Thwarting the Duke Read online

  “Yes, well, you certainly made an impression,” he said as they turned onto Park Lane and headed toward the Park. “I’m not sure if I ever saw a more beautiful sight in my life.” That last part he said so softly she wasn’t certain if he’d even said it at all. And she wasn’t certain if she wanted to hear him. What was she supposed to say to that?

  “Perhaps it wasn’t even me that day. Perhaps it was one of my sisters pretending to be me,” she said, wishing she wasn’t suddenly so aware of how close his leg was to hers on the bench. Heavens, what was wrong with her?

  “I don’t know the first thing about your sister who’s married to the doctor in Yorkshire, but there is no way in the world the girl splashing in the Serpentine was Lady Grace.”

  “And how are you so certain?”

  That smile of his was back in place again. “She doesn’t live life the same way you do. There’s this passion, adventure right beneath your skin just waiting to come out. Your sister could give a man frostbite with just a glance.”

  And Grace might very well take a dueling pistol to Lord Kilworth if she heard him say such a thing about her. “Grace has confidence,” Hope returned.

  “And you have spirit,” he said evenly, casting her a sidelong glance. “But you used to have a sparkle in your eyes, though I haven’t seen evidence of it this season.”

  A sparkle in her eyes. Henry used to say the same thing about her eyes. “I’m not certain it will ever return,” she said, nodding to Lord and Lady Wolverly in a gig along Rotten Row.

  “Why not?” he asked, and seemed like he genuinely cared about the answer.

  Hope shrugged and looked out at the sea of fashionable people crowding the park. “I lost the love of my life, Lord Kilworth. I’ve felt like a stranger in my own skin for months.” And she had no idea why she told him that, but he had asked; and Henry had been his cousin. And perhaps saying as much would keep her from noticing his leg pressed against hers. After all, she didn’t even like the man.

  “Ah!” Boomed a voice Hope could have gone forever without hearing. “Thaddeus Baxter! How are you, my boy?” Her great-uncle, the intimidating Duke of Danby sat amongst a bevy of beautiful ladies in a large open air landau. His granddaughters. Most of them, it seemed.

  Had Danby just called Lord Kilworth by his Christian name? There was something unnerving about that.

  “Your Grace,” Lord Kilworth returned. “Happy, as always, to see you.” He flashed that smile of his at the landau and tipped his bowler hat. “Lady Heathfield, Lady Isabel, Mrs. Trent, Lady Marston, Lady Morley.”

  The duke’s blue eyes landed on Hope and they narrowed slightly. “So which one are you?”

  “Grandpapa,” Lady Heathfield chastised under her breath.

  Danby’s gaze flashed briefly to the auburn-haired girl as though to silence her before turning his attention back to Hope. “Never mind. You’re Hope, aren’t you?”

  She hadn’t even uttered a word. How in the world could he tell which triplet she was? Very few people outside of family could tell her apart from her sisters, and she’d never spent very much time in His Grace’s presence. Only a tiny bit this last Christmas, to be honest. “How did you know?”

  “Grace would’ve already snapped at me.” And, of course, Patience was in Yorkshire not far from the duke’s castle. Danby turned his attention to Lord Kilworth. “How is Margaret faring?”

  “She suffered from ague most of the winter, but Mother says she’s doing better now that it’s warmer.”

  Margaret? Margaret Baxter, Henry’s old maiden aunt? How well did Danby know the Baxters? Hope swallowed nervously, which was odd. Grace was the one intent on finding a husband before the duke could appoint one for her. Hope hadn’t cared one whit. It didn’t matter who, if anyone, the duke selected for her. She’d never love again, so what did it matter who he picked out for her? But now…Well, there was something about the fact that Danby seemed so familiar with Lord Kilworth that struck a bit of fear in Hope’s heart.

  “Do send her my best,” Danby said. “And if the doctor in Lealholm is too inept to cure her ague, she is always welcome at Danby Castle. I do believe I have the best doctor in all of Britain.”

  “Thank you.” Lord Kilworth nodded. “I will tell her, Your Grace.”

