Page 2 of The Duke of Distraction
He winced when it came to his employer’s race.“I’m afraid St.Ives has forfeited his race today.”
Sarah frowned.“Why would he do that?It was almost certainly going to be him and Dartford in the final in two weeks.”
“He had to leave town.”
Sarah exchanged a look with Lavinia, whose elevated brows surely mirrored Sarah’s.Sarah returned her attention to Mr.Kinsley with a murmured “Indeed?”
“Did he go to Yorkshire?”Lavinia, who often lacked subtlety, asked.
Mr.Kinsley gave a bland smile.“I’m not entirely certain.”
Sarah and Lavinia shared another look that silently communicated their extreme skepticism aboutthat.“Well, we shall hope he went to Yorkshire,” Sarah said as she handed him her money.
Mr.Kinsley finished recording her wagers, and Sarah turned from the table with Lavinia.
As soon as they put some distance between themselves and Mr.Kinsley, Lavinia asked, “Should we write to Fanny and tell her he’s left town?”
“What if he isn’t going to Yorkshire?We mustn’t interfere.”
Lavinia pushed out a frustrated breath.“You’re right.I didn’t like it when Beck tried to interfere in matters of the heart.”
Her husband, Beck, had been the self-described Duke of Seduction, penning poems to young ladies with the goal of elevating their popularity on the Marriage Mart so that they would gain the attention of marriage-minded bachelors.He’d written about Lavinia and Sarah before Lavinia had put a stop to his “help.”While some ladies had appreciated the assistance, others had not.
Sarah’s mother had loved the attention Sarah had received for a few weeks.However, it hadn’t lasted.Sarah had liked it at first too, but then she’d realized she was a novelty and that the men were less interested in her than they were in joining in the fun created by the Duke of Seduction’s notoriety.
Sarah looked over at the vehicles gathered for the races, then glanced toward Lavinia.“Are you sad you’re no longer racing for the championship?”
Lavinia, who had lost her race in the second round, lifted a shoulder.“A bit, but I was never really in the hunt.These other ladies have far more experience than I.Next year, I shall be a formidable opponent.”She waggled her eyebrows and smiled.
“You think Felix will do this next year?”Sarah asked.
“Why not?What else would he do?It’s not as if he’ll be married.”
That much was true.
Sarah’s gaze found the man in question.Felix Havers, the Earl of Ware, stood beside the platform from where he would make his announcements and was flanked by Lavinia’s husband, the Marquess of Northam, whom they all called Beck, and Sarah’s brother, Anthony.She and Anthony had known Felix most of their lives, having met him when he and his father had come to stay when he and Anthony had been eight.Sarah had been just four, and the only thing she remembered about the occasion was the boys hiding her favorite shoes.They’d hidden them so well that they’d never been found.Sarah had cried for days.
“But what of you?”Lavinia peered at Sarah.“Are there any bachelors here who’ve caught your eye?”
Sarah pressed her lips together.“You’d know if there were.”
“The right man will come along,” Lavinia said with great confidence.“Likely when you least expect it, as happened with me and Beck.”Her gaze traveled to her husband, who just happened to be looking her way, and they shared a long, intimate look that made Sarah’s gut tighten with envy.
Then she promptly admonished herself.She didn’t begrudge her friend’s happiness one bit.She’d find her own happiness, and she didn’t need a man to do it.
“Shall we go join them?”Sarah said with a smile, knowing Lavinia wanted to be with her husband.
“If you don’t mind,” Lavinia said a bit sheepishly.
Sarah laughed softly.“Not at all.”
A pair of women arrived before them.The purpose of their visit became immediately apparent.“Why did you cease asking for the offer of favors?”one of them asked Felix.Her voice held a hint of a whine, and she looked rather disappointed.Her friend, on the other hand, gazed at Felix with an edge of hostility.
The first two times they’d convened for races, Felix had called for favors to be offered to the drivers.At the first tournament, only women had been invited to offer a favor to the male drivers—if their favor was chosen, they rode with the driver.After the women had complained, Felix had called for men to offer favors at the next set of races.
Felix smiled warmly at both women.“While that was incredibly diverting, a couple of the drivers confided to me that it was distracting to have a passenger with them, so in the interest of safety, I decided to end the practice.I do hope you aren’t terribly disappointed.I shall be most upset.”He placed his hand against his chest and looked at them with solemn regret.
Both ladies seemed to melt beneath his charm, and they spoke over each other in their effort to assure him they understood.Sarah rolled her eyes.If they were hoping to attract Felix in any way, they would be sorely disappointed.
