Page 11 of A Deal with the Broken Duke
“If we’re discovered out here alone together, there will be a scandal!”
She was starting to panic. The truth was that a scandal wasn’t even what she feared most right now. In spite of his pleasant tone of voice, there was violence in the way he was holding her against her will, forcing her to stay. That scared her, and she wanted desperately to call out for help.
But how could she call for help? How, when she knew perfectly well that doing so would only lead someone to discover her out here alone with a gentleman?
Lord Stickland won’t mind if there’s talk. He won’t mind a scandal that tarnishes my reputation because he probably thinks such a thing would compel me to marry him to save myself. That might even be the reason he brought me out here, tocreatea scandal!
She pulled harder against his grip. “Let me go, Lord Stickland! You’re hurting me!”
She heard the fear in her own voice, but he either didn’t hear it or didn’t care, because he only tightened his grip.
“What’s going on out here?”
Juliet’s heart leapt. She had never been so happy to hear Harry’s voice in all her life.
Harry stepped out on the patio. Lord Strickland dropped her wrist at once, although he stepped just a little closer to her. Juliet knew then that she had been right. He was trying to give off the appearance of something scandalous happening, something in which she had been a willing participant.
Juliet moved away from Lord Stickland and closer to Harry. Whatever she might think of the Duke, however little she might like him, she knew, at least, that he would never do anything to harm her.
Harry put his hand on her shoulder. “Do you want to come back inside?”
“Yes,” she replied fervently.
“Hold on,” Lord Stickland objected. “We’re still talking.”
“No, I think she’s finished talking to you,” Harry said. “She says she wants to go back inside.”
“She agreed—”
“I was there, Lord Stickland. What Lady Juliet agreed to was a dance, not whatever this is. Unless you’d like me to go and explain to her brother why she’s out on the patio alone with you against her own wishes? Because I’m sure he would be happy to get the constables involved.”
“For pity’s sake…” Lord Stickland stared at Juliet. “Who is this gentleman? What is he to you?”
Juliet was too shaken to answer, so she said nothing. Harry’s hands were now on both of her shoulders.
“I’m a family friend,” Harry stated. “That’s who I am.”
“Well, I’m the gentleman who will likely be courting her before long, so you really shouldn’t be trying to interfere.”
“If you have Lady Juliet’s best interests in mind, then you and I are on the same side, Lord Stickland.”
Lord Stickland, it seemed, could find nothing to say to that. He stood gaping.
“Perhaps Lady Juliet will be available for a dance a bit later,” Harry continued. “I’m sure she will find you if that’s the case. For now, I’m going to take her to get a glass of wine and finish her conversation with her brother. Let us walk away unbothered, and I’ll say nothing about this incident to anyone else.”
He put an arm around Juliet’s shoulders, and the next thing she knew, she was being led out of the cold night air and back into the ballroom.
“Over here,” Harry murmured. “There’s a quiet corner here.”
Sure enough, he had found a small table that was covered with drinks. Apparently, no one else at the ball had discovered this table, because the drinks appeared to be untouched so far, and no one was gathered here like they were around the table in the dining room.
Harry removed his arm from around her shoulders, picked up a glass and handed it to her.
Juliet stared into it.
“Drink,” he told her.
She lifted the glass obediently to her lips and sipped at the wine. It did make her feel a little bit better to drink it.
