Page 11 of A Whisper of Desire
Sebastian sighed. “I want her happy. Outside of Rutherford, I’m not sure what will make her happy.” He heard Sebastian open the door.
“Rutherford has a mistress, and has to marry to unlock funds his dear father is withholding. I wonder why, if he is such a golden boy, his father has to withhold his funds.”
The door slammed shut and Maitland turned to find a very pissed-off Sebastian still in the room.
“You bastard. If you knew this, why did you not come to me?”
“I only found out last night at the ball.” He walked until he stood toe-to-toe with Sebastian. “Why did you not dig deeper when a man came courting your sister?”
Sebastian was breathing heavily. He spun and sank down to sit on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands. “Christ, I’ve been an idiot. I’ve been so caught up in my marriage and finding love, I didn’t look past the emotion. I simply took Rutherford for his word.” He raised his head, his eyes filled with pain. “How am I going to tell Marisa? It will hurt her.”
“I’ve already told her.” At Sebastian’s confused frown, Maitland added, “Is that not what a friend would do for another friend?”
Sebastian stared straight ahead.
“Look, I think you’re underestimating both me and Marisa. We talked while you were gone. She’s a sensible young woman. She understands her choices. Out of respect for my friendship with you, I will abide by her decision. She has already said she won’t marry Rutherford, and if she is prepared to weather the storm that will follow this scandal, then I will gladly wear the dishonor that follows. I’m a duke, after all. Even if you don’t think I’m good enough for your sister, there are many who would disagree.”
With that, he walked from the room, his pride in tatters. For a man who had stood by his side through most of his adult life, Sebastian’s opposition to his marriage with Marisa was humbling. Did all the Libertine Scholars think like that? Had they spied the type of man he really was? Did they see his father in him?
If they had sisters, would they also think a match with him was not desirable?
Well, he’d prove them all wrong. If Marisa chose him, he was going to make her the happiest woman that walked this earth. He wondered what that would cost him.
—
Marisa could still hear Helen cursing under her breath as she stomped around Marisa’s bedchamber. Finally Helen swung to face her.
“I’m going to spit on Rutherford the next time I see him. If I were a man, I’d call him out. I’m surprised Sebastian hasn’t already done so.”
“It’s difficult to do that when the said lady Rutherford has supposedly dishonored has been caught in bed with the Duke of Lyttleton.”
Helen sighed. “I suppose.” Then she looked at Marisa and said, “But still.” She sat down on the bed and said, “This love business is scary. How are you to ever know if what a man professes is true?”
Marisa turned back to the mirror and continued to brush her hair. She’d been thinking that exact thought. Prior to her brother’s marriage, Marisa had not wanted to fall in love. Her parents had fallen madly in love as youngsters and married. When the love died, petty jealousies and attention-seeking tactics saw her parents fighting each other like two rampaging bulls. Each had taken a lover, trying to hurt the other.
If that was love, she’d wanted nothing of it. It was only seeing Sebastian’s and Beatrice’s love for each other that made Marisa realize her parents hadn’t loved each other at all. It had merely been attraction. Once that had worn off, they didn’t even like each other.
Rutherford had lied and she’d fallen for it. Her confidence was shattered. How could she trust any man again?
“So, what are you going to do? Weather the scandal or marry Lyttleton? Sebastian says you have to make a decision by dinner, because the scandal is the talk of thetonalready.”
Marisa put the brush down and looked into the mirror. She was only twenty. She could weather the storm for a few years and then try to find love. She knew it would take a special man to fall in love with a fallen wanton who was known to have slipped into a duke’s bed. Still, it would appear it was hard enough finding a man to love her when she was the belle of the ball. Now that her reputation was tainted, it would be even harder.
Could she risk going through the humiliation of being fooled again? It would seem her dowry was a bigger prize than her heart, and that stung.
She squeezed her eyes shut, trying not to imagine what it would be like to be no longer welcome anywhere respectable.
“His Grace is quite handsome, even if he is a bit of a cold fish.”
Her eyes flew open and found Helen’s in the mirror. She didn’t think the duke was cold. The kiss in the ballroom had scorched heat, and in the bedroom…Her heart beat a bit faster. He was also kinder and gentler than she would have thought.
“He is—nice.”
Helen’s face fell. “Nice. Oh, that’s disappointing. I’d hoped you felt some kind of attraction to His Grace.”
She swiveled round on her chair, facing Helen. “I haven’t reallynoticedhim before. I know he’s visited our house many, many times, and we’ve had Christmas celebrations at his estate, but he was always Sebastian’s distant and aloof friend.”
Helen shrugged. “He’s very clever. A genius with numbers, so I have heard. I know he is a formidable gambler and that Sebastian uses him for all his investment decisions.”
