Page 75 of Tempted By an Unconventional Lady
“No, it was not,” he replied through gritted teeth. He went to move away but before he could, she pushed his shoulder, and he tumbled back into his seat, eyes wide with surprise. “Lucille, please, I…”
She sat on his lap, an arm around his neck, and she leaned in close, her face barely an inch from his while her fingers played with his cravat. “You can’t honestly tell me that you don’t want me.Everyonewants me.”
***
“We really ought to hurry,” Charlotte said, scooping up her skirts and rushing along the street.
Aunt Lydia pulled out her pocket watch, the one she had borrowed from her husband, and frowned. “Not just yet,” she said.
Charlotte spun back around to face her and huffed. “But the duke is coming, and I really cannot be late. I need to change into a clean gown and fix my hair before he arrives.”
“You need do none of that,” Aunt Lydia said with a tut as she pulled up beside her niece. “And besides, he is not due to arrive until three-thirty. You have plenty of time.”
Charlotte wanted to scream in frustration. She had not even wanted to go out on this walk, but her aunt had insisted that it would make her feel better. A little fresh air, she said, would improve her mood no end, but Charlotte hadn’t been convinced that her mood even needed improving. She was to see Alexander that afternoon, and all she felt was excitement. There was no doubt in her mind that this misunderstanding would be easily cleared up, and that she would be officially engaged by the end of the day.
They turned onto their street, and Charlotte rushed past the houses to their own steps. She trotted up them, but before she could turn the handle, her aunt called out to her.
“Wait for me, will you! What sort of brute leaves an old woman on the streets alone?”
Charlotte narrowed her eyes at her. Aunt Lydia considered herself old when she wanted help but otherwise insisted she was as young as ever. She didn’t know why the woman was so determined to hold them up, but she stopped all the same, albeit with a huff, and waited for her not-so elderly aunt to catch up.
“There,” Aunt Lydia said as she reached the top step in pretend breathlessness. “That wasn’t so difficult, was it?”
“Can we go inside now?” Charlotte asked. Aunt Lydia nodded, and Charlotte turned the handle and entered the house.
“Ah, my ladies,” the butler said as he took their cloaks. “The Duke of Ashbourne is waiting for you in the drawing room.”
Charlotte gasped. “He’s here already? Why on earth is he so early?”
She glanced at Aunt Lydia, whose smile seemed nothing if not smug. “I suppose there is no time to change your gown now, dear. We have guests to greet.”
“Did you know about this?” Charlotte demanded, but that only made her aunt tut.
“Of course not! But if he truly loves you, then the state of your gown shouldn’t matter one iota. Come along, let’s sort this mess out and finally discover the truth.”
The butler and Aunt Lydia went ahead. Charlotte paused for a moment, her panic rising, but she quickly scuttled after them. Aunt Lydia was correct—her gown didn’t matter. They loved one another.
“Oh, the door is closed,” Aunt Lydia said as they arrived.
That was when Charlotte felt the first crush of dread. There was no reason for the door to be closed.
Where is Lucille?The giggle that came from inside the room told Charlotte exactly where she was. The dread crushed her further.
The butler pushed down on the handle and the door swung open.
Charlotte cried out when she saw it. The duke jumped up quickly, pushing Lucille to the ground, but it wasn’t quite quick enough. Charlotte had seen it all. The way he had lounged on the couch, not caring for propriety nor who might walk in on them. And Lucille, on his lap, her hand tickling the back of his neck as if they were lovers.
Because they are lovers.
“Charlotte, wait,” Alexander said, stepping over Lucille’s body, his hand out as if to stop her. But Charlotte couldn’t wait, and neither did she want anything to do with him ever again. Sobbing, she turned and ran to her room, locking herself in.
Chapter 30
Alexander spun around and glared at Lucille. He’d known she was up to something. He should have trusted his gut feeling, but he’d been too foolish. Too eager to see Charlotte again.
“This is your doing,” he said in a growl.
Lucille giggled again, that noise making him shudder, and she shrugged. She knew no mercy; he knew what cruelty she was capable of and yet, he had not trusted himself. For now, he swallowed back his anger. There would be time to make her pay for what she had done, but now he needed to see Charlotte. He needed to make her see, make her understand. He turned back to Lady Fairchild.
