Page 84 of Temptations of a Duke's Daughter (The Duchess's Investigative Society 2)

Her gaze swung between them both for several moments then her shoulders sagged. Tears shimmered in her eyes. “Julian would never cross me.”

“So you were lovers?” Chastity said softly as she inched closer to the maid.

She shook her head vigorously. “Julian was too honorable for that.” She scowled. “But why would you think I murdered him? I would never do such a thing. I loved him too much.” Her bottom lip trembled.

“Well, you did keep it a secret,” Charlotte reminded her.

“Mrs. Cooke would never have condoned it. Besides, my father would not approve either. He wanted me to marry Mr. Feilding, the village parson.” She wrinkled her nose. “He is twenty years older than me, but Father thinks he can look after me.” She sighed. “If only he knew of Julian’s lineage, he would have been forced to give his approval.”

“Lineage?” Chastity repeated.

Rose pressed fingers to her lips and swung her gaze between them both. “I was never meant to speak on it. Julian told me only just before he died because he wished to propose but he needed to request permission.”

“From whom, damn it?” Charlotte demanded.

Chastity could not begrudge Charlotte her impatience. If there was some secret to Julian’s lineage, that person could very well be the murderer, and they both knew it, especially if he found out Julian had told his soon-to-be bride.

“Why, the earl of course.”

The words rang in her ears like the echo of a gunshot. They took a moment to bounce about her mind then settle and fade.

Charlotte held up a hand. “Wait...the earl is Julian’s father?”

Rose lifted a shoulder. “Julian didn’t say but they looked similar, did they not?” Her chin wobbled and she pressed a hand to it, inhaled deeply and fixed a strained smile upon her face. “My mother always said tears were a waste. Now, I really must get back to work. And so should you, Charlotte.” She gestured to Chastity. “And do not let Mrs. Cooke see you like this. She’ll hand you over to the sheriff for thievery.”

Chastity swallowed hard. It made sense. No wonder he was so interested in finding out who the killer was. Valentine could have sired him when he was in his youth. Which meant...he’d lied to her. He’d concealed his reasons. Could he have lied about other things too? Like how he felt about her? Or...

Nausea billowed in her stomach, sending a bitter taste to the back of her throat. She’d thought him so good with children but was that because they were his? Had he sired other children out of wedlock? Was he really no different than her late husband after all?

∞∞∞

Valentine caught up with Chastity in the hallway between the library and music room. Her cheeks were red as she paced toward him. He recognized the narrowing of her gaze. Whatever had just happened, she intended to argue with him. Well, let her. He could not bring himself to care. He’d happily spend the rest of his days arguing with the stubborn woman.

The main thing was, she was safe.

“Well?” he demanded. “Did you find the murderer?”

She came to a stop several feet from him, the maid just upon her heels. She opened her mouth, then closed it and blew out a heavy breath. “You lied to me,” she said between her teeth.

Ah. He couldn’t fathom how but she’d found out about his sister. Not that it mattered—he’d intended to tell her the real reason behind his interest in Julian’s death anyway—but it didn’t surprise him she was annoyed at being kept in the dark.

No, not annoyed. Furious. He suspected she’d been less angry when he’d ruined her shoes and even then that had been quite the display. Her chest rose and fell swiftly and she perched clenched knuckles on her hips.

“I was going to tell you.”

Her brows rose. “Oh. When?”

“Today.”

“A little late, do you not think?”

“Chastity...”

“How foolish I must have looked, placing all my trust in you, talking of my husband and all the lies he spouted and all the while you were there, behaving just as he did.”

He fixed her with a firm look. “You must understand why I kept such a matter secret.”

“Now I truly understand why you hate the ton. You cannot bear their censure.”

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