Page 16 of The Duke's Accidental Wallflower
Cherie crossed her arms, a smirk playing at the corner of her lips. “Minerva, you cannot hide this from us. Out with it. Who is it that has you so distracted you have placed Lord Stoppard intwodifferent places?”
Minerva sighed, her shoulders slumping in defeat. She knew her friends wouldn’t let it go until she admitted something. “Fine,” she muttered. “There… may have been a brief encounter. But it is nothing. I assure you.”
Both Cherie and Samantha leaned in closer, eyes wide with anticipation. “Who?” Samantha pressed eagerly.
Minerva rubbed her temples, trying to think of how to explain without feeding into their wild imaginations. “It does not matter. He has insufferable, arrogant, and completely full of himself.”
Cherie’s eyes lit up with mischief. “Sounds like someone who’s gotten under your skin.”
“No,” Minerva said firmly, glaring at her. “If he has, it is because he defies convention and takes liberty with others’ reputations. And besides there is more at stake.”
Samantha tilted her head, her expression turning more curious than teasing. “More at stake? What do you mean?”
Minerva hesitated, her fingers twisting around the edge of an invitation. She had not wanted to mention it to her friends just yet, but now, there seemed to be no avoiding it. “I… suspect he may be the man Chastity has been secretly courting.”
The room fell silent for a moment as both Cherie and Samantha processed the information.
Cherie blinked. “Wait…what?”
Minerva sighed, standing up from the desk and moving toward the window, staring out at the garden below. “I mentioned before that I found Chastity’s diary. She wrote about meeting a man that met his description. And considering how he keeps appearing at all the wrong moments, I fear it is him.”
Samantha gasped softly. “Oh no…”
“Yes,” Minerva replied, her voice tinged with frustration. “And that is why any suggestion that I should… pursue this man is utterly absurd. If he has been courting Chastity, I must put an end to it before things get out of hand.”
“But how do you know for certain?” Cherie asked, her eyes wide. “Have you seen them together?”
“No, not yet. But it is only a matter of time. And I won’t sit idly by while Chastity makes a mistake that could ruin her.”
Cherie and Samantha exchanged a glance, the teasing atmosphere quickly fading into concern.
“Alright,” Samantha said quietly. “But what will you do if itishim?”
Minerva’s jaw tightened as she turned back to them. “Whoever it is, I will stop it. Whatever it takes.”
Seven
Evan lined up his shot, his brow furrowed in concentration, but when he struck the billiard ball, it veered off course, missing the pocket entirely. The soft clink echoed through the quiet room of the gentlemen’s club, and he cursed under his breath.
From the corner, Cedric Hall, the Duke of Sinclair, leaned lazily against the wall, arms crossed and a smirk on his face. “That was pathetic, Colburn. You are usually more precise.”
“Too much brandy?” the Earl of Ashford chimed in, chuckling as he chalked his cue. “Or is it something else? You have been off all night.”
Evan straightened, setting the cue aside with a frustrated sigh. “You are both imagining things.”
“Oh, please,” Cedric scoffed, pushing away from the wall to take his turn. His sharp blue eyes did not miss a beat as he set uphis shot. “I have known you long enough to recognize when something is bothering you. Your head is clearly not in the game.”
Ashford, always the more boisterous of the two, took a seat on one of the leather chairs near the fire, swirling the brandy in his glass. “It is a woman, is it not?”
Evan rolled his eyes, picking up his drink from the side table and taking a long sip. “You assume too much.”
“Oh, really?” Cedric cut in, sinking a perfect shot with ease. “Because I have seen you distracted before, butneverlike this. I would bet my estate there is a woman involved.”
Ashford grinned as he sat back, crossing one leg over the other. “What else could it be? You have got your estate, your wealth, and your title all in perfect order. The only thing that could possibly throw a man off is the fairer sex.”
Evan clenched his jaw, gripping the glass in his hand a little too tightly. “There is no woman.”
Cedric glanced at him over his shoulder, eyebrow raised. “You expect us to believe that?”
