Page 18 of A Duchess Bound
Pontoun sighed and shook his head. He dropped his hand and instead simply walked alongside Gerard, not speaking once again.
“Did you like Lady Bridget?” Gerard asked. “She is quite a lovely lady, is she not?”
“She is. Very charming.”
He caught the note of hesitation in his friend’s voice. “But?” Gerard prompted.
“She is too young and innocent. How can such a lady possibly know what love is?” Pontoun asked.
“I am beginning to think that you are making this whole matter unnecessarily complicated. But good luck with your search.”
The more Pontoun spoke, the more Gerard felt his friend was tilting at windmills, seeing common peasants and imagining them as beautiful maidens waiting for a knight to ride away with them.
Gerard found himself wryly grateful that he was far more interested inlustingfor ladies than loving them.Lustwas fantasizing about beautiful ladies.Lustwas far more achievable than love, and it did not require such uncertainties. If his lovers decided that they no longer desired him, what did it matter? He could always find another willing lady.
“And to you, I suppose,” Pontoun said. “It seems to me as though you have taken great interest in Lady Dorothy.”
“She is an amusing pastime.”
And she could be a delightful conquest. He shivered, thinking about that night in the garden when he had held his hand over her mouth and silenced her. How much sweeter would that moment have been if they were in the privacy of his bedchamber? Or even his study?
Gerard’s trousers grew tight in anticipation. It would take some time to win the spinster’s affections, but he was a patient man. She might not be the sweet flower that Lady Bridget was, but she was nonetheless rare.
CHAPTER 7
When the Duke of Greenway had accused her of wounding him, Dorothy’s knees had gone weak. The remark had not really moved her. In truth, Dorothy had not been particularly impressed by that. Rakes were known for being dramatic and saying sweet words, which they never really meant. She would not have been surprised to learn that His Grace had expressed similar sentiments to other ladies.
Dorothy sighed and shook her head. The encounter at the park had happened the day before, and Dorothy had been unable to stop thinking about their verbal sparring ever since. The conversation kept running through her mind, as though it were a play that she was watching.
“Sister?” Bridget’s voice came from behind. “Are you still awake?”
“Yes.”
Dorothy sat at her desk, which was littered with scandal sheets. She had already begun compiling a list of all Bridget’s potential suitors, of which there were many. She was doing her best to sort them all intoacceptable,unacceptable, and thoseto be considered at a later date.
The Duke of Greenway was the name at the very top of Dorothy’sunacceptablelist. She had written his name with unnecessary fury, nearly tearing the paper in her haste to make certainthat manwas deemed unacceptable.
“Dory,” Bridget said, her steps light as she approached. “Even the most dedicated mama would not spend so much time and effort exploring suitors.”
Dorothy drummed her fingers on the wooden desk. Bridget’s voice seemed to have awakened something in her, for a wave of exhaustion swept suddenly over her. Dorothy’s eyes burned, and a strange fog seemed to settle over her senses.
“We must ensure that you marry the best possible suitor,” Dorothy said.
“But you have been at this desk all day,” Bridget said, striding around the desk and perching in a nearby chair. “My dear sister, I appreciate your efforts, but you must rest on occasion.”
“I am not tired.”
Bridget was likely right, but Dorothy had failed Catherine when she went on the marriage mart. Catherine had managed to marry a respectable man anyway, and she was happy with him. But that had been due to chance, rather than to Dorothy’s efforts.
What would happen if Bridget was not so fortunate? It was better to work hard and guarantee her sister’s success, rather than face a potential failure.
“You have not even opened your mail,” Bridget mused. “Someone has sent you a letter.”
Dorothy hummed. She had vague recollections of receiving a letter, but she had been too invested in investigating Lord Hart to give it more than a glance.
“I am certain that the letter is not nearly as important as your marriage,” Dorothy said. “If it is any consolation, my hours of work have not been in vain. I have considerably limited the number of prospective suitors for you.”
Bridget raised an eyebrow and read the list upside down. “Was it truly necessary to add the Duke of Greenway? It is obvious to everyone that you detest him. I daresay we do not need a reminder of his unsuitability.”
