Page 51 of Disguised Desires of a Scarred Duke
“Of course. Good day to you.”
Cecil Phillips bowed again and then finally walked away.
“I think I liked him better when he was rude,” Cousin Harrison said under his breath.
“I couldn’t agree more, Lord Whitfield,” William replied.
“I don’t think I’ve met that man before. Who is he again?” Miss Miller asked.
“He’s the second son of the Viscount Preville, Cecil Phillips. He was once considered a wealthy gentleman among the ton, but there’s been gossip going around that he’s drowning in gambling debts since his father passed.
I’m guessing his brother, the new Viscount Preville, isn’t as agreeable to covering Cecil’s bills. Am I dreaming, or did he smell rather ripe?” Edward asked, which made Regina giggle at his side. Edward beamed at her and joined in the laughter.
“Let’s just focus on finding this first treasure and forget about Mr Phillips. Do you think he was right about there being a cottage past those trees?” Eleanor pointed in the direction that Cecil had indicated.
“By all means, let’s trust Weasel Phillips to be truthful,” William said, instantly wishing he could take it back.
If anyone wasn’t being fully truthful here, it was him.That has to change as soon as possible.
“I sense some unnecessary sarcasm in your voice, Mr Black. Are you afraid that Mr Phillips might be right?” Eleanor placed her hands on her hips and stared at the duke as if to challenge him to do better than Phillips had.
“Not afraid at all, Lady Eleanor. Lead the way.”
Their group finally moved forward again behind Eleanor towards a patch of trees beyond the back garden. Sure enough, when William looked down the slope past a small grouping of oak trees, there was a little stone building with a rounded roof.
Regina figured it out first and started dashing down the slope.
“Oh! It’s an ice house!”
Lord Whitfield held Miss Miller’s hand as they descended the slope and walked to the ice house door. William, Eleanor, and Edward followed close behind.
“Aha!This summertime treat makes a chilling scene… there must be a cold treat inside,” Edward said. He and Regina pulled the door open together and stepped inside the surprisingly chilly ice house for a July afternoon.
“What a fine luxury! They must have had ice imported for this house party. Unless their stores from winter somehow lasted this long,” Lord Whitfield said.
Within a few minutes, Edward and Regina came out of the ice house carrying spoons and small glass bowls of apricot iced cream.
Even William was grateful for the treat after spending an hour in this heat that felt like days. The fruity frozen cream also helped cool his nerves about seeing his mother again while it soothed his anger about Cecil Phillips nosing his way into Eleanor’s every interaction.
“What a wonderful first treasure!” Eleanor said as she finished off her cold treat. “Shall we move on to the next one?”
Everyone agreed except William.
“My apologies, I have some business in Essex to tend to overnight. I think it’s best if I take my leave now. I’m meeting with an estate agent to help with one of his client’s finances. But I look forward to rejoining all of you tomorrow.”
William bowed while trying to keep his desire to flee this place from being so obvious. “Edward, I’ll be taking the carriage. Lady Eleanor, it was a pleasure to spend the afternoon with you and your family. I hope you will allow me to join you again tomorrow?”
Eleanor looked a bit shocked by William’s immediate plans to depart for a full night, but that couldn’t be helped now. He would have to talk about his title when he returned.
“Yes, of course, Mr Black. Safe travels to you.”
Willam bowed, then walked back up the slope, tugging his collar as he went. He was confused by Eleanor’s new kindness with Phillips and spending this much time playing a silly game with a bunch of stuffy aristocrats that bored him beyond words.
He also knew–or at least he hoped–that visiting his childhood home would help ground him again.
William couldn’t get there fast enough. The duke needed to be where people at least understood where he came from and where he wouldn’t have to keep pretending to be someone else.
Chapter 20
