Page 73 of Her Lion of a Duke
“Where is she today?” Levi asked. “You mentioned that she was not home.”
“She is with Lady Beatrice, who is in the country with her family.”
“That poor girl. She is a wonderful lady, but with a mother like that…”
“I have never spoken with Lady Jennings. She attended my party, but other than an introduction, she kept her distance.”
“And be thankful for that. I have only seen her on occasion, but whenever I have spoken to her, I have felt quite ill. She cannot stand her daughter.”
Leonard raised an eyebrow, puzzled.
He had always thought that Lady Beatrice was delightful. She was young and perhaps not what polite society expected a lady to look and act like, but he would not change her for anything.
“Whyever not? She is a good friend.”
“Yes, and a mother does not take kindly to her daughter being a friend of gentlemen. A mother expects her daughter to be a wife, and thus far she has not even so much as been courted.”
Levi’s words could have been kinder, but Leonard knew his friend did not mean to be cruel. They all knew what he meant; a lady’s role was to marry well, and if she did not, then she was considered a failure.
It did not matter that Beatrice made excellent cakes and that she was kinder than almost every lady he had ever met. She was unmarried, and therefore her family saw her as a burden.
“I have no doubt that she will find a match,” Leonard stated firmly. “Someone with a nature like hers can only find the purest of love. It is only right.”
“And what sort of love do you want, Pridefield?”
“None at all. I enjoy the friendship I have with my wife, and I do not need anything more. I know that the two of you are romantic, but you must remember that I did not plan on finding love. I just wanted a suitable match.”
“So you married Lady Cecilia, the bluestocking,” Levi snorted. “Come now, Pridefield. You will not fool us that easily.”
Leonard would have been furious at anyone referring to his wife as a bluestocking except his two friends, as they had both known her long enough to say it affectionately. They both respected Cecilia a great deal, as he did.
“Even if I did love her, or some such thing, there is no guarantee that telling her will change anything. If it is so clear to you all,then she will have noticed it, too. As she has not said anything, why should I?”
“Because you are the man,” Morgan argued. “Act like it before she does.”
Leonard thought about that when he was alone in his study that evening. He was to meet with the private investigator, but he was not in the mood.
For the past few days, he had changed his mind so many times about the investigation that he no longer knew what to think. He wanted to protect his family, but he did not want to have a large disturbance. He wanted to clear his name, but he wanted to focus on his marriage and all the good it was doing him.
He knew that the right thing was to see the investigation through, so that they could live the rest of their lives in peace, but every time he stood up to leave, he sat back down as if he did not want to know at all.
Something was keeping him from leaving, and his frustration quickly grew. With one final push, he managed to leave the study, step out of the manor, and climb into his carriage.
The dread in his chest coiled tighter as he reached the village. He knocked on the door, and just as he considered leaving, it opened.
“Your Grace,” Mr. Livingston greeted. “Come in.”
Reluctantly, Leonard followed him inside and sat at the table. Leonard could see a hint of triumph in the man’s eyes, but there was something insidious about it.
He had found Felix Gray.
“I am pleased that you have come,” Mr. Livingston began. “Over the last few days, I made some troubling discoveries. I did not wish to interrupt the festivities, but I needed to speak with you.”
“Before you do,” Leonard said quickly, “is what you are about to tell me dreadful?”
“It is not what I would have wanted to hear, believe me. I have uncovered many betrayals in my lifetime, but some stay with you. This, I believe, may be one of them.”
That was not what Leonard wished to hear. Ideally, it would have been someone he hardly knew, who was envious of his standing in Society and wanted to ruin him for it. He would have understood that, as he had his own moments of madness, but for it to be a betrayal…
