The Black Duke's Prize

by Suzanne Enoch

  Finally Lady Alison knocked and entered the room.

  "What did Thomas want?"

  "He asked me to marry him," Katherine replied, glancing up at the baroness.

  "He asked—oh, Kate, that's wonderful!" Her godmother came forward and took her hand, but her smile faded when it became apparent that Katherine didn't share her enthusiasm. "You turned him down, didn't you?" she said after a moment.

  "Not yet," Katherine replied, "but I mean to."

  "But why?"

  "Because I don't love him, and because he's in love with someone else. I won't buy my respect with someone else's happiness."

  Alison sighed. "Well, I suppose it's not as bad as it could be," she said with a slight smile. The baroness displayed a letter. "We've been invited to Julia Varon's for tea tomorrow afternoon. If anyone can help this situation, she can."

  The invitation to go to tea at his mother's had immediately aroused Nicholas's suspicions, and he had sent a polite but firm refusal. She likely wanted to discuss his flight from Crestley Hall, and he had no desire to do so. Especially not with her.

  He had already asked Josette Bettreaux to go riding with him, anyway. When she had arrived at Varon House the night after his return from Crestley, he had been surprised. It had seemed a lifetime longer than three months since their rather violent parting, and as she entered the library and kissed him he realized that he hadn't given her a thought since he had met Katherine Ralston. Still not quite ready to forgive her, he had rather brusquely sent her away. But neither was he quite ready to forgive Kate, and so over the ensuing days he had taken Josette to the opera and even on a picnic.

  As he looked over at her now, exquisite in a black riding habit the color of her eyes, he wondered if she wasn't there to punish him rather than Kate. She had apologized, several times, for the incident at the Josten ball, but he didn't trust her. He had never trusted her, but in the past her company had been pleasant, and she had been unobtrusive as far as his time and his mind were concerned.

  Now, though, he was finding her acquiescence somewhat annoying. She wanted nothing except what he wanted, or so she said. She had only pestered him about one thing, and it was the one thing he denied her. Despite all of her skills at seduction, he had stayed out of her bedchamber. He knew she didn't understand why, but he knew all too well. Despite his best efforts he couldn't forget Katherine Ralston.

  He looked up at the sound of someone calling his name.

  Thomas Elder rode toward him on Orpheus, and beneath him Ulysses snorted in recognition of his chief rival. Nicholas felt somewhat like doing the same. "Thomas." He nodded.

  "May I speak to you for a moment?" The young viscount glanced pointedly over at Josette, who sat looking at him from beneath her long eyelashes.

  "Wait here," Nicholas said to her, then kneed Ulysses away without waiting for a response. "What is it?" he asked when they were out of earshot.

  "Were you aware that Kate Ralston has returned to London?"

  Nicholas became very still and looked down at Ulysses' left ear. "No, I was not," he said after a moment, trying to ignore what the mere mention of the dratted chit's name was doing. to his heart rate.

  "Then you aren't aware that she is being snubbed by everyone, and that your lovely Josette accosted her on the street yesterday and, from what I have been able to determine, was exceedingly rude to her?"

  The young man was obviously furious. Feeling more than a spark of anger, Nicholas glanced over at Josette. "No, I was not aware of it," he replied.

  "I wanted you to know that I've asked Kate to be my wife," Sheresford continued.

  Nicholas's heart dropped out of his chest, and he shut his eyes for a moment. He forced himself to take a slow breath. "Has she accepted?" he asked quietly.

  "Not yet." Thomas fidgeted with his reins, then looked over at him. "I hope her delay isn't because of you, for you don't deserve her after what you've done to her."

  "That's enough, Thomas," Nicholas murmured. He knew damn well what he'd done to Katherine, and he didn't need this man telling him.

  "I'm not so certain it is," the viscount returned stiffly.

  "If she accepts me, and if this trouble isn't resolved, I will call you out over it."

  Nicholas looked over at him. Thomas was in earnest, and at that moment the duke was in the mood to do him some serious injury. "I'll be waiting."

