For the Love of a Duchess: A Historical Regency Romance Book

by Bridget Barton

  And yet, he felt as if it were.

  “This is ridiculous,” he said and picked up the uppermost paper on the pile and made some attempt to study it.

  But he read blindly, not taking in a word as his mind filled with the image of her outside his window earlier. She had looked so lovely in a pale blue gown with a narrow satin band beneath the bust and her dark hair swept up to look both neat and full at once.

  He had been able to almost read her lighter mood in her gait as she hastened to the carriage, and he thought it such a stark contrast to her misery of just days before. How keen she must have been to be away from the place if only for a few hours.

  And if only he had seen her just once in the preceding days. Daniel had passed through the morning room at midday every day since and had never once seen her there. At first, he had been disappointed until he realized that he was nursing a hope that the conversation, the revelations, and the moments of vulnerability, would somehow bring them closer together.

  And it was then that he realized this must stop. What good would any of it do him? And why on earth should he want to get closer to the Duchess of Lytton? She was another man’s wife, after all, and not just any man, but the man who employed him.

  If only Eliza did not interest him so. Even when he had determined to treat her coolly, he had been drawn to her; he knew it. Even that day in the chapel when he had silently registered his disapproval only to see it mirrored in her face and sent right back to him.

  Perhaps it had been her defiance then which had secured his interest, whether he liked it or not. Whatever it was, the interest was growing daily, and he found himself spending more time at his desk lost in his thoughts than working.

  With a grunt of annoyance, Daniel slammed the paper back down onto the desk. He had never been so distracted in his work before and knew it could not go on. To spend so much time at Lytton Hall was to make matters worse. It was time to nurture the few private clients he had begun to court and make a world for himself that existed largely outside of the Duchy. It was the only sensible move he could make, and Daniel knew it.

  But he knew it as well as he knew he would stay in the study until it came time for Eliza to return, if only to catch the merest glimpse of her.

  Chapter 10

  Eliza put a good deal of care into getting herself ready for dinner that night. Even though Augustus had been his old self, still she knew that he was not as pleasant as she had once thought him. Not that she had ever held any finer feelings for him, but Eliza knew that she had not always viewed him quite as she did now.

  He had previously been something of a pitiable character to her, a sad old man who had tried to convince himself that a young bride would find him appealing. And it was true that he had seemed despicable to her at times when she thought of the mode of their marriage.

  But now she viewed him as an angry bear who was dressed to look as a sheep. Better still, she knew she would do better not to provoke him in any way for Ariadne’s words had hit their mark, and she had decided to be consciously cautious from that moment on.

  And so it was that she had Nella West help her into the finest gown she owned, one of the many that the Duke had had made for her the moment she became the Duchess.

  The fabric of the gown was largely satin, a beautiful deep wine colour that suited her dark hair, eyes, and pale skin very well. The gown was nicely fitted and had short sleeves which did not puff too heavily at the shoulder. And the immaculate long white gloves she wore with it provided a dramatic contrast.

  With such fine, blemish free skin, Eliza had no need of the lead powder, nor the powdered rose which so many other ladies used to enhance their appearance. But she did use a little charcoal for her eyebrows, anything to make herself look a little different, to mark out to her husband most decidedly that she had put in the effort that he was no doubt expecting.

  “Will I do, do you think?” Eliza turned to smile at Nella.

  “You look very nice, Your Grace,” Nella West said in the same noncommittal fashion she seemed always to use when speaking to her mistress.

  “Well, if I do, it is down entirely to you, my dear.” Eliza was determined to make some headway with the young woman but still could find no way in.

  She had been as pleasant and conversational as she could with her lady’s maid, but Nella’s stoic refusal to take the comfortable hand of friendship that was offered on a daily basis was beginning to make Eliza a little suspicious of her.

  There was nothing at all unpleasant about Nella, and her manners were certainly not lacking. But she seemed to be determined to remain aloof, standoffish, and Eliza wished that she could choose another maid altogether.

  In fact, if she did well at the dinner and managed to secure her husband’s approval for a while, she might even ask him if she could do just that. Perhaps another maid would be a little more open, and Eliza would have more opportunities for friendship than just Daniel Winchester.

  Eliza shook herself a little, not wanting to think about the unsettling man when she had so much else she knew she must concentrate upon. Nella looked at her curiously, but Eliza simply smiled.

  If the maid was going to withhold her confidence, Eliza was going to do just the same.

  By the time the first of the guests arrived and were greeted in the drawing room by Augustus and herself, Eliza’s nerves were beginning to settle a little. She had taken two glasses of sherry already, and she thought that the warm, comforting liquid had played a large part in making her feel better.

  But she chased away any thoughts of taking a third, not wanting to join her husband on such a slippery slope. She could see that he had foregone the sherry altogether and had decided to take brandy before dinner. Worse still, she could see their early guests noticing it too.