  Chapter 6

  Thad nodded in farewell to the duke and his granddaughters and then urged his bays forwards once more. His mind was still reeling, however. Lady Hope’s words still echoing in his ears. I lost the love of my life, Lord Kilworth. I’ve felt like a stranger in my own skin for months. Had she truly thought herself in love with Henry? Thad knew she’d fancied his cousin. And Henry could be the most charming of men when he wanted to be, but…To actually love him?

  There was no doubt in Thad’s mind that whatever love Lady Hope had felt for his blackguard of a cousin, Henry was both undeserving and did not return her affections. If he had, the two would have been married immediately following the Serpentine incident. But Henry, ever the cad, had not cared one whit about the whispers swirling around Lady Hope ever since that infamous day. A decent man would have married her then, even if he didn’t return the lady’s affection. But no one had ever mistaken Henry Baxter for a decent man. No one except, perhaps, Lady Hope.

  “I had no idea you were so well acquainted with my great-uncle,” she said, breaking into Thad’s thoughts.

  “My great-aunt is an old friend of Danby’s late-wife.” In fact, he’d known the man most of his life. No one equaled Danby’s standing in northern Yorkshire.

  “He was much more pleasant to you than he has been with any of us.”

  Danby had a certain reputation, but he was a decent fellow. Thad couldn’t help but smile. “Are you intimidated by His Grace? You, the girl who threatened to push me to my death a little while ago?”

  Lady Hope shrugged slightly. “We spent Christmas at Danby Castle, and I can assure you the man is singularly focused when he is of a mind.” She gestured in the direction Danby’s landau had gone. “From what I’ve heard, he has a stack of special licenses just waiting for his Machiavellian plans to fall into place, seeing each and every unmarried relative settled before his death.”

  Thad had heard those rumors too, but he imagined Danby had better things to do than play matchmaker at every turn. Odds were His Grace simply let his reputation speak for himself, and his panicked relatives did the rest. “You don’t think he has any ducal duties that require his attention?”

  “He had a hand in each of his granddaughters’ marriages. And this last Christmas, he even secured a match for my sister Patience.”

  Thad tipped his hat at Lord and Lady Berkswell walking along the row, then he cast a sidelong glance at Lady Hope again. “Is that why he intimidates you? You’re concerned about him matchmaking on your behalf?”

  A sad smile settled on her face. “Grace and Jamie have been on matrimony missions all Season long they’ve been so worried about him.”

  James Woodward was scared, was he? There was something amusing about that. Of course, with Lady Grace’s icy demeanor, she had every right to be worried about such an occurrence. What kind of fellow would Danby dig up that could tolerate her for a life time? Probably only Daniel Lacy would willingly subject himself to her scintillating personality. Not that Thad cared about Lady Hope’s sister in the least. Of course, the enchanting blonde sitting next to him on the bench was another matter all together. “What about you, my lady? Have you been worried as well?”

  “Not in the least.”

  Smart girl. She had no reason to be concerned. Lovely and enchanting as Lady Hope was, some fellow would snatch her up before the Season came to a close, Thad had no doubt. “I imagine you have nothing to worry about. Though any fellow who does offer for you should be warned not to let you drive any of his conveyances.”

  “You are the worst sort of villain, my lord.”

  “I’m certain my sister would agree with you wholeheartedly,” he laughed.

  “Oh? Were y
ou a terrible brother?”

  Years ago Sarah would have said yes to that without hesitation. “We get along perfectly well these days.” Even if Thad didn’t particularly care for his brother-in-law.

  “These days?” she echoed. “Is that a new development, then? Did you take to blackmailing her in your youth?”

  “I believe the word you’re looking for is negotiating, my lady.”

  She laughed and he couldn’t help smiling. She really did have the most delightful laugh, warm and honest. Who was courting her? Why wasn’t she afraid of her great-uncle’s stack of special licenses?

  He cast her a sidelong glance. “Should I be worried someone will call me out over our negotiations?”