  Thomas slapped the end of his reins against his thigh.

  "Darnmit, Nick, take care of it. I don't want you blowing my head off because the two of you can't manage to fall in love peacefully."

  Nicholas glared at him until the viscount began to fidget. Damn him, the man was right. "You're a better friend than I deserve, Thomas," he said finally.

  "Just remember that if I end up facing you in some field over this." The viscount gave a short grin and nodded stiffly at Josette as he departed.

  Nicholas returned to her side and reined in Ulysses.

  "What did 'you say to Kate Ralston yesterday?" he murmured.

  "Only that she was not right for you, mon chet;" Josette responded.

  "You had no right, Josette," he spat out, furious.

  "And why not?" she returned, lifting her head to look directly at him. "I 'give you what you want, and you give me what I want. I must protect that, yes?"

  He stared at her for a long moment. "Is that why you sent that boy to shoot me?" .

  She smiled. "You were taking me for granted. It gave me your attention, no? And now we are together again."

  That was likely the most honest thing she had ever said to him. Perhaps he and Josette deserved each other. Especially after what he had done to Kate. "We go to the Duffshire ball tonight," he said. "I'll come by for you at eight."

  She gave a faint smile. "I will be ready." It was her turn to look closely at him, until finally she nodded. "Is this because you wish to go with me, or because you wish her to see that you are not alone?"

  Surprised again, Nicholas looked off across the park. "I don't know, Josette."

  "No? We will find out tonight, I think."

  He sighed and turned Ulysses around. "Yes, we likely will."

  18

  "M y son is usually very wise," the Dowager Duchess said as Kate finished relating the events of the past two weeks, "but in this instance I think he has been a great fool." She leaned forward and poured herself another cup of tea, looking over at Kate, beside. her.

  "Thank you, Your Grace," Katherine said, uncertain about whether she was supposed to respond.

  Julia nodded. "Unfortunately, I have never been able to tell him what to do. He is too like his father, and must always find things out for himself." She picked up an envelope and handed it to Lady Alison. "Nicholas I can do nothing about. But I can try to fix what he has done to you."

  Alison opened the envelope. She pulled out an engraved parchment and then smiled. "Thank you, Julia."

  She showed it to Kate. It was an invitation to the Duffshire ball that evening. ''Thank you, Your Grace," Kate echoed, giving a small smile.

  "It will be a terrible night, but you will manage." She patted Kate on the knee. "You will because you must."

  Nicholas entered the ballroom with Josette on his arm and ignored the looks and murmurs of the guests nearest them. He didn't know if Katherine would be in attendance, but he would let her know who needed whom. Josette had dressed in red and black, and looked exquisite even for her. The room was large and crowded, and he refused to look about and see whether Kate was there. Instead he led Josette out onto the floor as the first waltz of the evening began.

  Halfway through the dance he saw her. She sat on the far side of the room, with no one in attendance but Neville and Alison. She was in the stunning gold silk gown she had worn when she had stopped him in his tracks at the opera, and she wore a wan smile that looked as though it had been pasted on.

  The waltz ended, and he escorted Josette back to the edge of the floor as a country dance began. Again no one claimed Kate's ha
nd. He apparently had done a fine job of ruining her. He had been a fool, trying to organize her life at Crestley, when she was so sensitive about the ownership of the estate. He expected everyone to do as he wished because they all needed him for something. Katherine had her own property, and most definitely her own mind, and she needed him for nothing. Perhaps that was what he found so attractive about her. If only he had realized in time that her spirit and her independence were what made her so unique and so precious, and he was wrong to find fault in her for them.

  "I wish a diamond bracelet," Josette murmured. "What?" He turned to look at her.

  "My gift, Nicky," she explained. "A diamond bracelet."

  She pulled her hand free from his arm and glanced over in Katherine's direction. ''Time for me to go find another friend, I think." With a slight smile she backed away a step. "And this time I will not send someone to try to shoot you, man chen"

  "Why not, Josette?" he asked.

