Page 21 of Disguised Desires of a Scarred Duke
William stuck his arm out the window of his drawing room and felt the humidity growing thicker by the minute.
“Those look like rain clouds moving in, Mr Black,” Edward teased as he gathered two large umbrellas from the wooden rack by the door.
“That’s what I’m hoping for, Mr Montrose,” William answered with a wink.
“So, what happens when people finally discover that the Duke of Ashbourn’s estate agent is actually the Duke of Ashbourn? Have you thought about how to recover from that inevitable revelation, Your Grace?” Edward fastened his coat and studied Willam with a look of true concern.
“I’ll be long gone by then,” William said, then looked away quickly to avoid revealing his own worry about that secret getting out. Or, even worse, if Eleanor found out before he had a chance to tell her himself.
“Now let’s go make Mr Phillips wish he were waterproof.”
Chapter 10
Eleanor felt her skin crawl as she loosely held Cecil’s arm. He droned on and on about his money-making ventures, all of which sounded so over the top they could hardly be real.
Thankfully, Regina was holding Eleanor’s other arm to keep them both steady in the company of such an incurable rake. He was one with no redeeming qualities that she had been able to determine in all their time together.
She had agreed to this promenade with Cecil for two important reasons. First, she trusted that William and Edward would intervene and join them in Cecil’s place. Second, because many other people were milling about in Kensington Gardens, she and Regina would never be fully alone with Mr Phillips.
Eleanor would never put herself or her beloved sister in the position ever again.
Truth be told, she was also looking forward to witnessing Mr Phillips being put in his place. Knowing that Anthony wanted to protect her and her family from such a man made it difficult to ignore her growing feelings for Mr Black.
At night, he was her ruggedly handsome fantasy pirate who licked the sea salt from her skin. But by day, he was becoming her most cherished confidant who made her feel respected and wanted and safe.
She knew there was no way Lady Whitfield would ever let Eleanor marry a duke’s estate agent or any other non-peer who came to call.
But sometimes, a young woman had to find a way to have what she wanted, no matter who claimed to rule her world.
While they strolled and Eleanor ignored most of what Cecil rambled on about, her friend, Lucy Charter, walked by with her husband. The big look of shock on Lucy’s face at seeing Eleanor on Cecil’s arm had to have been visible as far as the heavens above.
“Eleanor! Regina! How wonderful to see you on this fine afternoon. Hello, Mr Phillps.” Lucy was polite, but she barely concealed her contempt for Cecil who hadn’t yet been introduced to her new husband. “This is Lord Devon Charter. My dear, this is Mr Cecil Phillips. He’s the second son of the Viscount Preville.”
Cecil seemed to take offence at being called his father’s second son, but he bowed and said hello in return.
“A pleasure to see you, Lord and Lady Charter. I hear from Lady Whitfield that congratulations are in order. Your home renovations are complete, yes?” Cecil pulled Eleanor closer into his side as if to make it clear who she belonged to. “Will you be entertaining soon?”
“As a matter of fact, we’re hosting for a week in the country! You should join us, Mr Phillips. Right, my dear?” Lord Charter shook Cecil’s hand and beamed. “We’re very happy to share our new home with friends of the Whitfields. The more the merrier!”
Eleanor stared in astonishment at Lucy while Lucy sent a look as sharp as a dagger at Devon.
“My dear, we’ve already settled our guest list, remember? I fear we don’t have the room for Mr Phillips for this particular house party,” Lucy said through gritted teeth.
But Lord Charter was oblivious to the covert message she was trying to send him. Eleanor was surprised Lucy didn’t resort to stomping on his feet to get it across.
“Pish tosh! We have plenty of room and could use another player for cribbage. We will see that you get an invitation right away, Mr Phillips. And we look forward to seeing your family in the country, Ladies. Good day to you.”
Lucy sighed and mouthed the words “I’m sorry!” to Eleanor as she and Lord Charter moved on.
But the worry of having to spend a week with Cecil Phillips in the country soon could wait another day. Eleanor looked up and breathed a sigh of relief. The sky had turned dark above them with a promise to change the circumstances of this uncomfortable afternoon for the better.
As thunder rolled like an invisible wave over their heads, a quick misting of tiny raindrops suddenly turned into a downpour.
Cecil dropped Eleanor’s arm and ran for shelter. But the ladies in his care stayed put.
“Lady Eleanor! What are you doing? Come in out of the rain!” Cecil shouted at the sisters from under the massive oak tree nearly twenty feet away.
The sisters shared a knowing look as the rain started soaking through their clothes. They had been instructed to make sure Cecil was near that exact tree when the rainstorm began.
