Page 12 of Tamed By a Duke
"Oh?" Charlotte raised an eyebrow in question.
"He will have to be one of the Upstarts."
"One of the what?"
"The Upstarts," Julia said, raising an eyebrow in surprise, "Honestly, Cat, how can you not have heard of them? They're only the three most eligible single men in all of England!"
Charlotte racked her brain to see if she could recall having ever heard mention of these upstarts. Her Grandmama was forever wittering on about this lord or that, but Charlotte had developed a selective deafness whenever the topic of marriageable men came up. And she was not one for the gossip pages in the broadsheets, preferring instead the meat of political articles.
"If they haven't made a splash in the House of Lords, then I'm afraid that they have slipped my notice," Charlotte said, feeling decidedly pious. She took great pride in the fact that she was above theton's vapid obsession with the aristocracy.
"The only splash Lord Montague has ever made, was when he ended up in the Serpentine after losing control of his Phaeton during a race," Julia said, with a sniff of distaste, "I feel we should leave him off the list. You're far too good for the likes of him."
Charlotte had never heard her friend discuss anyone in such disparaging terms, and she was about to enquire if there was some history between the pair, when Violet interrupted.
"Orsino is far too formidable a figure to try and fool," Violet said, her brow furrowing into a frown, "Honestly, Cat, he is a beast of a man. He's at least six foot four, with a fearsome scowl. I saw him riding in the park last week and it was like witnessing Hades emerge from the underworld; he's that frightening. You don't want to end up like poor Persephone now, do you?"
"I hardly think Orsino will abduct Cat and make her his wife," Julia interrupted, rolling her eyes with amusement, "Though you are right, Violet, he is quite fearsome. I wouldn't like for Charlotte to have to cross him. We shall strike him from the list, which just leaves..."
Charlotte waited with bated breath for her friend to reveal the name of the man she must try and entice, feeling slightly nervous. If the Upstarts consisted of a Hellion and a Beast, what would their third member be like?
"The Duke of Penrith," Julia finished, with a satisfied smile, "He is everything you said you can tolerate; young, local, handsome and robust. The only problem I can envisage, is that he has a reputation as being rather proud. You might have to bite your tongue for a few weeks..."
Violet gave a rather unladylike snort of laughter at Julia's comment, which she hastily tried to disguise as a cough when she caught sight of Charlotte's outraged expression.
"Forgive me," Violet said, though her lips were still smiling, "I just find the idea of you biting your tongue for anyone amusing. You are wonderfully headstrong, Charlotte, and so certain of your opinions—"
"Stubborn, one might say," Julia added, with a mischievous smile.
"I am not stubborn," Charlotte stubbornly replied, before dissolving into laughter as she realised that she had just proved their point. She was stubborn and headstrong, her father had been calling her that for years, but when she firmly believed in something, she would defend it to the end.
"We adore you for your resolute spirit, Cat," Julia said firmly, "And would never wish for you to change, but you see Penrith is..."
"Is what?" Charlotte probed, as Julia trailed off doubtfully.
"Well, he's a Tory," Julia said, whispering the word 'Tory' as though it was a particularly distasteful epithet—which to Charlotte, it was. "And I know how strongly you feel about politics."
"I can bite my tongue," Charlotte said firmly.
"And not your thumb, if he utters something outrageously elitist?"
"If it means that Bianca can make her come-out and I might be allowed to retire to gentle spinsterhood in peace, then I can do anything I put my mind to," Charlotte replied, tilting her chin proudly.
"Wonderful," Julia smiled, "Now we just have to devise a plan to get you two to meet. I know my brothers have seen him riding in the park in the mornings. Perhaps you might bump into him there?"
"Will he not be at Almack's?" Charlotte asked with a frown; she did not like the idea of having to stalk a duke about town.
"Pfft," Violet replied, "The Upstarts would never deign to set foot in the place. Their elusiveness is part of their desirability."
"So, I have set my sights on a slippery duke. Wonderful," Charlotte said with a sigh, turning her head as the door to the drawing room was thrown open.
"Ah, if it isn't my Wilful Wallflowers," Sebastian, Violet's twin brother cried, as he spied the three ladies inside.
"Today we're Witty, Sebastian," Violet replied, with a sniff, at the same time as Julia exclaimed, "We are not wilful!"
"You three are the most wilful, obstinate ladies that I have ever had the pleasure to meet," Sebastian said, as he sauntered into the room and reached for one of the iced fancies on the table. "Not one of you has bent to your relatives' scheming to marry you off in all the three years I have known you. A more impressive display of iron-will I am yet to encounter. I tip my hat to you all."
Sebastian gave a theatrical bow before them, snatching another fancy from the table on his journey back to an upright position. Charlotte smiled; Sebastian was always filled with a restless, exuberant energy, which was quite in contrast to his sister's more quiet character. Like his sister, however, Sebastian took a rather unconventional approach to life; preferring the company of artists, writers and actors, over the other young-bloods his age. He was also the only male that Charlotte had ever heard quoteA Vindication of the Rights of Woman, which had endeared him to her even more.
