Page 90 of Claiming his Cursed Duchess
“Thank you.”
Adam had already drunk a cup or two that morning, partly due to his lack of sleep, but mostly to make his mind sharper after his fourth glass of port.
He settled himself further back in the armchair, watching Claridge fidget in place, as though deciding where to sit. His eyes kept glancing at a desk in the corner of the room.
Eventually, he lowered himself onto the chaise longue, looking very uneasy.
“I am glad you received my note, Your Grace,” Claridge said, regaining some of his conviction. “I am pleased that you felt it was a matter to be discussed in person. I should have come to you.”
“There are many things youshouldhave done, Claridge. I am here to explain what you are going to stop doing.”
Claridge blinked at him. “I beg your pardon, Your Grace?”
“You will refrain from using my influence and position to further yourself. I am not responsible for your status in life, nor will I ever be. I have spent years developing, cultivating, and building on the reputation that I inherited from my father. Why should you benefit from a legacy you played no hand in?”
“Introductions are merely—” Claridge began.
“Introductions are only that, my lord. And one must be a certain type of person to impress those with whom I spend my time. I do not believe any of the peers that you listed will be interested in your company for longer than five minutes. I know I was not prior to my wedding. And after it.”
Claridge barked a laugh. “Your Grace, I believe you are forgetting a simple fact. I can ruin your precious reputation and destroy your brother in one movement. He’ll hang if word gets out. And any legacy you have cultivated will be destroyed.”
Adam’s body tensed at the arrogant smirk on the other man’s face.
Why is he sweating so much?
As Adam watched him, Claridge’s fingers fluttered at his knee, plucking at a loose thread, his throat convulsing on a swallow.
Adam glanced at the desk Claridge had been continually looking at.
Every other piece of furniture in the room was covered in a layer of dust, but the desk was pristine. Claridge’s face was clammy now, his tongue continually licking at his lips in agitation.
By God, the letter is in this room.
Adam knew it with a certainty he couldn’t explain, but he was suddenly sure of that fact.
A sensible man would leave the letter somewhere out of sight. A disused parlor room that no one in the house would ever go in was a perfect location for such a thing.
There was a gentle knock on the door and the butler entered with a tray of coffee and tea. Adam’s gaze sharpened as Claridge was distracted, and he took the opportunity to examine the desk in more detail.
It was a Davenport, the same as his father’s. Adam knew it well, and understood just what a piece of furniture like that could conceal.
He relaxed back in his chair, carefully casual, as he watched the coffee being poured.
“Come now, Your Grace,” Claridge added as they were left alone once more. “You have a new wife, and your brother is safe for now. Do you really wish to rip all that asunder, all because of pride?”
“Ah yes, my wife,” Adam gritted out. “Your niece, who you were so desperate to be rid of, that you blackmailed me into marrying her—a fact you rejoiced in revealing to her at your soirée not two nights ago.”
To his disgust Claridge snorted, holding back a laugh.
“It is not my fault if you were not honest with her about the reasons for your marriage. You made a choice to save your brother, that was a noble thing,”
He stirred sugar into his coffee, a smirk playing across his lips as he looked at Adam over the top of his cup.
“It did not look as though she took the news well. A pity for her, really. She always was a broken little bird. Never good for anything. To be honest with you, if I hadn’t found that letter, I would have had her sent away to a nunnery. A nunnery very far away—and who knows what would have happened on that journey? Roads nowadays are quite treacherous.”
Before Adam could fully register what his body was doing, he was on his feet as Claridge looked up at him in alarm.
Adam could see the exact second when the other man realized he had made a grave error, his eyes widening, his stumpy fingers struggling to hold the delicate cup in his hand, as they began to shake.