  ''These last few days you have spoken to me, and listened to me. This you have never done before. But it is not I who have changed, Nicholas." She turned around and stepped into the crowd. "Good luck," she murmured over her shoulder.

  He looked after her for a moment. ''Thank you," he returned, though he doubted she heard. She was wrong. He was not the only one who had changed.

  With a deep breath, for he knew that whatever was about to transpire would likely give the town wags fodder for years, he made his way across the room. The dance continued, but the attention of most of the guests immediately shifted to him, and soon it seemed as though the dance floor had rather emptied.

  "Miss Ralston," he drawled as he came to a stop in front of her.

  Kate lifted her head. She knew he had come that night, for she had seen him enter the ballroom with Josette Bettreaux on his arm, but she never expected that he would dare to speak to her. "Go away," she whispered, her voice cracking. "Everyone is staring."

  "I'm not going anywhere," he answered. "May I see your dance card?"

  She almost didn't give it to him, but he didn't look as though he would leave if she simply ignored him. As he took the paper his fingers brushed hers, and she flinched again. There wasn't much for him to see, for Lord Neville, Thomas, and Reg were the only names on the card.

  After a moment Nicholas cleared his throat. "Woefully thin," he managed to say.

  "Now, whose fault might that be?" Lord Neville asked sharply.

  "Give me your pencil," he demanded, ignoring the baron and holding his hand out again. "I had the devil of a time finding one before."

  She handed it to him. "I don't think you'll have as much luck filling it tonight," she muttered, looking away and wishing she had never come. Almost no one had looked at her, much less spoken to her, since she had arrived. And now no one ever would again.

  "You have no faith," he answered, taking a seat on the far side of Lady Alison. He wrote for a moment, then rose again and handed it back to her.

  She looked down at it, and her mouth quirked. "You can't do that," she retorted, motioning at the card.

  "I can do anything I wish," he drawled. "I'm a duke."

  "But you've taken up every space," she protested, finally meeting his eyes. "Even for the dances that have already passed."

  "What more harm could it do?" he responded. ''You're ruined, and I'm a rake, so we may as well enjoy ourselves."

  Music for another waltz started up, and he leaned over to look at her card. "I believe this is my dance," he stated, indicating the correct line, and then reached his hand down to her.

  After another hesitation she slipped her hand into his, and with a tight nod at her godparents Nicholas led her out onto the deserted dance floor. They danced in silence for a few moments, taking advantage of the space around them. Kate wished he would speak, or do something, before she burst into tears at his closeness.

  "I thought you came here with Josette Bettreaux," she finally said, unable to bear the silence any longer.

  He nodded. "I did."

  ''Then how can you claim every dance with me?" she queried.

  "Josette and I have . . . parted ways," he said quietly. "Oh," she commented, hurt and angry that he would even acknowledge being with that woman. She raised her head to look at him straight on. "Did you give her a parting gift?"

  She waited for him to lie or to make a sarcastic comment, but for a long time he just looked at her with serious gray eyes. "She asked for a bracelet," he finally said. "I'll send her one in the morning."

  "Why didn't I get a gift, then?" Kate challenged, her lips tight to keep them from trembling. ''It seems that after what you've done to me I should get something."

  He tightened his grip on her hand, and she thought that she had finally succeeded in making the Black Duke angry again. "I'm not through with you," he murmured, his eyes glinting.

  "Oh, so you're not through with me?" she repeated, her voice rising. "This is all your decision, is it? I told you before, I don't need you for—"

  "Yes, you do need me," he interrupted with a growl.

  "Tonight, unless you wish to stay ruined, you need me. Can you admit that, Kate?"

  Tears filled her eyes. ''I don't want to need you," she whispered. "I don't want to rely on you."

  "But you can, Katherine," he whispered back. "Believe me. You can. Let me make this up to you. Please. Because even though you may not need me, I need you."

  She had never expected to hear such an admission from him. "You need me?" she repeated.

