Page 10 of Good Duke Gone Cold

Gregory slowly walked toward her with his raven hair glowing under the sun. His azure eyes gently pulled her in as he reached out his muscular arm, palm up, saying, “Then trust me.”

Any excuses she might have had flew out of her mind to occupy some other being as she placed her small hand in his large, warm hand.

He gently tugged her toward the tower and together they climbed all one hundred steps to bear witness to one of the most unforgettable scenes Mary had ever experienced.

Gregory sat at the dining table with no idea what had caused Mary to smile. He was caught off guard to see her smile and wondered about what was on her mind.

Then immediately, he had to work to keep a smile from his face as he happened to overhear, through no effort beyond having ears, Miss Katherine recklessly gossiping about one of the ladies of theton.

“Why she would go off and become an ape-leader when she had her chance to marry the earl, I’ll never understand.”

The conversations at the table had turned to murmurs, unsure of whether to respond to Miss Katherine.

“How intriguing. I should love to hear of her adventures with the apes. She must have had to travel to an exotic land before finding such creatures.” With Miss Agatha’s outrageous reply, the conversations stilled. Lips were tightening in order to maintain control. Fists were being chewed and coughs were being used to cover an abrupt chortle.

Mary quickly chimed in completely obscuring the original faux pas while giving merit to the misinterpretation, “I adore reading about such explorations. I find my world has expanded without having stepped off of English soil. I’m sure any avid reader or explorer would agree.”

Gregory wanted to take up the hint, but he found himself resenting Mary’s sweetness. She was always so kind and humble. Too kind and humble. She was always trying to make others around her feel comfortable, even when she was struggling to feel at ease.

He should have said that he agreed and that he advocated for all and sundry to explore even a small part of the vast trottable globe in order to expand the mind and gain perspective. But his travels were more of a quick and dirty escape rather than an admirable form of exploration, so instead, he said, “Yes, quite.”

Inside, Mary tutted her tongue and shook her finger at Gregory. He was just so dispassionate. The old Gregory would have spoken up. But Mary didn’t have time to scold Gregory, albeit in her mind.

Apparently Miss Katherine didn’t recognize or didn’t sympathize with her faux pas. She just kept forging ahead.

“Colonel, do tell us of your last journey?” Miss Katherine was reaching the pinnacle of impropriety.

“Journey, is that how young people refer to the battlefield now?” He shook his head in dismay. “Let us talk more cheerily. I hear there may be a house party hosted by the earl in a couple weeks. Is that not so?”

Miss Katherine, who was not as adept as, well anyone, in concealing her emotions, pouted and persisted in her original line of questioning. “Well, if not the Colonel, Your Grace, might you share some stories?”

A flicker of fury and pain crossed Gregory’s otherwise impassive face. Mary felt his pain shoot through her heart. She wanted to shield him from the hurt, the unbearable loss and uncertainty of their missing friend. She wished she could have glued Katherine’s mouth shut before she sat down for dinner, it wasn’t as if the chit needed to eat anything anyways.

Gregory had moved on. To the imperceptive eye the flicker of emotion looked as though he was merely discouraging the question. “I believe you have me confused. I have never taken such… journeys.” With that he turned his head, and the conversation to the house party. “Lady Bainsbury, please enchant us with your vision of the upcoming festivities.”

“Heavens! It will be the event of the season. Of course you are all invited.” Feeling obliged to extend the invite to everyone at the table she unwittingly included Mr. Fairfax and upon later reflection was not sure if that invitation was necessary or improper. Regardless, the countess began a monologue on the forthcoming events.

If Mary were the type to slink, she would have slunk back into her chair, but years of balancing books on her head had ingrained in her the need for proper posture. She was not excited for the upcoming house party, no matter how many times Katherine lightly clapped her uncontainable hands and bobbed up out of her seat with each new proclamation of games, food, and party themes. Along with her mouth, she should have glued the chit’s hands to her seat as well.

After the meal, the men gathered for port while the women sat in the drawing room discussing musicale options for one evening and possible matchmaking seating arrangements for the upcoming house party.

As the men rejoined the women, Mary was sure Katherine let out a small squeal. While Mary shared a look with Margaret, it was apparent that none of the other guests noticed this extraneous display.

The last two to enter the room were Gregory and Mr. Fairfax. Mary observed a quick, firm handshake, a pat on the back, and a twitch from the side of Gregory’s mouth. What were those two on about? It must be business. But who was this Mr. Fairfax? How did Gregory know him? And why was he at this particular dinner event?

After a couple of hours of cards and Margaret and Lady Bainsbury taking turns on the pianoforte, the room was losing life. The earl and countess had snuck out at some point, the dowager duchess was nowhere to be seen, and at this precise moment, Gregory was casually attempting to leave the room. She could practically feel the scowl on his face. The one that had been there almost permanently since a few days ago. She wished she could press her two thumbs between his thick, sharp eyebrows and push up on the furrowing lines.

Clap! “Let’s play a game.”

Mary groaned inwardly and hoped no one heard.

“We must play a parlor game. We have only this evening and then at least two weeks before we see each other again. Let us play a dashing game and part on an anticipatory note.” Katherine enthused.

“What do you suggest?” Margaret’s eyes lit up. Although her attention was on Katherine, Mary could sense her friend drawing her into the idea of the game.

“We shall play hide and seek.”

Another groan. “We are not ch–”

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