by Darcy Burke
Her determination quickly replaced her fear. She wiped the rest of her tears away and took a deep breath. No good would come from panicking. What she needed was a plan. Swallowing, she turned her attention to removing the pins from her dark brown hair so it fell down her back in gentle waves. Her hazel eyes stared back at her, still brimming with tears.
While she brushed her hair, she thought over her options, as limited as those were, and finally came to the conclusion that there was only one way to secure her future. And that was to trap the gentleman of her choice into marriage.
“May this be the night you find your bride,” Mister Christopher Robinson sang out.
Perry Ambrose, the Earl of Clement, looked up from the ledger in time to see his cousin enter the drawing room. He then proceeded to plop down in the seat across from him and put his feet up on his desk. With a sigh, Perry reached over and shoved his feet off.
“I don’t believe it,” Christopher said, sounding appropriately shocked. “I come here to spread good cheer, and you treat me as if I’m bothering you.”
Perry turned his attention back to balancing his funds. “You are bothering me.” He ran his finger across the rows where the steward had written down the payment for the servants’ wages. It was strange not to be giving Christopher any more funds. The ledger just didn’t look the same.
Christopher let out a loud groan and leaned forward. “Haven’t you heard a single thing I’ve said?”
“Yes,” he replied as he made sure each servant got the correct amount due to them. “You think this will be the evening that I’ll find a bride.”
“I said more than that.” Leaning back in his chair, he threw his head back. “Why do I even try? You obviously don’t want to get married.”
“That’s not true.”
“Then why aren’t you married yet?” Before Perry could open his mouth, he added, “Don’t tell me it’s because of your cane. No one cares about that blasted cane except for you.”
“That’s not true.” Irritated, he slammed the ledger shut.
“Sure, it is. You blame it for everything. You really should have been more upset when Agatha’s sister eloped with another gentleman.”
“I’m not going to get upset with Agatha’s sister. That wouldn’t accomplish anything. What’s done is done.” He gathered the ledger and rose to his feet. “I have to get ready for the ball.”
“Oh good. Then you haven’t given up on finding a wife.”
“Nate’s going to be there.”
He grimaced. “What other possible chess maneuvers can you and Lord Ironfist debate for hours?”
“His name is Nate,” he corrected, “and I do more than talk about chess.”
“Oh, that’s right. You also talk about laws and wars.” He made a big show of gagging.
“Well, it’s much better than the kind of things you and Lord Edon talk about.”
“His name is Ethan,” Christopher pointed out and put his feet back up on the desk. “And he has some good ideas that even you could benefit from. For example, he thinks you should create a scandal. Then a lady will have to marry you.”
“He would recommend something like that.” He poked Christopher’s legs with his cane. “Get your feet off my desk.”
“I’m not doing any harm to it.”
“Your heels scuff up the surface, and,” he pointedly added while his cane tapped the inkwell close by, “I always worry you’ll knock that over again.”
“What’s so special about an inkwell? You have them all over the house. If I got careless, you could replace it.”
“No, I can’t. That one was a gift from Nate and Claire.”
“Well, if it’s from Claire, I’ll be happy to ensure no harm comes to it.” He set his feet back on the floor and leaned over to inspect it. “Are you aware there’s a nick on the corner here?” He ran his thumb along the edge of the base.
“It happened right after I got it. You came storming in here one morning while I was about to dip the quill into the ink and spouted off something about some lady’s baby not being yours no matter what anyone said. In my state of shock, I knocked it to the floor.”
Christopher threw back his head and laughed. “I forgot all about that prank.”
“It wasn’t funny.”
“Oh, it was hilarious. I thought you were going to faint. I almost called for the butler to bring in the smelling salts.”
“I don’t think your wife would think that was funny if you’d done that to her.”
He waved his hand in a dismissive manner. “I made that up before I met her.”
Grunting, Perry nudged his cousin in the leg again, this time using a bit more force. “I’m not amused, Christopher. Even now, I find it lacking in good taste.”
He had hoped Christopher would put aside such nonsense when he married Agatha. Agatha was, after all, very much a lady—dignified and proper in every way. What she saw in Christopher, Perry would never understand.
“You know what you need?” Christopher asked as he headed over to him.
“I need you to start taking life seriously.”
“No. That would be boring for everyone, especially you. What you need is to laugh more. There’s nothing wrong with taking a moment to see the humor in a situation. Really,” he pointed to the ledger in Perry’s hand, “life is more than tallying up numbers.”
“I’m making sure my financial house is in order.”
“And while that is commendable,” he began with a mock yawn, “it’s boring. You need to have fun. Enjoy life. Embrace the moment while you have it. Stop watching life pass you by. Get out there and make it happen.”
“Your way of having fun has required me to scramble funds together to get you out of trouble. And this,” he held up the ledger, “was very much needed in order to make sure I had the money to pay off gentlemen so they wouldn’t hunt you down in the country and demand a duel.”
