Page 26 of The Duchess' Ultimatum
“She is not ordinarily so comfortable with strangers,” he said, the smile growing just a fraction. “And I can’t remember the last time I saw her laugh like that around somebody she has only just met.”
“Oh.” Penelope blinked, not at all understanding what he was trying to say. “She is lovely. I am glad to have met her.”
“Me too,” he said, the smile remaining on his lips. “More than you realize…”
Penelope waited for him to say something else, because she had no idea what was going on or why he suddenly appeared so happy. She could see that he wanted to say more, a thought forming behind his dark eyes.
“Tomorrow,” he said finally, the smile dropping, his serious façade returning. “You and I, it is time we begin to discuss the arrangements of this party.”
“We… it is?” Penelope gaped.
He nodded. “I don’t intend to perform by half-measures, and if it is to be as I wish, the two of us will need to work together. I assume that meets your approval.”
“It does…” she said hesitantly.
“Good.” Another short nod. “Once you break your fast, find me in my office and we will begin.” His lips thinned for an instant, as if he had something more to say, but then he turned on the spot and hurried back inside without so much as a second glance spared for Penelope.
And once more, Penelope was left alone. Staring stupidly at where the duke had just been, her mind reaching for an explanation that she didn’t even know where to start with if she was to find it. Something had just happened between herself and Dorian, something significant – enough that he sought to change his mind from nowhere.
And for what felt like the hundredth time, Penelope was forced to admit how little she knew about her husband. Only for once, it did not feel quite so depressing and resolute. In fact, felt to her like something was changing between them, a step forward taken which could lead to… Penelope had no idea!
She was, however, curious to find out. And that had to count for something.
CHAPTER EIGHT
It was a strange few days that followed Dorian’s decision to start working closely with Penelope – a decision that even three days later he was still struggling to properly justify to himself.
Oh sure, it was easy enough to claim that he did so because he had no choice, knowing that Penelope wasn’t going to simply give in so he might as well do as he promised. What was more, he needed the party to go well and with her helping him there was a greater chance that it would.
A relatively simple justification, but not even close to the truth. As painful as it is for me to admit such a thing to myself…
He knew how dangerous it was to risk working so closely with his wife, but Dorian’s mind had been changed when he saw Penelope and his sister laughing together in the garden. Try as he might, he could not remember a time that he’d seen his sister so comfortable with a stranger, so willing to socialize and beherself as he knew she could do if only she would give it a chance. It made his heart swell, and it told him that everything he was doing was right and for the best.
What was more, he reasoned that having Penelope around for at least a little while longer could only be a good thing… for his sister, of course. Not for him.
But he had to be careful. Still, he was determined to keep Penelope at arm's length and not allow her close to him or his personal life, to not give the impression he wanted her there. So, as they started to work together, spending hours a day in his office to finalize the details of the party, he was sure to always keep the conversation to the point and surface level.
It is as if she works for me. She is not my friend. She is not my wife. And when this is done, telling her to leave will be the expected thing – she will want to go, knowing there is no future here.
This was easy to do at first, and it seemed to him that Penelope was of the same mind. But as the days wore on, and as they spent more time together, it became clear that such a state of being could not possibly last.
And so it was that when Penelope finally broke the silent pact, it did not come as a huge surprise. Even if Dorian remained steadfast in his determination to act as if it was.
“It’s for your sister, isn’t it?” Penelope asked him suddenly, out of nowhere it felt like.
“Excuse me?”
“This party, everything you are doing – that you have done. It’s for Barbara.” She looked across the table at him, one eyebrow raised, an expression worn on her face that told him lying outright would be a fool’s errand.
“What makes you say that?” he asked.
She rolled her eyes. “Because I am not a complete dolt, even if you wish that I was. I have two eyes, two ears, and a working brain. Plus…” She winked. “I am rather perceptive. You might have noticed by now.”
“And modest.”
“The most modest,” she laughed. “Come now, tell me truly. This party is for your sister’s benefit, is it not? Even if she so clearly does not want it.”
“She does not know what she wants,” he grumbled. “But try telling her that.”