  She frowned slightly at that. “Fairly certain my brothers would strangle me for driving Jamie’s phaeton before they called you out. So I’d rather they not ever learn the truth.”

  Just her brothers? “I shan’t breathe a word to either of them,” he vowed. “Any suitors I should concern myself with? I’d hate to be caught unaware.”

  “The only suitor who would avenge my honor died last autumn.”

  Henry? When he was alive he’d never avenged anyone’s honor, and Thad highly doubted his cousin would do so now if he was still alive. But was there really no one else? “And yet the threat of Danby’s special licenses doesn’t concern you?”

  She shrugged. “Whether he has one with my name or not makes no difference at all,” she replied softly. “With Henry gone, my future is meaningless. So why would it matter if His Grace has a match for me or not?”

  Was she serious? Thad shifted on the bench to see her better. Lady Hope was young, vivacious, stunning, engaging, and the most enchanting girl he’d ever encountered. She couldn’t really mean to throw the rest of her life away because his blackguard of a cousin was dead. She had so much to live for, so much to look forward to.

  But according to the lady, Henry’s death was the sole reason for a lack of sparkle in her eyes these days. What if Thad could give that back to her? He could at least try, couldn’t he? It was the least he could do after his cousin nearly ruined her. “There is nothing meaningless about you, Lady Hope, let alone your future.”

  Hope glanced up to find Lord Kilworth’s dark blue eyes focused on her. The sincerity in his depths made her breath catch in her throat. “You don’t have to say that.”

  “I don’t have to say anything,” he agreed. “And, yet, I can’t seem to help myself. I hardly doubt my cousin was worthy of your devotion.”

  Hope released a sigh. “He was your cousin. Can you not find something nice to say about him? No one seems able, and it’s made me feel even more isolated from the world. I can’t be the only one to have seen the true nature of him.”

  The look on Lord Kilworth’s face was fairly dismissive of that. “I knew Henry my entire life, Lady Hope, don’t you think it’s possible that if one of the two of us knew his true nature, it would be me?”

  Hope refused to acknowledge that he might be correct, because she had known Henry too. She knew a side of him no one else had, apparently. And she still loved him. She would until the end of her days. “I know he was a bit of a rogue, but there was much more to him than that.”

  “You are too generous.” Lord Kilworth blew out a breath and directed his bays towards the far end of the park.

  Once they had gone far enough that no one was nearby, he pulled back on the reins, drew the phaeton to a stop, and looped the ribbons around the hook. Then he turned on the bench, his knee pressing against Hope’s leg, which made awareness shoot through her. What was it about him?

  “On my word,” he began, his gaze searing her once more. “You are the most enchanting girl I’ve ever encountered. And I’ll be damned if you’ll toss the rest of your life away because he’s gone.”

  Hope swallowed nervously. What was she to say to that? “I hardly see why it’s any of your concern.”

  And then he cupped her face with his hands, his dark eyes staring so intently into hers that she felt it deep in her core. “And yet I’m concerned all the same,” he said softly as he leaned forwards…

  Heavens, he meant to kiss her! What if it was a horrible kiss like Jamie shared with Alice Humphreys? What if it ruined the memory she had of Henry’s kiss. What if…

  Lord Kilworth’s warm lips pressed to hers and heat shot through Hope. Her eyes fluttered closed and she grasped the edge of his jacket, breathing in the citric cent of his shaving lotion and she couldn’t quite think about anything else. He moaned slightly against her lips and the sensation reverberated through her.

  Heavens! It wasn’t a horrible kiss. It was a wonderful kiss, heady and intoxicating. A tingle raced along Hope’s skin and she couldn’t help but lean into him.

  And then Lord Kilworth lifted his head and Hope’s eyes popped open. Oh, good heavens, what had she done? He brushed a finger across her cheek before releasing her. “ What are your plans this evening?”

  Plans? Did she have plans? Her mind was a jumble. How was she supposed to remember anything with him looking at her so intently? “Um, the St. Austell soiree.”

  He smiled then. “Save me a waltz?”

