Page 25 of The Duke of Lies
Over the past ten days, Verity had lived with a stranger. Rufus looked like her husband and sounded like him—as far as she could remember; it was difficult to tell since he spoke to her in an entirely different manner. However, his actions and behavior continued to make her question whether he really was Rufus.
Yet with each day that passed, she came to a sinking realization: she wanted him to be.
Not for her. No, she had no interest in him. But for Beau, he’d turned out to be warm and caring and quite engaged in his son’s upbringing. He’d procured a toy boat, had taught Beau about the Caribbean and its islands as well as the coast of America. Beau had hung on his father’s every word, and to watch the relationship develop between them was more than Verity could have ever wanted.
While making her jealous at the same time.
It was difficult to be angry with Rufus since he was so helpful and so unassuming, but at the same time, Verity missed her independence. Not that Rufus seemed to care what she did. In fact, while they shared a home and a son, their relationship was strictly… What was it exactly?
She watched him standing at the gate of the new goat pen, Beau anxiously hopping from foot to foot at his side as the goats arrived. Mr. Maynard led them into the pen. There were eleven, including a very small baby who was only a week old. Beau went directly to that kid, and Verity smiled as he petted the animal while the goat bleated softly in return.
Verity stood outside the pen and surveyed the enclosure Rufus had built along with the impressive shed. Mr. Dooley had offered his assistance, as had Mr. Maynard. The three of them, along with help from a couple of the grooms, had assembled the entire thing over the past handful of days. That Rufus was capable of the manual labor, let alone managing the project, was nothing short of stunning. Verity still couldn’t quite believe it.
And therein lay her singular problem with him. She just couldn’t quite believe him. Shewantedto believe him. Who would prefer what he was before to who he was now?
But preference wasn’t the issue. She just couldn’t be sure he was really Rufus. And if he wasn’t, who was he? An imposter who appeared more ducal than the real duke.
In his new wardrobe, he looked important and approachable, and most of all, terribly, terribly handsome. When she’d first met him at the house party, she’d found him attractive. They’d danced and sat together at a dinner. He’d been charming and pleasant, even after the tragic death of Augustus’s son, who’d fallen into the pond and drowned. In fact, Rufus had been the one to find him and had taken the boy’s death quite hard. He’d also been supportive and comforting to Augustus—behavior that impressed Verity and was the reason she’d accepted his marriage proposal before she and her father had left.
Six months later, they’d returned so she could wed Rufus, and that very night, she met the real man behind the façade. After that, she’d realized outward looks meant nothing.
Which was why he was far more attractive to her now that his character had improved so drastically. But had he changed enough? For what? In what way would she want or expect their marriage to change? She shuddered at the thought.
She blinked as she realized he was coming toward her, his hat pulled low over his brow against the sun.
“Aren’t you coming in to see the goats?” he asked.
“I plan to, yes. I was just watching Beau.”And you.But she didn’t say that.
His green eyes—she still couldn’t remember them ever being that color—sparkled in the afternoon light. “He’s quite enthralled.”
“He is indeed. Thank you for this.” She genuinely meant it. His return had meant so much for Beau, and for him to take such an active role in his son’s life was astonishing. And more than most fathers would do.
Rufus’s gaze fixed somewhere beyond her. “Ah, here come the Entwhistles.”
Verity looked over her shoulder and saw Thomas driving a cart. His grandfather sat beside him. “Did you invite them?”
“I did. This is, after all, indirectly Whist’s fault.”
Verity smiled. She was growing used to his sense of humor, but it still took her by surprise sometimes. “I suppose it is. It’s kind of you to include them.”
“I had to, really. Whist spends a great deal of time here, and I fear he would’ve invited himself if I hadn’t.”
“Would you have minded?”
“Goodness no, he’s more than welcome. He’s practically family.”
Verity noticed he’d changed his speech a bit since arriving. That first few days he would have said “hell no,” but now hell had been replaced with goodness. It seemed he’d had to relearn being a duke. Or actually learn in the first place, because she didn’t think he’d mastered it very well before he’d disappeared. “It certainly feels like it, given the amount of time he’s been spending here for the audit.”
“True. But that will decrease when Thomas takes over in a few days.”
Thomas had helped his employer find a new steward and was currently helping him get settled. “I’m surprised he found time to be here today,” she said. “I would think he’d be too busy at Bleven House.”
“It is Sunday, his day off,” Rufus noted.
Thomas and Whist approached them, and while Whist went directly into the goat pen to see Beau, Thomas walked to where Verity stood outside the fence. He looked toward Rufus and offered a slight bow. “Thank you for including us today, Your Grace.”
“It seemed fitting since Beau became enamored of your grandfather’s goat.”
