Page 48 of Unraveled By the Duke
All of that was bad enough, but Celia also had to contend with her husband.
We married to kill a scandal and ensure respectability. This will undo everything. I cannot guess how Alexander will react. Will he insist that Aurelia leave the house? If so, I will leave with her!
But that was an unpleasant prospect. With both of his daughters disgraced, Cornelius Frid may send them both to Uncle Cuthbert and Aunt Hilda. A life of strict rules that was not far from prison, in Celia’s mind. She did not doubt that they were good Christians, but their zealotry when it came to religion did not make it comfortable to be a house guest.
“That must not happen. Aurelia would not be able to cope. But where else would we go? Father has our dowries—we have no other source of income.”
She talked to herself as she walked, wringing her hands and trying to find a way out of the problem.
As she reached the door to Alexander’s rooms, Peggy came hurrying out, clutching a letter. She curtsied hurriedly when she saw Celia.
“Begging your pardon, Your Grace. But His Grace has given strict instructions for this letter to be sent out immediately, and I must let Tom know that he’s to deliver it.”
Tom was the footman who had come with the carriage from Cheverton, and now to Finsbury after the disaster at Almack’s.
“Very well, Peggy. Who is he writing to with such urgency?” Celia asked.
Peggy glanced at the closed door and then back at her. “He has sworn me to secrecy, Your Grace,” she whispered.
“Even from his wife?” Celia pressed with a raised eyebrow.
“Yes, Your Grace. It has me all in a tizz, I don’t mind telling you. I’ve almost dropped it once already!”
With that, the letter slipped from her fingers to the bare floorboards. Celia smiled and bent to retrieve it. She glanced at it, seeing the nameArchibald Wainwright, Fenchurch Street. She handed the letter back with the address facing down.
“Hurry along, Peggy,” she urged, receiving a grateful smile from the old maid as she hurried away, her shoes clicking on the floorboards.
Why is he writing to that man with such urgency and at this hour? Who is he?
Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door and then opened it. Beyond was a dark and empty room, bereft of furniture or life. The fireplace was dark and cold, and the walls were bare.
She saw a door on the far side of the room, a sliver of golden light shining beneath it. She went to it, knocked again, and opened it a second later.
Beyond was a study. A fire glowed in the hearth, as did two lamps on either end of a desk. Behind the desk sat Alexander. He was writing rapidly, glancing up as Celia entered.
“How is Aurelia?” he asked.
Celia stopped halfway across the room. A dusty, threadbare rug covered the floorboards, doing little to dispel the cold that seemed to cling to every room. As though years of neglect had led to ice forming in the core of every board and brick.
“She is beside herself. I have given her some hot milk to calm her and settled her in my room to try and sleep. I’m not sure she will. She is very afraid of this evening’s consequences.”
Alexander leaned back in his seat, drumming his fingers on the top of the desk. “She is right to be afraid. This kind of scandal is difficult enough to manage when the couple can get married. But even if I thought he was amenable to it, I would not wish for Aurelia to be shackled to a man like Phillip Grimaire.”
Celia was surprised by his reaction.
On the ride back to Finsbury House, he had been angry, reticent to talk in the carriage, and even once they had arrived, he had immediately fled to his rooms. Celia had been fully occupied with comforting her sister and had little mental capacity to spare to wonder about his mood. But she had feared the worst. Now, though, she could see compassion in his expression.
“Who is he?” she asked.
“The son of a financier. One to whom I owe a great deal of money. And a more vindictive viper you could not hope to find. He will not walk away from the humiliation he received this evening.”
“But surely if his father is a respectable man, then—” Celia began.
Alexander raised a hand. “His father is wealthy enough that scandal will not concern him overmuch. He is immune to scandal because so many of those who would look down upon him need his money. How did she come to be involved with such a rogue?”
Celia heaved a sigh. “All I could glean is that Aurelia met him through Miss Dunnings. They were introduced at a garden party, where Miss Dunnings agreed to chaperone Aurelia. I should like to know what Lavinia was thinking, facilitating the introduction.”
Alexander smiled mirthlessly before rising from his desk and rounding it. He leaned against the edge, folding his arms over his chest and looking down at her. She gazed back resolutely.
