Page 85 of A Marquess' Season of Secrets
“Oh, no, Your Grace!” she protested. “You mustn’t.”
Juliana’s protests fell on deaf ears as the duke held the cutlery out to her. “I am perfectly capable of doing such things, Isabella.”
“But I am the one who dropped them, Your Grace. How can I expect you to correct my clumsiness?”
“Because I wish to do it,” he said, his eyes crinkling at the edges. “Do not fret so much.”
Juliana nodded, biting her lower lip as she clasped her hands in front of her. The duke was so handsome and kind that at times she didn’t know what to do with herself in his presence. The fluttering in her belly had not ceased since he appeared out of nowhere but intensified until she felt the movement might lift her feet off the ground.
“You looked to be in a happy mood just now,” he commented. “Or perhaps excited would be the better word for it. Has anything new happened that I do not know about?”
Juliana wanted more than anything to tell the duke about the good news his sister had given her, but Lady Stratford had asked her not to breathe a word of it to anyone. Juliana had confided in Kitty, but that did not count in her books.
“Nothing, in particular, has happened, Your Grace,” she lied.
The duke tilted his head, staring hard at her. “Forgive me, but I do believe you are lying to me. What secret are you keeping from me?”
The duke’s tone was light, but his words caused a little panic in her. The man had a way of getting information out of a person, and she was worried he would manage to get the truth from her and put her in trouble with his sister.
“Well, ’tis no secret at all, Your Grace,” she said slowly. “I have recalled more of my former life, and that has naturally made me happy. I’m one step closer to finding out about my past.”
This wasn’t a true lie as she had recalled more of her life lately, but it also wasn’t the truth.
“That is good news,” he replied but didn’t sound like he meant it. “I did ask that you share any new memories with me. Perhaps you would like to do so now? We can go to the library and discuss them.”
“Oh, but I still have chores to do, Your Grace,” Juliana protested. “I do not want my personal situation to affect my work.”
“You work for me, do you not?” the duke asked.
“Yes, your Grace.”
“Precisely. If I say you can leave this work and come with me to the library, then it is perfectly acceptable for you to do so. I challenge anyone to argue this point with me.”
Juliana’s eyes widened. “No one would dare challenge you! That is not at all what I meant to imply, Your Grace.”
The duke chuckled, causing the butterflies in her belly to furiously bump into each other in excitement.
“Sometimes I rather like a challenge,” he told her. “It makes life more interesting.”
That made her frown. “But how can a servant challenge her master? Does that not go against the conduct of servitude?”
Mrs Black and Kitty had taught her everything Juliana needed to know about serving her employers from her lowly position.
At first, it seemed to go against her very nature, but attending to the duke’s needs had not been such a hardship. Her gratitude to him had made Juliana want to work harder and prove how grateful she was for his kindness.
“Who is to say that you are a mere servant?” he asked.
This was the first time Juliana had heard him imply that she might not be a commoner and wondered at the duke’s opinion on it.
“I do not understand what you mean,” she said, feigning ignorance.
“Let us go to the library, and I shall explain myself,” he said. “Set the spoons to the side for now. There is still plenty of time to return and inspect them.”
Juliana had other chores to take care of, but to refuse another request from the duke didn’t seem like the right decision. Instead, she nodded.
“Yes, Your Grace.”
The duke didn’t walk ahead of her but beside her as though they were equals. It made her a tad uncomfortable as any servant could happen across them and wonder at their behaviour. Juliana didn’t want any scandal tied to her name or that of the duke, but she was out of options. She couldn’t walk ahead of him as she instinctively knew he would adjust his pace to match hers if she tried to fall behind.
