Page 45 of A Deal with the Broken Duke
“No, I don’t.”
She did sound a bit hesitant about that, and he wasn’t sure why. Was it just that it was difficult for her to trust a gentleman? He thought that might be it, especially after the way she had been treated by Lord Stickland. Any young lady would be hesitant after such manhandling. But he would prove himself to her.
She looked up at him. “I’m not sure you trust me either, you know,” she accused him.
“Me? Why on Earth would I not trust you?”
“Every time I’m with Lady Annie, you have something to say about it.”
“That’s completely untrue,” Harry objected. “You were just with her, and I didn’t say a word.”
“But I saw that look in your eyes. You did look at me with suspicion. You might as well admit that you did.”
“Oh, very well. I hadn’t realized that you were so aware of me.”
“I’ve known you for years, Harry. I see more than you think I do.”
“I suppose that’s true.” In all honesty, it was rather nice to be in the company of someone who clearly knew him so well. It pleased him that he didn’t have to wonder whether she was getting the wrong idea from him about things based on his actions and facial expressions. “I suppose we should trust, then, that we understand one another well. Our long history together ought to make things a bit easier for us.”
“Perhaps,” she said noncommittally.
“But you do seem reserved around me.”
“Do I?”
“Very much so.”
“I’m just getting used to all this, I suppose. And then, there’s the fact that I’ve always been quiet, or did you think that I would no longer be the person I once was? Did you think that my personality would have completely changed?”
“No, of course I didn’t think that.”
Harry wasn’t sure why she would think he would. She wasn’t that different at all, really, from the girl he had known. She was a little more confident, perhaps a little more outspoken, but he could certainly see the traits of the young girl she’d once been. She hadn’t disappeared at all.
The music came to a stop, and the dancers on the floor paused, some of them switching partners.
“Shall we have another dance?” Harry asked her.
He found himself hoping that she would say yes. Of course, the guise would be that they needed to be seen together in order to convince others of their courtship, but the truth was that he was actually having a good time with her and wanted to continue dancing with her.
If I needed to have a false courtship, she’s probably the best person I could have chosen to have it with.I’m glad she’s the one.
“Lady Juliet! I see that you’re free.”
Juliet went rigid in Harry’s arms as Lord Stickland approached.
Really, is the gentleman incapable of taking a hint?
Lord Stickland stepped to her side and held out a hand. “Do me the honor of a dance,” he said. It seemed more of an order than a request.
“Oh, perhaps not now,” Juliet looked down nervously.
“Why not? You’re not busy. You’re not dancing with anyone else. I saw youfinish with the Duke just now, so I know you’re not occupied.”
Did he really feel as though he could come up and claim her just because she wasn’t visibly taken by another gentleman? Harry was suddenly outraged on Juliet’s behalf. Lord Stickland couldn’t treat her that way. It was disgraceful and deeply disrespectful, and he found himself wanting very much to protect her.
“Lady Juliet was just looking for a place to sit down and rest,” he informed Lord Stickland.
“Rest?”