“Granted, I might have upset a couple of them—”
“Might have?”
“All I did was tell them the truth. It’s not my problem they couldn’t handle it.”
“Telling someone his wife looks like something that’s been vomited up on the beach is not appropriate,” Perry said, thinking of the gentleman’s wife. “No matter how true it is. I hope you remember that there’s a way to be tactful, and even better, there are some things you should never say.”
“He provoked me.”
“What he did was irrelevant.”
“Unlike you, I don’t just sit by and let other people get away with insulting my friends.”
“There’s a way to defend your friends without resorting to insults.”
Christopher shrugged but said, “As much as I enjoy these little lectures, that’s not why I came over here.”
“Oh?”
“I am here on your behalf. You need a wife, and the sooner you get one, the sooner you will have something better to do than to go over that ledger or play chess or talk of war and laws. Which brings me to my earlier statement. Ethan’s right. You need to create a scandal. It’s the only way you’re going to get married.”
He grimaced. “You are not to talk to Ethan about me. At all!”
“Don’t be upset. It’s not like he actually cares about your boring life or anything.”
Perry rubbed his forehead. If anyone could give him a headache, it was Christopher.
“It’s not hard to create a scandal. All you need to do is find a lady you like and kiss her. But do it in public where everyone else can see.” Perry shook his head and opened his mouth to protest but he quickly added, “If kissing a lady makes you nervous, then hug her or touch her inappropriately. Brush your hand over her breast. That’ll do it. Plus, you’ll like the experience.”
“It’s time for you to go.”
Christopher followed him as he headed for the door. Thankfully, his cousin had the foresight to close the door so none of the servants overheard them. Not that the servants hadn’t heard some
scandalous things while Christopher was living there, but Perry really didn’t care to expose them to more. Christopher made it to the door first and jumped in front of it. How Perry wished that he didn’t need a cane to walk. All it ever did was slow him down when he wanted to get away from his cousin.
“Before you reject the idea,” Christopher began, “at least consider it. You’ve been trying to get a wife for how long? Four…five…years? And each Season is worse than the one before. Do you know what people are saying? They’re calling you ‘The Earl Who Can’t Find a Wife’. This is the year you can prove them wrong.”
Despite what his cousin thought, Perry was very much aware that some people called him that, but he refused to let it bother him. Most of those busybodies were miserable in their marriages. “It’s better to be alone than to have to seek happiness outside the marital bed. Now, move aside so I can put this ledger where it belongs.”
“Find a lady you like and create a scandal with her. I’m telling you, Perry, there’s nothing wrong with taking control of your destiny instead of letting life just happen to you.”
“Will you please move?” Perry stared at him, unwilling to break eye contact. He forced his jaw to relax. “Now,” he added when Christopher didn’t budge.
After a moment, Christopher stepped to the side.
“Feel free to see yourself out,” Perry said as he limped out of the drawing room.
“At this rate, I’ll never leave London,” his cousin muttered.
Though Perry had no idea what he meant, he figured he was better off not knowing. Instead, he climbed the stairs, aware that Christopher left the townhouse. There was no denying how quiet it was now that his cousin was married. Sometimes, especially at times like this, he enjoyed the silence. He didn’t need to be reminded that every attempt he made at finding a wife had failed, and it irritated him to no end that Christopher felt the need to keep bringing it up.
It wasn’t like Christopher was personally involved in seeing to it that he married. Christopher had his own life to live, and now that Perry was no longer his guardian, Christopher didn’t need him around. One day Christopher would inherit his title. Why he couldn’t be content with that, Perry didn’t know.
But there were times when Perry would be lying if he didn’t admit that what he wanted most was to have a wife—someone who would be his other half, someone who would complete him.
TWO
Paula listened carefully to the two gentlemen talking on the street below her bedchamber window. Since she spent most of her time in her room, she made it a habit of opening the window and listening as people passed by.
Sometimes she could make out parts of their conversation, and in this instance, one of the gentlemen had a loud enough voice that it was easy to hear what he was saying, something she was grateful for on this particular day. There was a ball that night at Toplyn Hall.
Her brother never told her where he was going, but after lunch, he had asked his valet to have his best outfit ready for the evening. She bet he was going to the ball. And she further guessed he was going in hopes of finding a wealthy lady. God help the lady who married him.
Well, that wasn’t her problem. Her problem was getting out of the horrible marriage to the Duke of Leavenshire, and in order to do that, she needed to find another gentleman to marry. As it was, she wasn’t going to find anyone unless she got out of the townhouse. Up to now, her brother had insisted on keeping her home. Probably because he worried she’d run away. But she wasn’t stupid. There was nowhere she could go without the protection of a gentleman who would stand between her and her brother. It was a gentleman’s world and ladies had to abide by their rules. And she could abide by their rules…as long as she found a loophole.
She closed her window and slipped out of her bedchamber. This time of day her brother would either be in the drawing room or in his bedchamber. Hopefully, it’d be the drawing room. She wouldn’t get a chance to talk to him otherwise.