  "Everything is so dull without you, you know," he said softly, then smiled a little. "No one to put me in my place, or to knock me in the head when I say dreadful things."

  She smiled back despite herself. "I didn't think you would miss that."

  "But I do." He grinned back at her, then sobered again. ''Thomas told me he has proposed to you."

  "Yes, he has," she confirmed, her spirits lifting a little.

  He almost sounded jealous. "Quite admirable of him, considering he's in love with Althaea Hillary."

  ''Thomas in love with Althaea?" he repeated, obviously startled. ''That timid little flower?"

  Katherine chuckled. "She's only timid around you."

  "Me?"

  "She's been deathly afraid that you'll offer for her. She thinks you're entirely too fierce."

  Nicholas snorted "I have been called much worse, and mainly by you," he pointed out.

  Abruptly she remembered that she was ruined. "What do we do now?" she muttered.

  The music had ended, and she turned to leave the floor.

  He held onto her arm and made her stay. "We dance. The next one is mine as well," he reminded her.

  "Don't make me do this," she protested, deeply embarrassed.

  Immediately he placed her hand on his arm and led her off the floor. "All right," he acquiesced, "but you must promise that I may calI on you tomorrow."

  She nodded, and a single tear rolled down her cheek. He reached up and gently brushed it away with his thumb, and she almost leaned up and kissed him, right in the middle of the ballroom. "Tomorrow," she echoed.

  "You may rely on me for this," he murmured.

  "I will," she answered.

  19

  Katherine slept through the night for the first time since Nicholas had left Crestley Hall, and she didn't awaken until Emmie pulled open the curtains a little before noon. Her maid seemed to be making as much noise as possible, and finally Katherine gave up feigning sleep and sat up. "What in the world are you doing?"

  "Oh, Miss Kate, you must come downstairs," Emmie gushed, coming forward to tug on her arm.

  "I'm not dressed," Katherine protested with a sleepy grin as she allowed herself to be pulled from the bed.

  "But you must come. I'll get your robe."

  Emmie dashed away and returned a few seconds later with her robe, which Katherine shrugged on, trying not to giggle. Whatever was going on, Emmie was certainly very excited about it, and her delight was . infectious.

  At th
e landing of the stairs Katherine stopped, gasping.

  There were roses everywhere. Red roses, white roses, pink and yellow roses stood in a profusion of vases on every available space in the hallway. Her godparents stood at the foot of the stairs, smiling up at her.

  "He must have bought out every flower shop in Lon.don," Alison murmured.

  The scent of roses filled the air as Kate descended the steps, and she took a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment before she opened them again in wonder. She had never seen so many roses in one place, and when she caught a glimpse of still more vases in the morning room she began to chuckle. "Oh, goodness," she breathed.

  "Is there a card?" Lady Alison asked.

  They began a laughing search through the profusion of blooms until Katherine found the envelope tucked into a vase full of red buds. Her hands shaking a little, she pulled out the card. In Nicholas's familiar, strong hand it read, "Dearest Katherine, Every petal here a kiss, every thorn a sigh, and every vase a weapon. Love, Nicholas."

  She burst into laughter. It was overall a highly improper note to send to a young lady, but it was very like him. She stood staring at the signature for a long time, fascinated by the words Love, Nicholas. Abruptly she remembered that he might call on her at any moment, and she hurried upstairs.

  She decided to wear the peach muslin that she had worn on their picnic. Emmie fussed over her hair for so long, Kate thought she would go mad from sitting, but then when that was finished she didn't know what to do with herself.

  She wandered down to the morning room to find Lady Alison stitching amid the profusion of blooms.' After she had fidgeted with all of the vases, turning them this way and that for nearly an hour, her godmother firmly suggested she go out to the garden. She complied, but soon found herself back inside, wandering the hallways, tom between fury at Nicholas for keeping her waiting and worry over what was keeping him. When she heard the front door open she rushed into the entryway, . and nearly collided with Louisa.