“Yes, my sisters and I received your invitation.”
“Might you be willing to advise me in hosting mine? The denizens of the ton-particularly my august relations-will be expecting a disaster, and I would very much like to prove them wrong.”
“I would be happy to help, my lord.”
“Shall we meet tomorrow to discuss it, then?”
“Yes, if we can arrange it for the afternoon. Arabella and Marcus will have left on their wedding trip by then.”
“Very well, I will call upon you at three o’clock, if that’s agreeable.”
“Very agreeable, my lord.”
“Until then, Miss Roslyn,” Haviland said with another bow.
She watched, smiling, as he turned away and descended the terrace steps two at a time, heading toward his own nearby manor.
Roslyn felt like hugging herself. She wanted very much to help the rebel Lord Haviland prove his detractors wrong. Yet she was just as pleased to have the opportunity to spend more time with him, since she hoped to show him that she could make him an ideal wife.
She was still smiling when she turned back to the house, but her footsteps faltered when she happened to glance toward the side entrance door. The Duke of Arden stood there in the shadows, one shoulder casually propped against the lintel.
Her smile fading, Roslyn halted. “How long have you been lurking there, your grace?”
“Long enough to observe your encounter with Haviland. I saw you follow him and was curious to know if you intended an assignation.”
Her chin came up. “Has no one ever told you it isn’t gentlemanly to eavesdrop on a lady?”
“Has no one told you it isn’t ladylike to chase after a gentleman?” Stepping out of the shadows toward her, Arden made a tsking sound. “Such forward behavior. I expected better of you, Miss Roslyn.”
She could see the gleam of sardonic amusement in his green eyes and had to bite back a retort. Even though she longed to set the duke back on his heels, she managed a sweet smile instead. “If you overheard our conversation, then you know there was no assignation. I merely wished to say farewell to a friend before he left for the evening.”
“Haviland looks to be more than a friend to you.”
“He is also our nearest neighbor, and a man I respect and admire,” she said coolly, although why she felt she had to defend herself to this pro
voking nobleman, Roslyn had no idea.
“And you mean to aid him in hosting his upcoming ball?”
“Of course.” When Arden moved closer, she thought of retreating a step, but she held her ground. “If I can use my particular talents to advise him, I will. When he was younger, Haviland left home in search of adventure and was never forgiven by his family. Since returning, he has not been well received in their elite circles, but he’s attempting to rectify matters and fulfill the obligations of his new title.”
“You seem eager to attract his goodwill,” Arden mused.
“Perhaps I am,” Roslyn said lightly, “but what of it? My affairs really are not your concern, your grace.”
“Except for the matter of your conduct a fortnight ago,” he drawled. “I am still waiting for an explanation.”
The duke’s sharper tone made Roslyn recall his threat to tell Marcus about her impropriety.
“Ordinarily,” Arden continued, “your indiscretions would not concern me, but in this case, there would have been the devil to pay had we been discovered together. I might have been obliged to marry you to make amends.”
Her eyes widened, then narrowed in understanding. “Is that why you are so vexed with me? Because you feared the repercussions if we were found together?”
“In large part.” His mouth curved wryly. “I wanted you as my mistress, sweeting. A wife is another matter altogether.”
Roslyn couldn’t help but smile. “Yet I hardly deserve all the blame, your grace. You were the one who propositioned me, I seem to recall. I did not seek your attention.”
“You should have stopped me before I kissed you.”