Page 57 of A Bride for the Icy Duke
The evening had gone well—surprisingly so, given Alexander’s mood when they had first arrived, and his obvious anger at seeing her smile at Lord Scunthorpe—but Lydia should have known that could not last.
In the end, it was a gentleman Lydia presumed had been a childhood friend of both Samuel and Alexander. He was a portly man, overly jovial, and evidently not a formal member of theton. He was too much the country gentleman, ingratiating himself with all the genteel members of the dinner party while revealinghis distinct lack of good breeding. Lydia took a dislike to him immediately.
And, she suspected, he had done the same to her; she had not invited him to a single one of her dinners or other gatherings. The simple reason was that although he had called when word got around of her being at the house, he had spent the entire visit making her feel uncomfortable, and she had seen no reason to prolong the relationship.
Now, however, he was finally invited, and he made it plain that he was in his element.
And thatshe, Duchess of Halston, had been neglecting her duty in neglecting him.
“What a joy it is to see so many familiar faces!” he chortled, sending her a malicious glance. “And all gathered together in this way. I confess, I have missed seeing this society all together.” He gave an overly dramatic sigh. “I am sure you can imagine my distress.”
Although Alexander stood beside her, he had a faraway expression and a tension in his brow that spoke of pain. Lydia didn’t attempt to explain the situation to him; he might have understood her predicament, but she had no faith in him to handle the situation with delicacy.
“I have not seen you much, Mr. Umbridge,” one of the older ladies of the party said, giving him a chance to look wounded.
“No indeed, and I wish I could say for certain the reason. I must have done something to offend our most illustrious guest, although on that matter, I should button my lips lest I once again cause offense.”
Lydia set her jaw. Mr. Godwin and Eliza were talking quietly in a corner, her hand in his, and Marie was smiling at her husband from opposite ends of the sofa. Neither of her friends would be much help here. Having grown up in the area, they knew Mr. Umbridge well, and knew his tendency to indulge in all forms of drama, toeing the line ofacceptablethe entire time.
Her ignoring him had been the biggest blow to his ego she could have conceived, and of course, he hadn’t forgiven her for it. She expected there was very little more she could have done to offend him than pretending he didn’t exist. At least if she had publicly snubbed him or spread rumors about him in some fashion, he could have had the satisfaction of knowing he had made an enemy of her.
The fact that she seemed to give his existence no consideration in the slightest irked, she could tell.
“Your Grace,” Mr. Umbridge crowed to Alexander, stirring him out of whatever contemplation he had given way to. “You have been absent from this part of the country for quite some time. It is a relief to have you back.” He smiled, evidently expecting Alexander to say something favorable to this ingratiating behavior.
Alexander merely looked him up and down. “I was not aware my absence had been so keenly missed,” he said with barely concealed impatience in his voice.
“Oh yes! There are those of us who remember you from boyhood, Your Grace.”
Alexander stiffened so abruptly, Lydia glanced at him. But his face was like stone.
“Along time agonow,” was all he mumbled, but Lydia had the impression he was holding back in some way. Perhaps he had taken as much of a dislike to Mr. Umbridge asshehad.
More interestingly, she wondered how much Mr. Umbridge remembered from back then. She had been too young to be out in society much, but no doubt the community at large knew of her existence. And, granted, Alexander had been older than her and remained in the community longer, but was it possible that Mr. Umbridge had known her father? Her mother?
Suddenly, she ached for this information, as though it were a part of her history she could reclaim. A part of her parents left unmined. In returning to the area, she had not sought out any aspect of her old life save for her friends, and now she wished she had.
“Your mother, you know, often invited me for dinners at the manor,” Mr. Umbridge continued, still to Alexander. “Yet since your marriage, I have not been there once.”
Alexander’s jaw was still clenched. “Is that so?” he muttered as though through gritted teeth.
“I have heard of the duchess’s generosity, indeed, but I have yet toseeit.” He grinned at Lydia, but she could see the falseness of it and the coldness of his eyes. Across the room, Eliza had caught sight of them, and by the look on her face, she knew that the scene must be unpleasant.
Perhaps Mr. Godwin would throw him out.
Unlikely, but she could dream.
“I have kept my parties thus far small,” Lydia replied with the veil of a smile. It was almost the truth—she had not invited everyone. As a duchess, after all, she felt it was perfectly within her rights to restrict the guest list to those she felt most comfortable with, or whom she felt it was her responsibility to look after.
Others, such as Mr. Umbridge, she did not feel like welcoming.
Mr. Umdbridge’s smile hardened. There were titters around, but Lydia couldn’t look away from the maliciousness in his gaze.
“I recall how surprising it was when the duke brought home his new wife,” he began. “There was a time—oh, many years ago now—when we had all expected there to be another duchess on the duke’s arm.” He lowered his voice. “But that was such a tragedy.Some of us believed he would never marry. But here you are, of course. And we must accept you as you are.”
Lydia had never gone from dislike to detestation so quickly. But it was Alexander who stepped forward, towering over the smaller man.
“I recall you from my childhood, too,” he started, his voice low and dangerous. “I recall how you went out of your way to make others feel small so you could have a chance to look big. A decade has passed, and yet nothing has changed. You are still the same, small man you have ever been, and you will never have a chance to grow beyond it.” He glanced at Mr. Godwin as the other man approached. “I find your choice of guests troublesome, Samuel. Please excuse me.” He inclined his head in a bow to Mr. Godwin, ignoring Mr. Umbridge entirely, and strode away.