By the time she reached the drawing room, she heard two distinct male voices. Before the gentlemen saw her, she pressed her back to the wall in the corridor, glancing around to make sure none of the servants were in sight. Good. No one saw her. She turned her ear to the closed door.
“You don’t need to convince me that this will be a suitable match,” the Duke of Leavenshire said. “I already told you her past is of no consequence to me.”
“I’m just glad her activities didn’t result in a bastard,” her brother replied over the sound of the decanter being placed on a tray. “Had the gentleman she’d been dallying with been a loudmouth, her reputation would have been ruined.”
“A gentleman is expected to engage in such pursuits with a lady.”
“Yes, but that lady should not have been my sister.”
Paula rolled her eyes at her brother’s bitter tone. Such sentiment never bothered him when he found other gentlemen’s sisters to take to bed.
“I have no use for a timid virgin,” the duke said. “Having to ease her into the whole process of getting with child… It’s better just to get it over with.”
“I couldn’t agree more. Who needs the hassle? There’s nothing worse than a lady who insists on getting pleasure from the act. Their bodies are such a mystery. It’s too much work if you ask me.”
The two gentlemen laughed and she rolled her eyes.
“The funds will be in your possession after the banns are read,” the duke said.
“I believe there is nothing else to work out. She’ll be your wife by the end of next month. She’s looking forward to it.”
“I don’t care if she’s looking forward to it or not. I just want to get a legitimate son.”
“I’m sure you’ll have no trouble getting one.”
That might be true, but Paula wasn’t going to be the one who gave him an heir. It’d have to be someone else. When she heard footsteps approach the door, she hurried to another room and slipped into it. Her brother walked the duke to the front door, and if she judged right by the obnoxious boom in the duke’s voice, the gentleman was almost drunk. She shivered. There was no way she could bear to be in the same bed with him, let alone marry him.
After he left, she waited for a couple minutes after her brother returned to the drawing room before she slipped out of her haven. She took a deep breath and strengthened her resolve. It wasn’t a question of “if” she had to do this. It was a question of “how”.
Releasing her breath, she clasped her hands behind her back and strode into the room, feigning the confidence she didn’t feel.
He glanced up from the letter he was writing. “Your timing is horrible, Paula. You just missed your betrothed.”
No doubt he expected her to grimace. Well, she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. She sat in front of his desk and folded her hands in her lap. “I’ve been in London since April but have not been to one ball.” Yes, that was a good way to begin.
“I couldn’t exactly trust you around all those gentlemen now, could I?” he asked with a slight smirk.
“It was just one gentleman, Stewart.”
“Yes, and I am forever grateful you didn’t bring a child into the world because of it.”
Ignoring his remark, she said, “I haven’t had a Season, nor have I left the townhouse without you by my side. I want one evening at a ball to enjoy myself before I’m locked away forever in the Duke of Leavenshire’s estate to be nothing more than a brood mare.” The last part she hadn’t intended, but the words slipped out and with them so did the disgust in her voice.
“This is a fate you brought upon yourself. No one told you to let Lord Holloway—”
“I don’t want to hear it,” she snapped. “I’ve paid for my sin three times over. You think a child would have been the worst thing that could have happened to me?” The following years of loneliness and nights of endless crying had been much worse, but he wouldn’t understand that. “All I want is one evening at a ball. I’ve never been to one.”
�
��You always did have an adventurous spirit.” He leaned back in his chair and studied her for several moments. Finally, he nodded. “All right. Since you’re willing to marry the duke, I’ll grant you your request.”
“Then I’ll get ready for the ball.”
“Wait,” he protested as she stood up. “You mean tonight’s ball?”
“Tonight is as good a time as any.”
“But how did you know there’s a ball tonight? I never told you.”
“Because two gentlemen were talking beneath my window. Just because you keep me here like a trapped animal, it doesn’t mean I don’t pay attention to what others say as they pass by this townhouse.”
He looked as if he was going to throw out some clever retort but then changed his mind. “Very well. Get ready for tonight’s ball. But that’s the only one I’ll let you attend. After this, you are to be the dutiful and quiet wife to the duke. Understood?”
“I understand,” she forced out in a pleasant tone.
“Good. We leave in three hours. Don’t keep me waiting.”
“I won’t.”
Relieved, she left the room.
Christopher groaned and leaned his head against the seat of the carriage. “You can’t be serious.”
Agatha crossed her arms. “I am serious. We aren’t going to our estate until you find your cousin a wife.”
“I’ve been looking for a suitable lady and there’s no one. No one!” He threw up his hands in despair. Why couldn’t she let the matter go? At least for this year. “We should try again next year. There’s bound to be a better selection of ladies to choose from then.”
“You haven’t been diligent in your search.”
“I haven’t been diligent? I’ve been asking everyone if there’s a lady who’d be willing to marry Lord Clement, but they all say no.”