Page 32 of The Forbidden Duke

The countess laughed. “You become used to it, but of course I don’t go out like this every night. I wouldn’t be able to manage. It was different when I was younger.” She studied Nora. “You don’t like it?”

Nora didn’t want to hurt Lady Satterfield’s feelings. She was, after all, providing Nora with an exceptional opportunity, and Nora didn’t want to seem ungrateful. “It’s not that… It’s just different.”

“You’ll get used to it. Once you’re wed, you can dictate your social calendar. Look at Kendal. He doesn’t bother with any of it.” She shook her head. “I’m astounded he came tonight. It will be the primary topic of conversation tomorrow. If it isn’t already.”

“You didn’t know he was coming?” Nora asked.

“No, and I didn’t ask him to. I told him we would be here, of course.”

She hadn’t asked him to come. Which meant he’d attended—sought her out—of his own accord. The unease she’d felt earlier dispelled, leaving a warm feeling of contentment in its wake.

Lady Satterfield tipped her head to the side. “You must think him very odd. I know some people do, but then others recall what he was like before—in his youth.”

Nora leaned slightly forward, eager to know more. “And how was that?”

“He was careless, an utter rake, truth be told. Then his father died, and he became the duke. Kendal—that is, Titus—felt his responsibility quite heavily and worked hard to be the sort of man his father would have wanted him to be.”

Nora was entranced. She longed to unravel the mysteries of the Forbidden Duke. “What sort of man was that?”

“Kendal—my husband, that is—was the smartest man I knew. He ran his estates impeccably and was always championing a cause or five in Parliament. He was a reformer.” She smiled, her gaze looking into the distance as if she were overcome with memories. “He had very little time for nonsense, or what he considered nonsense anyway.”

“What did he consider nonsense?”

Lady Satterfield’s lips curved up. “Balls like this one, though he would’ve made an appearance for supper as Satterfield did.”

Nora noted that Satterfield stayed longer than that before taking his leave. “Did he spend much time at his club?”

“In the same way that Titus does—keeping to his private room for the most part.”

Titus. A strong name that recalled the Greek Titans, it fit him. Nora imagined him in solitude and was surprised to find the image enticing. But then any image with him made her stomach curl with anticipation. She tried to think of the younger Titus, the rake, and found it nearly impossible. “I can’t imagine Kendal as a reckless youth.”

“Yes, well, he was.” Lady Satterfield shook her head gently. “He drove his father mad with his antics.”

“What manner of antics?”

“He ran with a fast crowd—racing phaetons, gambling, everything you might expect. He cut quite a figure. I’m surprised you don’t remember him from when you were out. That would have been about the same time.”

Nora tried to recall him but couldn’t. “I didn’t move in the same circles.” Indeed, her only foray into the upper echelon had been when Haywood had paid her attention, and look at how that had turned out.

“He wasn’t Kendal of course then,” Lady Satterfield said. “He was the Marquess of Ravenglass.”

That name sparked a hint of memory, but Nora still couldn’t place him.

Lady Satterfield yawned as the coach stopped in front of their town house. “Goodness, but I am tired. We shall take a respite tomorrow. I need to summon my energy since I’m hosting a tea the following day.”

Nora was delighted to have a day of relaxation. Even so, she felt restless just now. The name Ravenglass nagged at the back of her mind, but she simply didn’t remember Kendal from her earlier Seasons. When she fell asleep that night, she thought of a rake named Ravenglass and couldn’t imagine how he’d become the Forbidden Duke.

Chapter Ten

Titus went from the ball to his mistress’s house. Isabelle was out—at the theatre, according to her footman—so he waited for her. But after pouring a glass of whisky, instead of making himself comfortable, he paced.

She made a grand entrance into the small sitting room adjoining her bedchamber. Dressed in a gown of sparkling ruby satin decorated with gold ribbon, she looked like a gleaming jewel meant to be appreciated. Preened over.

He couldn’t help but contrast her to Nora. She’d worn a simple but elegant ball gown made of a rich amber that made her auburn hair seem redder and her tawny eyes more luminescent. Where Isabelle commanded attention, Nora quietly lured you into her orbit, and once there, you were sorely tempted to never leave.

But hehadleft. He’d possessed no other choice unless he wanted to give the ton even more fodder.

“Kendal,” Isabelle purred. “What a divine surprise.” She set her fur-lined shawl on the settee. “Give me a few minutes to prepare before you come in.” She started toward her bedchamber.

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