  That sounded like such a terrible idea. Reckless and dangerous. He’d already kissed her, and…Well, she didn’t really even like him. Or did she? She had liked his kiss. What did that say about her? Nothing good, certainly. But Hope nodded anyway. She couldn’t quite help herself.

  Lord Kilworth said very little as he drove her back to Post House, and Hope was thankful for the reprieve. She had no idea what she thought about anything that had happened that afternoon and needed to clear her head. That was still difficult to do with him so close to her on the bench, however. His thigh was pressed against hers and the heat from him seeped through the muslin of her dress and warmed every inch of her.

  He stopped his borrowed phaeton in front of Post House and looped the reins around the hook. Then he hopped down and navigated his way around the back of the conveyance, stopping right next to Hope.

  “Allow me?” he asked, reaching his hands out to her.

  Heavens. To have his hands on her again…

  He grasped her waist and easily plucked her from the bench and gently placed her back on her feet before him.

  Hope stared up at him, swallowing a bit nervously.

  “The St. Austell soiree?” he asked, his voice rumbling over her.

  And she nodded, just as the front door opened and Mama and Aunt Rachel stepped out onto the front stoop.

  “Oh!” Mama said and scowled slightly at Lord Kilworth. “Wonderful, you’re back already. Your aunt and I were just about to go for a stroll. You can join us.”

  Hope blew out a breath. The last thing she wanted to do was go for a walk with her mother and aunt. She’d never get her thoughts in order if she was with the two of them. “I’d promised Grace and Lila we’d go shopping, Mama,” she lied, praying her sister and sister-in-law were still home.

  Her mother cast one more scathing glance in Lord Kilworth’s direction. “Then we’ll talk when you return.”

  Hope smiled up at the earl and said, “Thank you so much for the ride, my lord,” before brushing past her mother and aunt up the steps and into the house.

  Chapter 7

  As soon as Hope stepped over the threshold, she heard Vivaldi flowing from the music room. Grace must be in a mood, but there was no one else Hope could confide in. So her sister would just have to get out of whatever mood she was in.

  She made a direct path to the music room, and Grace was poised on the bench with her eyes closed while her fingers flew over the keys. Hope stood in the doorway a moment, listening to the music as her thoughts returned to that sudden kiss in the park. Never in her wildest imagination would she have ever thought Lord Kilworth would kiss her, not the current Lord Kilworth in any event. But he had and it still made her breathless to remember.

  She must have made some sort of sound because Grace sucked in a breath and spun around
on the bench. “Honestly!” She touched a hand to her heart. “You took ten years off my life.”

  “Sorry,” Hope muttered, stepping further into the room and dropping onto a divan against the wall. “I didn’t want to disturb you.”

  “I didn’t mean to snap.” Grace pinched the bridge over her nose. “Mama is just pushing me to the limits of my patience.”

  Which explained Vivaldi and Grace’s mood. “Why? What is she doing now?”

  Grace shook her head in annoyance. “She’s being unbearable about Daniel’s sister and it’s putting me in an awful spot with him.”

  Mr. Lacy’s bastard sister. Yes, Mama had been rather put out about the whole thing. “I am sorry.” Hope frowned.

  “He adores his sister. He wants her at the wedding and he is entitled to have his sister there.” Grace slid off the bench and started towards Hope’s divan. “It was hard enough bringing him up to scratch in the first place. Why does she have to make the whole thing more difficult?”

  Hope heaved a sigh as her sister dropped into the space beside her. “Any whisper of scandal or impropriety and she’s unwavering to the nth degree.” They all knew that. Mama had been that way their entire lives. It was nearly suffocating being her daughter. “You should have seen the way she glared at Lord Kilworth just now.”

  “Maybe that will help you scare him away,” Grace said, tilting her head as though to see Hope better. “I am sorry I wasn’t able to do so before she stumbled upon us.”

  If Grace had gone to the park with Lord Kilworth, would he have tried to kiss her instead? She hoped not, which was a foolish thing to hope for. “I’m not certain I want to scare him away,” she said softly.