My Darling Duke

They fell into a striking silence, which was distinctly uncomfortable. A few moments later, it struck her that perhaps he was not a man at ease with conversation. The rumors did say he was a recluse and had been without the proper company of society for many years. Why, she had never imagined anyone could be so unflappable in such a potentially ruinous situation.

“Observation of what, Your Grace?” she asked again, not certain what to do or say anymore. It was simply all too surreal.

“You invite study, Miss Danvers. I’ve been following your conquests of the ton most carefully.”

Her heart jolted. “My conquests?”

“The newspaper articles and scandal sheets of your many outings and escapades. Reporters seem fit to compare your laugh with that of a nightingale, your smile to that of sunshine. Quite riveting, I’m sure you would agree. The ton declared themselves scandalized by our courtship, but we know they are secretly fascinated and hunger for more. I am not quite certain what to make of you.”

The reporters had been merciless in their pursuits for quotes from her about the reclusive duke. It shattered her to think he might have read all the ridiculous flattery she’d claimed he showered upon her. He might have thought her a woman desperate for artful compliments and love.

A flush worked its way over Kitty’s body as humiliation crawled through every crevice of her heart.

“I spent most of my journey here wondering what kind of woman you are,” the duke said. “I imagined Kitty Danvers in numerous scenarios. A hardened fraudster? A con artist fleecing the merchants on my good name? A jewel thief using my connections to enter the best houses? A bored lady simply stirring mischief and mayhem? I wondered how to best dispose of you.”

Her heart lurched, and a shiver went through her entire body. “Your Grace, I—I fear ‘dispose’ may not be the right word to use in this situation. I daresay it rings too ominously.”

Nothing warm lit in his eyes at her miserable attempt at humor. Dratted man.

Still, a reassuring remark would not be misplaced, yet he offered none. The duke merely stared, as if she were an unusual creature that invited the most intense speculation. She could hear the faint din of laughter and clinking of glasses from the ballroom, and she concentrated on those muted signs of frivolity, slowing her heart to normalcy. Her entire family depended on her to be unflap

pable and courageous in the face of such ruinous uncertainty.

She dipped into a quick, elegant curtsy before lifting her chin and squaring her shoulders. “I never meant you any harm, Your Grace. I truly only wanted to borrow your connections for a few months. If I had dreamed for even a second it would reach your ears, I would never have done it. Pray believe that I am sincere.”

He took a step forward, and she shifted back. Their slight dance had the visible side of his face cloaked entirely.

“And does that excuse validate your outrageous deception, Miss Danvers?”

The mask staring at her was at once cold and removed, then glowed with sinister intent. A strange roaring thundered in her ears, and she felt a moment’s unwilling fascination.

“Of course not, but I pray it may temperate your disgust and anger and allow me the chance to make amends.”

A slow, fascinating smile curved his mouth. She began to think that he was a very strange man, and one with whom it was going to be more difficult to deal than she had foreseen.

Kitty glanced away, hurrying over to the far left corner, and lit a candle atop the oak desk. There. Fewer shadows and, indeed, less anxiety on her part. She faced him, frowning her displeasure to see that the candlelight had served only to throw more shadows into the small study, and the wretched man seemed to be…amused? Discerning with that dreadful porcelain mask was hard.

“I have the greatest apprehension my family will never recover from the scandal exposure will bring. I must know, Your Grace. I believe you are too honorable to willfully subject me to the anxiety I currently feel. Will you please inform me how we are to proceed?”

She prayed he wouldn’t send notices to the papers of her deception. Poor Anna would be wretched for certain. She would lose whatever admiration the baron possessed. The implication of everything else was simply too frightful to consider. This man could have Kitty jailed or committed.

“Without knowledge of my character, you presume me to be honorable? How naive you reveal yourself to be. Or are you being artful in your flattery for an advantage? You are a beguiling complexity, Miss Danvers.”

The dark indulgence in his tone rattled her equanimity as nothing else had done that night. A message throbbed in his voice, one she was unable to decipher, but a ripple of awareness scythed through her. The duke was a man who stood in the gray area of morality. Perhaps that was the reason he’d not exuded disgust at her charade, the reason he hadn’t penned a letter to the newspapers denouncing her…and maybe the reason he had traveled to see her.

The very implication of that being the reason he stood before her left her breathless with a bewildering clash of fear and anticipation.

“May I ask what you will do, Your Grace?” How odd she sounded so calm when she wanted to scream her fear at his slow response.

A tense silence blanketed the room for gut-wrenching moments. Say something, she wanted to snap. But she worked to be temperate and bury the panic.

“Ah,” he said with that odd, fleeting smile. “I believe I shall do nothing.”

Kitty laughed and then sobered instantly. In fact, she tugged the glove from her right hand and placed the back of her palm against her forehead. Her skin was surprisingly cool. She understood nothing, and she was uncertain that she wanted clarity anymore.

“Are you well, Miss Danvers?”

The cool mockery in his tone suggested the wretched man knew he toyed with her composure.