Page 29 of A Deal with the Broken Duke
Then again, Harrywaslying to Daniel.
Maybe Daniel was right to have reservations about trusting him. Maybe Harry wasn’t worthy of the trust he felt he ought to be receiving.
That was a painful thought, but Harry reminded himself that even though he wasn’t really telling the truth, he was lying for the greater good. He was lying because Juliet had asked him to, and because he wanted to protect her from the machinations of Lord Stickland. That was important, perhaps more important than engaging in complete honesty with Daniel.
I have to think that if Daniel knew everything about what was going on here, he would approve. He would understand that this was what Juliet wanted and that it was the best way to protect her and ensure the future she ends up with isn’t a horrible one.
“Are we finished?” he asked Daniel. He had never enjoyed a conversation with his friend less than this one.
“We’re finished,” Daniel said, reaching for the carriage door. “Just don’t forget what we’ve discussed here.”
“I won’t forget. Don’t worry.” The Duke didn’t think he was likely to ever forget this conversation.
Daniel opened the carriage door and stepped out. He closed it behind him and walked back to the manor.
Harry watched him go through the window.
Was this plan going to ruin their friendship?
It couldn’t. Surely nothing could ever do that. He and Daniel had been through so much together. They had grown up together, come of age together, gone through their schooling together. Daniel had been by his side for the deaths of everyone in his family. Daniel would have been there the day he had married Susan if that day had ever come.
Harry wouldn’t have believed that anything, ever, could take precedence over their friendship.
But now, it seemed, they were both willing to put something else first. And the funny part was that even now, they shared the same priority. It was just that they couldn’t talk openly to each other about it.
We both want to protect Juliet. I’m sure that, in the end, he’ll be able to see that that was all I ever wanted to do.
He spent the carriage ride back to Burghley pondering everything that had happened. Except for his disagreement with Daniel, he thought it had all gone remarkably well. He would begin courting Juliet within days, and soon enough, all of London would know about it. And when that happened…
He sighed, thinking about it with considerable relief.
At last, he would be left alone. At last, he wouldn’t have to worry about interested young ladies dogging his footsteps every time they saw him out in public. He would be considered out of their reach.
He had always been out of their reach, of course. He had known since Susan’s death that he wouldn’t enter into another genuine courtship or marriage. He wasn’t within the grasp of any young lady, no matter how lovely or charming she might be.
It would be wonderful, he thought as the carriage rolled on towards home, not to have to explain that to anyone.
CHAPTERNINE
“It was good of you to join us today,” Matilda said to Daniel as the three siblings made their way down the path that wound around the lake.
Daniel looked very much as if something was bothering him, but he didn’t appear to want to say what it was. “I need to keep an eye on things,” he muttered.
There was a darkness in his tone that Juliet didn’t like or understand. She wasn’t sure what she ought to make of it. “What do you need to keep an eye on?” she asked.
“When my sisters are out of the house with a gentleman, someone ought to be with them.” Daniel wasn’t making eye contact with either of his sisters. He strode a little bit ahead of them as if he was trying to hurry them along.
“But Harry isn’t going to do anything to us,” Matilda said, sounding downright mystified. “He’s as good as a second brother to us.”
Daniel grunted. “Not much of one. Look at him over there skipping rocks, not even bothering to spend time with the two of you.”
“I don’t mind that he’s skipping rocks,” Juliet said.
Actually, she liked it. It was playful. Boyish. She was having fun watching him, and it made it easier not to take all this too seriously.
Juliet had opted not to let her brother know that the courtship was a ruse. He probably would have wanted to find another way to help her escape Lord Stickland’s clutches, and she feared Daniel’s idea of a solution would involve physical violence, especially if he ever saw the bruises on her arm.
She had no idea whether her father would give in on his determination to make her marry Lord Stickland if he ever knew the truth about the man. But she didn’t want to find out. Better to just handle the matter herself and not involve any of her family members.
