard whispers of how magnificent it is, but as usual, whispers hardly do it justice. May I...?” He indicated past them and toward the manor.

“Of course!” Lord Brundel hurried. “Please — Mr. White!” he then shouted for a manservant. “If you would, show His Grace and Lord Malnor to the dining area.”

The manservant was quick to lead the two inside. As he did, Evan caught sight of David shaking his head at him — no need to say what he thought of Evan’s theatrics.

It was because of Evan that the two were late, and it was because of Evan that when they were led into the dining room, a small reshuffling was required. There were fourteen people seated at the large dining table, most of whom Evan knew or knew of. Greetings were given, apologies were made, and a chair was added at the end for Evan to squeeze in to.

“Your Grace,” Lord Weatherstone began once he and David were seated, “we didn’t expect to see you tonight.”

“Oh, I had no intention of coming originally,” Evan said with a friendly smile for the room. “But when Lord Malnor told me of his plans, I thought I’d impose myself. I hope nobody minds.”

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