Page 74 of The Duchess in His Bed
“Smaller, but no less opulent. The Dukes of Lushing took their responsibilities quite seriously. Ensuring their estates were the envy of all was seen as a duty, a requirement of the position.” She glanced out the window. “Commoners resent the nobility their place in Society, but it comes with sacrifice.”
“All positions in Society come with sacrifice.”
She glanced over at him. “True enough, I suppose. Have you ever visited your father’s estate?”
He shook his head. “I have as little to do with him as possible. Speaking of him, has he made an appearance on your doorstep since his atrocious proposal?”
“Not as far as I know, although I’ve not been at home that much. You’re keeping me rather busy.”
“You will let me know if he does.”
His voice contained something dark and foreboding. “What will you do if he does?”
“Pay him another visit.”
She felt her eyes widen with her alarm. “You paid him a visit? When? Why?”
“A couple of nights ago. Because he’s not to bother you.”
She was more than slightly distressed. “He knows about us?”
He shifted on his seat. “Whatever he may think he knows, he won’t tell anyone. There is little he fears more than he fears the wrath of the Trewlove brothers.”
“What if he guesses? What if he seeks to—”
Leaning across, he took her hand, putting a stop to her words. “Lena, I may not be publicly involved in your life or that of the child, but I will be like that great statue on the front lawn, ever watchful from afar. No harm will ever come to the child. No one will ever question his parentage.” Reaching up, he skimmed his knuckles along her cheek. “I’m very good at keeping to the shadows.”
While she took immense comfort from his words, she couldn’t help but wonder how difficult, howpainful, it might be for him to be hovering at the edge of his child’s life. “It will not be easy for you.”
“It is the price I pay. Willingly.”
For youwas not said, but he might as well have etched the words on her heart because she felt them all the same.
She had struggled mightily to make her decision to live the remainder of her life without honor. She regretted that her actions would have such a profound effect on his life as well. Perhaps years from now when the child was grown, had made a life for himself, Selena would return to the Elysium Club and find true happiness with the owner. By then who would care? Who would be suspicious? The odds were against that happening, and yet it gave her something to hold on to.
He settled back. The satisfied smile was gone. Now she saw longing—not hunger, not desire—but a pining for something that could never be: quiet conversations before a fire, long walks in the park. A public acknowledgment that they meant something to each other.
She barely noted that they’d reached London, not until the carriage came to a halt outside the club. He made a move toward the door that had not yet been opened.
“I’ll meet you here tonight, shall I?” She could barely stand the thought of a night without him.
He paused and looked back at her, his smile soft, his eyes filled with a satisfaction that came from knowing he meant something to her. “Midnight. Fewer ladies about then, fewer tasks that require my attention.”
Then he was gone, leaping from the carriage, striding into the club, disappearing from her sight.
They had left Sheffield Hall early enough that she arrived home shortly before noon. She noted a black horse secured to a post out front and assumed it was Winslow or Kittridge come to call. She was hoping for Kit as she wanted to indulge in a short nap before addressing any concerns that Winslow might bring with him regarding his estate and lack of funds. She really needed to find someone to take him in hand and help him adjust to his duties, because Lushing’s passing had left him in a boat with no oar or rudder. As she darted up the steps, it occurred to her that the Duke of Thornley might be just the ticket, an excellent example to follow. While she knew him fairly well, it wasn’t well enough to impose but perhaps Aiden could make the suggestion to Thornley. It would be lovely to have one fewer sibling to worry over.
She opened the door, crossed the threshold, and came to a stop as though she’d slammed into a brick wall. Not Kit or Winslow.
Her butler dipped his head slightly. “Your Grace, I was just explaining to Lord Elverton that you were not in residence.”
“Yet here you are,” Elverton said, his smile a bit too bright. Aiden had not inherited the shape of his mouth from his father.
“I’ve only just returned from Sheffield Hall and am quite weary. How might I be of service, my lord?”
“I was hoping for a few minutes of your time, perhaps a spot of tea.”
She wondered if his presence indicated he gave no credence to whatever threat his son had made or if he was marking his defiance of it. “If you’ll give me a moment to right myself, I’ll join you in the parlor. Wiggins, see that tea is brought in.”