  As more and more guests arrived, Eliza wondered how she would study them all as she had promised Ariadne. In the end, more than twenty people arrived to take dinner with the Duke and Duchess of Lytton, and Eliza quickly formed the opinion that the vast majority of them were not very well acquainted with her husband.

  The ones who were, of course, made it all very obvious. Lady Caroline Harker, for instance, was puffed up with pride as she held court with the Duke for many minutes. It was clear from the way she looked around that she had hopes of gauging the envy of the other guests.

  And her husband was little better. Lord Harker, a Baron, was someone that Eliza recognized as having previously visited Lytton Hall, although she had only seen him from afar and had not been introduced to him at the time. But he was equally obsequious, framing his every comment for the ears of all around, showing himself in the most favourable light at all times.

  “How are you settling in here, Your Grace? I always think it must be a most daunting thing to start a new life with a new title and such different responsibilities.” The woman standing next to her was, she judged, a little older than her mother.

  “It is indeed very daunting, Lady Hanbury,” Eliza said warmly, barely remembering the woman’s name at the last minute.

  She had been introduced to so many people in such a short space of time that Eliza had thought only the most annoying of them would stand out. But Lady Hanbury had stood out for the warmth of her introduction and her kind eyes.

  “You have come from a fine home yourself, I realize, but does this not seem so very large?” Lady Hanbury was whispering a little conspiratorially and Eliza found herself warming to her all the more.

  “Lady Hanbury, I cannot tell you the number of times I have lost myself in this place. I had always thought my father’s house had many rooms, but I am still to learn the skill of navigating my way from place to place with confidence,” Eliza admitted.

  “Oh, goodness me,” Lady Hanbury said and laughed. “I must admit, this is the first time I have been to Lytton Hall. My husband is not very well acquainted with His Grace. They have met once or twice, and so I was very surprised when we received the invitation. But delighted, of course,” sh
e added.

  “And I am very glad that you came, Lady Hanbury,” Eliza said truthfully and looked to where Lord Hanbury was chattering happily with some of the other guests who he clearly knew far better than he knew her husband.

  Why on earth would Augustus need to invite people he barely knew? After all, should a man of his standing not have more acquaintances of longevity than had arrived on that evening? Eliza could not help wondering just how many of the other guests could easily admit to the same surprise as dear Lady Hanbury at receiving an invitation.

  When the party was ushered into the dining room, the large table immaculately set out and decorated, Eliza felt her nerves become overexcited afresh.

  She looked down to the opposite end of the table where Augustus was lowering himself down awkwardly into his chair, and she realized, with horror, that he was already drunk, or very nearly drunk at any rate.

  Eliza could see that Lady Caroline Harker had been seated near the head of the table, close to the Duke, and that she had been put opposite a quiet-looking young man, whose name she could not remember, who looked most nervous to be perched so close to his host.

  She could immediately see that Lady Caroline had struck up some conversation, exclusively with Augustus and effectively ignoring the young man opposite, although Eliza could not hear what she was saying. She only hoped that, whatever it was, it would not irritate the Duke whilst he had so much liquor already in his system.

  As platter upon platter was delivered into the dining room by more footmen than she realized existed at Lytton Hall, Eliza realized that she had very little hope of eating much of it.

  The first course was a spicy soup served from immense tureens, and it was so hot that it made Eliza’s eyes water.

  She would have struggled to maintain conversation had it not been for the fact that the lovely Lady Hanbury had been seated as close to Eliza as Lady Caroline had been seated to Augustus.

  “Goodness, this is lovely,” Lady Hanbury said encouragingly.

  “I must admit, Lady Hanbury, that it is a little spicier than I would like,” Eliza said in a near whisper.

  “There is so much food here, Your Grace. Did you arrange the menu yourself?”

  “No, and I am bound to say that I would not have requested so much.” Eliza looked at the side table that was already crowded with silver platters of fish, potatoes, and seasonal vegetables for the next course. “Which is probably why my husband did not ask me to take any part in it.”

  “Oh, I see,” Lady Hanbury said, kindly masking her surprise. “I must admit, I usually let my own cook get on with it. She has much more of a talent for putting together a menu than I, and so I let go of my ego and, as a result, always very much enjoy my meals.”

  “What a wonderful way of looking at things,” Eliza said sincerely, hoping that this would not be her one and only meeting with Lady Hanbury.

  As the second course was served, Eliza could see that Augustus was not only a little slumped in his seat, but that he was glaring at her down the table. As glad as she was not to be sitting at his side, Eliza felt instantly embarrassed by his very obvious disdain for her.

  She could see Lady Caroline Harker continuing to chatter incessantly, her head tilting this way and that as if she were asking the Duke question upon question.

