Page 12 of The Scarred Duchess Deal
Tessa had to give him credit; he was a fantastic actor to make himself appear as if he were already wholly and utterly besotted and in love with her. It was hard not to buy into it herself. Her foolish heart was thundering inside of her chest.
“The flowers are lovely, Your Grace, I thank you,” Tessa said demurely.
“I am the one who ought to be thanking you for even entertaining my company, My Lady.” Only then did he turn to Anna and Theodore. “My Lord! What a fine canine you have there.”
The bone that Colonel Floppy Ears had been working on fell out of his mouth and thudded against the floor. At that moment, the mastiff and his owner looked like twins, with the lord’s jaw gaping wide with shock.
“I hope you shall forgive me, Sir, that I did not write with my intentions, but I find myself so overcome that I thought that it would be prudent to come and declare my intentions in person.”
With a belabored grunt, Theodore braced his hand on his knee and lifted from the floor. “Why… why yes, Your Grace. I admire a man who acts first and asks for forgiveness second. Perhaps not the soundest tactical strategy but I admire your guts,” Theodore rambled. He was mainly incapable of speaking without equating everything to military tactics in one way or another. “It is refreshing, in fact – most young people these days have no courage at all! They certainly do not make proper soldiers. Say, did you serve?”
Leo shook his head. “No. I have not been afforded the honor as of yet in my life.”
“Honor it would be! In my generation, all men signed up for conscription in His Majesty’s service straight away. We knew it was the best way to transition from a boy to a man. Now every new recruit that we get is so soft and green behind the ears that they are no match for me and mine!” Theodore exclaimed happily.
Everybody in the room knew that if Theodore was allowed to start speaking about the glory days of war, there would be no stopping him. No other conversations would be permitted to happen and they would all be stuck here until the moon was high in the sky, listening to the same tired stories over and over again.
“Your Grace, I am pleased to host you in our humble home,” Aunt Anna interrupted. “Come, would you like a spot of tea? Have a seat perhaps?”
Sophie’s bottom lip floundered and flapped as if she struggled to find something – anything – that she could say to somehow shift the conversation to herself. She could not fathom what was happening, nor could she process that the Duke simplyrefusedto even glance in her direction.
For that fact alone, Tessa could have kissed him.
It did not matter to Tessa any longer that her uncle monopolized the next hour of conversation. It did not matter that Sophie kept trying – and failing – to divert the topic of conversation back to herself. It did not matter to her in the slightest that Sophie would scream at her later or that a barrage of questions would be thrown in her direction. It simply did not matter. All that mattered was the fact that the Duke was seated next to her on the settee and kept giving her assuring little glances every few moments.
Leo did not appear at all troubled by the way her aunt and uncle squabbled in front of him. If he were bothered by anything at all he did not show it. Perhaps later, when they were to speak in private – if they could – perhaps then he would tell her that this was overwhelming and he needed to back out of the deal. Perhaps later he would buckle and rant and rave to her. She could hardly blame him for it, but right now he was the consummate gentleman, perfect in every way.
The conversation happening in the room slowly started to fade into background noise as she focused on the flowers that he had sent her. She had not noticed before but they were in the same shades and decor as her: the same soft pink of her gown last night; the green accents and the roses colored blue like her eyes. These were not just some common, perfunctory gifts but something that he had put genuine thought and effort into.
She needed to be very, very careful with herself. If she were not, he was pretending to be exactly the same sort of man that would tempt her. As this was all just a ruse, she could not allow herself to develop feelings for him. Slowly, Tessa rose from the settee where she had been sitting so silently and crossed to one of the larger vases. She brushed the petals softly with her fingers. She had given up all hope that she would ever receive flowers like this from a man after her accident.
“Is everything all right?” Leo’s voice came from directly behind her.
She was startled as she had not realized he had followed her across the room. She glanced around him to her family’s expectant gazes. She could see the expectation written all over them. “Yes, apologies.” Tessa flashed a polite smile as she glanced back at the flowers. “I suppose that I had become so used to being overlooked that I did not think anyone would notice when I left the conversation.” Heat colored her cheeks a light shade of pink. She had not thought anything about crossing the room like that. “These are spectacular.”
“I had rather hoped they would be to your taste. I chose them with you in mind. But if you are feeling uncomfortable then perhaps we could go for a walk?” Leo offered with his hands clasped politely behind his back.
Sophie shot up to her feet. “A walk? I would love to go for a walk!”
Tessa almost barked that she had not been invited.
“I only need to gather my shawl, unless you think a parasol would be more fitting?” Sophie asked the Duke as if he would have any opinion on what she did or did not wear to go for a walk.
“I do not think that they will need company this afternoon, Sophie. However, I have some tasks that would need your assistance,” Aunt Anna said casually.
“I do not wish to assist you, Mama. I wish to go for a walk with the Duke.”
“You were not invited. Sit down,” Anna said firmly as she changed tactics. Sophie’s eyes widened the way that they always did when she was getting ready to have a tantrum for not getting her way.
Anna looked at her husband expectantly. “Theodore, please speak with your daughter.”
“Hmm?” Theodore answered without so much as making eye contact with his wife. He spoke to her out of the corner of his mouth as he was too busy playing tug of war with Colonel Floppy Ears to be bothered with the real world. “See what a strong grip he has? It is impressive. Did you know that when we trained dogs for the front line, we would always–”
Tessa turned to Leo, slipped her hand delicately into the crook of his arm, and nodded. “I would love to go for a walk with you, Your Grace.”
“That is unfair! You cannot keep me indoors, Mama. I deserve sunshine as well,” Sophie whispered harshly to her mother as Leo led Tessa out of the room.
Tessa bit down on her bottom lip as they headed down the stairs. She had to hold her breath entirely until they were safely outside where she laughed until her sides hurt.
