Page 46 of The Duke's Spinster Bride
He took another sip of his drink, resisting the urge to glance at Andrea while he held his cousin’s gaze.
“Oh ho! You would have shared my fate if you had eaten the cake rather than worn it.” His cousin added in a stage whisper to Andrea, “He dropped the cake on his head, you see. And then proceeded to fall off the counter and almost crush it. I simply did not want to see all of our efforts go to waste and I had a snack.”
“But why did you then have to spend all day next to the chamberpot?” Andrea looked between them, confusion clear on her face as she crossed her arms over her chest.
“Grandmama had counted on some kind of tomfoolery. I am not sure what she had Cook put in the cake, but I do not think I have ever been so unwell.” Thomas clutched a hand to his stomach and shuddered.
Andrea laughed again and Frederick was struck by how pretty the sound of it was.How often does she laugh like this with me?The warmth spreading through his body at the sound, halted abruptly. It felt as though someone had thrown a bucket of icy water over him.
Forcing himself to return to the present, he looked at Andrea, trying to catch her eye as he said, “She intended to rid us of our midnight feasting habit.”
“It worked for a little bit. But not very long.” Thomas perched on the edge of one of the sofas. “Felty is particularly stubborn when it comes to midnight snacks. I am surprised you have not encountered him in the kitchen in the wee hours of the morning.”
“I do not often venture to the kitchens late at night.” Andrea smiled at Thomas, and Frederick felt something slick and oily stir within his chest.
Get a hold of yourself.He needed to smile. He had to smile.Why is it so hard to smile?
“Then you should. No doubt the cook has several excellent cakes secreted about the place.” Thomas gave Andrea a wink, and Frederick had a violent urge to shove his cousin off the sofa. “And now that Felty is married, I doubt Grandmama is tampering with the baking.”
“Are you willing to put that theory to the test?” Frederick caught himself as he took half a step towards his cousin, his voice coming out less amused and more frustrated.
“If the Duchess wishes it.” Thomas met Frederick’s gaze before turning to Andrea.
Something inside him snapped, and Frederick strode between them, gripping his cousin by his upper arm and moving him away from his wife. “I think it is time for you to go to bed.”
“But I am not tired.” Thomas whined.
“You are, however, drunk, cousin.” Frederick gestured to the butler, Mr. Jenkins. “Please could you escort the Marquess to his room, I doubt he is sober enough to find it on his own?”
“I am perfectly sober! You are just trying to get… OH!” Thomas slapped a hand to his forehead, eyes wide with understanding. “Ah, I see! Say no more! You want some privacy with your la-”
It was all Frederick could do not to clamp a hand over his cousin’s mouth “Cousin, shush.”
Thomas laughed and swept into a bow, slapping Frederick on the shoulder as he left the room with Mr. Jenkins for an escort.
“Lead on.” His cousin called over his shoulder. “I shall see you both in the morning.”
Frederick scowled after him, his heart flung itself at his ribs. There was a roaring in his ears that he did not understand. When he turned around, he found Andrea watching him, her expression unreadable.
“You did not need to chase your cousin away, we were having a perfectly nice evening.” Andrea jerked her head towards the door.
“So I could see.” He muttered to himself before adding in a louder voice. “I did not chase him away, he was drunk, and I did not want him to be a nuisance.”
“He was not being a nuisance. I thought he was rather funny.” She tapped a foot on the floor, her lips pursed.
Frederick scoffed. “Clearly. I do not think I have heard you laugh as much as you have this evening.”
“And yet you sound as though this has displeased you?” Andrea arched an eyebrow at him. “Do you wish for me to not enjoy anyone else’s company?”
“Of course not. I am glad you and my cousin get on.” He growled and found himself adding, “I just do not understand why you seem so willing and able to laugh when you are with him and yet not with me. I have told you that joke about the bishop and the actress before, and yet when Elington told it, you laughed as if you’d never heard anything so amusing.”
Andrea’s cheeks flushed but she said nothing, simply looked at him with that same odd expression on her face. He did not let it deter him.
It felt as though a dam had broken within him, words tumbling from his mouth before he could stop them. “All evening, you have been chatting with him as though you were the oldest of friends. I might as well not have been there. You seemed so at ease together, just relaxing in each other’s company. Yet if I spoke, you stiffened. What is it about him that puts you so at ease? What is it about me that does not?”
“Are you jealous of me and your cousin? Because I laughed at his jokes and talked to him?” Andrea’s eyes widened as she took a moved towards him.
“No.” He knew he sounded petulant, but could not seem to keep it from his voice. “No.”
