Page 6 of Her Lion of a Duke
“My cousin has told me it is quite marvelous,” Lady Clara revealed. “Especially the Dervaux sisters.”
Lady Cecilia snorted in a most unladylike fashion, earning a warning glance from her aunt, who stood nearby.
“Yes,” Leonard agreed. “They certainly have a particular style of their own. Will you both be joining me?”
“That would be lovely!” Lady Clara beamed, and he led them there.
What he noticed, however, was that Cecilia could not quite meet his eyes. She had never been that way, even when they had first met. It was something that drew him to her, as she was one of the very few people who did not cower at his gaze.
He would have asked her if she was well if not for her cousin, who was excitedly following them. She was harmless, but Leonard knew Cecilia. She rarely discussed her feelings, especially in front of an audience. He dismissed her odd behavior, at least for the moment.
As the Dervaux sisters began singing, he wondered if she had simply been wary of their performance. If that were the case, she had every reason to be. He watched as her cousin’s expression turned from excited to shocked to pained. It almost made the event worthwhile.
Almost.
“That,” Cecilia said breathily at the end, “was not pleasant.”
“I would say they have improved considerably,” Leonard joked.
But Cecilia did not respond.
It was as though something had changed on their way to their seats; it did not make any sense at all.
Then, he heard it—the whispers in every room they entered. He saw the eyes that followed them, and he quickly realized that none of them were on the two ladies accompanying him.
He was being watchedandwhispered about.
Suddenly, Cecilia’s aunt appeared and took Clara away. She attempted to drag Cecilia with them, but when the younger lady shook herself free, her aunt left her be, not wanting to cause a scene.
“Might you know anything?” he asked gently.
Cecilia bit her lip and left the room, and he followed after her.
They navigated the hallways until they found a secluded library, and they slipped inside.
“Why do I always find myself alone with you?” he sighed.
She laughed nervously. “We have a tendency to tempt fate, yes.”
“So? What is happening?”
“It is about your brother, Your Grace.”
Leonard’s head began to spin. Henry had never been anything short of perfect, and the idea that he could have done anything to stir gossip so long after his death was absurd.
“But Henry?—”
“And Clara,” she added quickly, and he felt silent. “It is not only your brother who is facing scandal, but also my cousin.”
“What on earth do you mean? They have never put a foot wrong.”
“I know. That is what I do not understand. I have only heard whispers myself. I was hoping that you would know more, but I forgot that you do not read the scandal sheets either.”
“If only we were more like them,” he grumbled, leaning against a desk. “Do you know how bad it is?”
“In all honesty, we can make assumptions. You know the rumors about yourself and your brother. I can only think that my cousin is wrapped in all of it because I am still unmarried. The ton knows who I am, and they are all aware of my reputation. I could well have destroyed her chances before she had had a chance to try.”
She slumped against a low bookshelf and slid down to the floor, and Leonard crouched beside her. She sighed deeply, turning to look up at him.
