Page 4 of The Truth about the Duke
With a snort, Lord Kendall rolled his eyes. “I hardly think so, my friend. To fall in love is, I think, quite a wonderful situation.”
“But not one that I desire for myself,” Henry stated, firmly. “I have no intention of letting any sort of emotion cloud my judgment. I will not let myself feel even a sliver of attraction or interest towards any young lady, for then I shall quite lose myself and, no doubt, make a great mess of all that I have determined!”
Lord Kendall came a little closer to Henry and, much to Henry’s irritation, set one hand on his shoulder and spoke in an almost fatherly tone, as though to suggest that Henry had very little idea as to what he was saying.
“My friend, to fall in love is the very thing I am striving for and certainly, to my mind, is not something that ought to be mocked.”
“I do not mock it,” Henry answered, a little sharply, “but I state only that it is nothing thatIdesire for myself, for I see no worth in it!”
“Then you are mistaken.” Lord Kendall dropped his hand and smiled wryly. “I know that my statement frustrates you but you shall not take the hope of love and affection from my heart.”
Henry lifted his chin. “And you shall not take the hope of finding a suitable young lady to fulfill my requirements from me either.”
Letting out a sigh, Lord Kendall looked away. He did not speak for some minutes and Henry’s shoulders slowly lowered, recognizing the tension that had been built between himself and Lord Kendall. Tension that he did not wish to linger.
“It is not something that we need discuss again.” Lord Kendall turned back towards Henry, who quickly nodded. “We both have very different expectations, do we not?” He tipped his head. “Do you think you shall tell your young lady – whomever she may turn out to be – about the missing heirlooms? A wife might expect to be able to wear the family jewels one day.”
Henry grimaced. “No, I do not think I need to. That is a story from the past and, besides which, I have plenty of other jewels which she might wear, should she so desire it.”
Lord Kendall nodded slowly. “I suppose that is wise.” He smiled. “I will not ask you about such a thing again. I know that it is a source of frustration to you.”
“It is, but that is solely because I do not know what happened to them!” Henry sighed and shook his head. “My father only told me that they were lost and any further explanation was never given. It does make me feel a littlelessof a gentleman tohave no heirlooms to give to my bride but I am certain she will understand.”
A gleam came into Lord Kendall’s eye. “Unlessherrequirement for a husband is that she have diamonds given to her on her wedding day.” Seeing Henry’s scowl, Lord Kendall winced and then laughed, forcing Henry’s lips to curve regardless. “Forgive me, I have already said that we will not speak of it again and here I am making light of it all! We have differing expectations, as I have said, and that is quite all right.”
“Indeed, but that does not mean that one is better than the other,” Henry answered, reaching out to shake Lord Kendall’s hand. “I do not want to damage our friendship because of this.”
Lord Kendall grasped his hand firmly. “Nor do I.” He smiled as he released Henry’s grip. “Let me say, however, that I shall do what I can to support you in your endeavors, despite my thoughts on your list of requirements.”
Henry grinned, relieved that the tension had melted away. “Thank you, my friend. I would state that I could do the very same to support you but alas, I feel as though my understanding of such things is limited and will do nothing but cause trouble and confusion, were I to attempt it.”
With a guffaw, Lord Kendall reached for another glass of punch. “Indeed! I value your willingness, certainly, though I think it would be best if you did nothing whatsoever when it comes to my search for a young lady to fall in love with.”
“Then it is settled,” Henry answered, as they both began to make their way back to the ballroom. “And let us hope we both find success by the end of the Season. I do not think that I can endure another London Season such as this one and I have only been present in London for less than a sennight!”
Lord Kendall laughed aloud again and Henry’s grin lingered, though inwardly, he could do nothing but think of what his friend had said about love.
I must pray that I will never have even an inkling of affection when it comes to my search for a bride,he thought, his eyes running over the crowd of guests before him.That would be the very worst situation I could ever find myself in, I am sure.His scowl slowly returned as he considered what would happen should he find his heart affected.It must never happen. And I must do all that I can to prevent it.
Chapter Two
“But you know that I have no desire to attend the ball!”
Lady Hampshire sighed loudly and turned her head away in clear frustration. “Lydia, I will hear no more of your complaints! Your father and I are well aware that you have no desire to be present here in London, that you have no interest in being presented to the King and you do not want to be a part of society. We have heard it from you almost every day since the very first moment that we stated it was to be your come out. Yet still, you do not seem to understand that what you do not desire is to come about regardless of your feelings on the matter!”
Taking in her appearance, Lydia let out a quiet sigh, trying to tell herself that her protests would, in some way, make a difference even though – as her mother had only just pointed out – they had not done anything as yet. The cream gown was not a color that suited her, she considered, given her reddish curls and green eyes. Yet, it was the only one that her mother would consider Lydia wearing, despite her complaints. Apparently, a debutante did not wear anything other than pale colors, thoughLydia herself would have much preferred a dark shade of green or some such thing.
“Now.” Her mother came towards her and took her hands in both of hers, a stern look in her eyes. “You will listen to me, Lydia, or I will have your father come to speak with you.”
Lydia shrunk just a little, fully aware that her love of learning, of reading and exploring, was not something that her father had ever encouraged. The only person she had ever had to champion her in that way had been her elder brother, Rupert. Though given that he had recently married and taken hold of his own estate, Lydia had no one to support her. She felt the loss of his presence keenly, especially in moments like this.
“Your father and I have expectations of you, my dear.” Even though her mother spoke kind words, there was no softness in her tone, no gentleness or even a hint of understanding. “You arenotto do anything that would make anyone here in London realize how much of a bluestocking you are. Do I make myself quite clear?”
Lydia nodded, turning her head away.
“You are to speakonlywhen spoken to, you will acknowledge and greet every gentleman and lady that you are introduced to in the correct manner and you will not let a single word about your recent… ” Her lip curled in distaste. “Your recentlearningcome of your mouth.”
“Yes, Mama.”