  “Children?” the Duke said so loudly that the entire table of guests fell silent. “Children, Lady Caroline? Now that is a very good question, a very good question indeed,” he said and his volume increased. “Yes, a very good question, do you not think?” he said, turning his attention fully upon Eliza.

  Eliza opened her mouth to speak but could come up with an answer at all. She could feel her cheeks blushing violently, and she wondered what on earth it was that Lady Caroline had said to upset Augustus so.

  Whatever it was, Eliza certainly hoped that her own private business was not about to be aired loudly and drunkenly while she could do nothing but sit and bear witness.

  “As always, nothing to say. No explanation to give to your husband for your failings.” He leaned his elbows heavily on the table, knocking his plate and sending the small, round potatoes rolling across the immaculate white tablecloth.

  “My … my failings?” Eliza said and could feel her mouth opening and closing and every eye in the room upon her.

  “Do not make any answer, my dear,” Lady Hanbury whispered hurriedly into her ear. “I beg of you, say nothing.”

  In the absence of any other advice, Eliza could do nothing but heed the words of the kindly woman who had secretly reached out and taken her hand under the table. For all the world, Eliza wanted to rise to her feet and run, and it was clear to her that Lady Hanbury had perceived that she would want to do just that.

  But the ageing lady held fast to her, keeping her in her seat. And Eliza knew it was not out of unkindness, but a sense of protection. Eliza was the Duchess of Lytton, and she could not simply get up and run away.

  “I have told you before, it is time you concentrated a little better on your responsibilities. Any other young woman would have been with child by now,” Augustus slurred, and whilst he spoke with less volume, the absolute silence of his guests made every word audible to all. “What on earth is wrong with you? Why are you not like other women?” he said, and Eliza could have dissolved with humiliation.

  At that moment, she hated him more than she had ever hated anybody. If she had been any closer to him than she was, the temptation to take a knife from the place setting and plunge it into his heart would have been one she might well have given into.

  Almost all the guests looked desperately uncomfortable, clearly horrified by what they had seen and heard. After all, who would imagine that a Duke, a man of such title and responsibility, would allow himself to get so drunk and say such vile, crude things?

  In fact, what man at all, title or no, would humiliate his wife in such a fashion and in front of so many people?

  But as she looked down the table, her cheeks flaming and her eyes shining with unshed tears, Eliza realized that Lady Caroline Harker looked rather satisfied by it all. She bore a little smirk on her face which did not disappear until Eliza caught her eye and stared at her family.

  Lady Caroline immediately looked down, not keen to hold the gaze of the Duchess, and Eliza was left in no doubt whatsoever that it was Lady Caroline’s interference which had precipitated this vile outburst. Whether it had been intentional or otherwise was something Eliza might never know.

  When the Duke leaned forward and rested his head in his hands as if it pained him greatly, Lady Hanbury turned to her once more.

  “Now that he is quiet, you must strike up conversation with the others. Simply comment upon the soup or ask their opinions on the fish. It need not be much, just enough to get them speaking again.” Lady Hanbury squeezed her hand tightly once again and reassured her with those kindly eyes.

  “Lord Harrington, tell me, is the fish to your liking?” Eliza said as brightly as she could manage, regretful that the poor man looked horrified to be expected to be the first of the guests to speak. “I am very fond of trout myself, Sir, but I find this a little earthy,” Eliza went on, looking at him intently and hoping against all hope that he would play along.

  “I am glad to say, Your Grace, that the earthier the better for me. I do like a nice strong tasting trout,” he said, and Eliza could have thrown her arms around his neck and kissed him.

  The moment he responded, the little murmurs of conversation struck up once more, and within just a few minutes, it was as if the whole sordid episode had not happened at all.

  But as relieved as she felt, Eliza knew that there would be nothing that could erase such an appalling incident, not from her own mind, nor the minds of her guests.

  “Thank you kindly, Lady Hanbury,” Eliza said and turned to look at her rescuer, blinking hard so that her tears of gratitude did not fall. “I could not have managed at all had you not been here,” Eliza spoke in a whisper.

  “But
you managed very well, very well indeed.” Lady Hanbury smiled. “And if you ever need a friend, my dear, you must consider me chief among them. You are always welcome at Hanbury Hall.”

  “I shall never forget what you have done for me,” Eliza said and hurriedly turned her attention back to the fish she knew she would never be able to eat.

  Chapter 11

  Once again, Daniel had not done a single stitch of work all morning. It had been but three days since the Duke had hosted a dinner at the hall, and already Daniel was well aware of the dreadful circumstances of it all.

  Gossip in the town was nothing if not thorough, and he thought that he had heard every bit of conversation that had passed that night through one source or another.

  He thought it little wonder now that Eliza kept herself out of the way. There had been no sign of her in the morning room, and in truth, he had not expected to see her there. But he had not seen her anywhere, not in the corridors, not heading for the drawing room, not coming out of the dining room or breakfast room.