“It has been my pleasure,” he said with not a hint of irony. “If you’ll excuse me, I shall retire to the card room.”
He placed a kiss on Beatrice’s cheek and left without another word to Marisa.
“Ooh, that man. He’s so, he’s so, so infuriating.”
Beatrice laughed at her outburst. “His Grace is a nice man, even though he sometimes makes me wonder if he knows how to be happy.”
Marisa looked at his departing back, trying to ignore the curve of his buttocks and his long powerful legs. “He’s a duke, very wealthy and handsome, why would he not be happy.”
Beatrice sighed and looped her arm with hers, leading them back to the refreshment table. Marisa drank the rest of her champagne before accepting another glass.
“His upbringing was not a happy one. His mother died in childbirth, and his father—I’m not sure if it was his wife’s death or if he was always that way—but he turned into a cold and remote man. Nothing mattered but the dukedom and his House of Lords duties. I doubt Maitland ever received a kind word let alone a hug. I’m sure it’s affected him. Maitland is just not demonstrative.”
Marisa’s face heated. He’d been plenty demonstrative earlier. Suddenly she felt a tad light-headed. “Excuse me, Beatrice, I need the retiring room.” Beatrice was about to say she’d come too, when Sebastian arrived, wishing to dance with his wife. She watched Beatrice and her brother move in the waltz and wondered where Lord Rutherford was. She frowned and steadied herself against the table. She put down her glass and decided she needed to sit for a moment. She’d hardly drunk anything this evening, but for some reason the champagne she’d sipped had gone straight to her head.
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The Disgraced Lords Series 3-Book Bundle Page 85