Page 60 of Not the Duke's Virgin

Her friends tittered again.

Victoria trembled with rage, barely containing the urge to lunge at her and claw the smug look off her pretty face.

“The only ‘idea’ imparted here,” she said coldly, “is that some sadly still judge a woman’s worth with arrogant ignorance and petty cruelness rather than soundness of character. Now, stand aside.”

Nudging her mare forward, she meant to ride right through their blockading forms.

But Caroline moved swiftly, cutting her off again. “Do not feign outrage when it is your family that has transgressed so foully,” she snarled. “Thanks to your sister’s wanton behavior, your reputation is ruined, Lady Victoria. No respectable gentleman will go near you now.”

The harsh truth was a blow, knocking the breath from Victoria’s lungs. For all her brave defiance, she could not deny the damage Aurora’s fall from grace did to her prospects. Caroline and her ilk were only voicing the ugly whispers echoing across all levels of society.

Swallowing past the lump in her throat, she forced icy calm. “You may spew whatever petty cruelty satisfies you. But in the end, no amount of idle gossip can impact one’s character or worth. I know my value.”

She made once again to ride past, but Caroline blocked her yet again. Victoria suppressed a growl of frustration.

“If you were any kind of lady, you would have fled to the country by now to hide your shame,” Caroline scoffed. “But instead, here you are, brazen and unrepentant as ever. It seems you possess your sister’s same wanton streak, after all.”

Victoria saw red, drawing herself up furiously. Enough was enough. This spiteful chit would not make her run off in humiliation. If it was a scene Caroline wanted, she would give her one to remember.

Locking her eyes onto Caroline’s spiteful blue eyes, she replied in a carrying tone designed to attract attention, “I believe the shame here lies with any who would speak so abhorrently to an innocent woman. Does it give you pleasure to attack those who cannot defend themselves?”

Around them, heads began to turn. Caroline flushed, eyes darting nervously at the mounting attention.

Victoria pressed her advantage. “Rather than condemn, you should practice empathy and wisdom enough to know rumors often distort the truth. I will pray one day you mature into a kinder, wiser woman. Until then, good day.”

Turning her mare’s head, she guided the horse forward steadily. This time, the frozen trio parted silently to allow her passage. Victoria kept her gaze fixed ahead, back poker-straight as she rode past with head held high.

Only when she was well out of view did she allow herself to slump, shaking all over. The encounter had rattled her more than she cared to admit. But at least she had held her own with poise. Let them see they could not so easily dampen her spirit.

Still, Caroline’s cruel remarks continued to echo in her mind. Ruined… no respectable gentleman… wanton streak…

Blinking back furious tears, she spurred her mare into a gallop, letting the pounding hooves and rushing wind drown out the hateful words. But nothing could erase the bleak truth they carried. Aurora’s downfall had destroyed Victoria’s reputation just as irrevocably.

By the time she arrived back at Newton House, she had no more control over the swirling rumors and gossip than the changing winds. Their family now lay at the fickle mercy of Society. And there was not a single thing she or anyone could do about it.

Shoulders slumping, she trudged inside. The entrance hall was finally empty, and the flood of damning letters ceased. But she knew it was only the eye of the storm. Soon enough, more gossip, financial troubles, and her father’s temper would crash down upon them.

Wearily climbing up the stairs, she just wanted to throw herself on her bed and surrender to despair. But as she passed the corridor leading to her father’s study, raised voices halted her steps.

Frowning, she crept closer. She recognized her father’s incensed bellow, though his words were muffled by the heavy oak door. Who was he shouting at?

As she hovered uncertainly in the corridor, the study doors were suddenly yanked open. Victoria shrank back into the shadows as an unfamiliar man stormed out, face mottled with rage. Her father followed on his heels, jabbing an accusatory finger at his back.

“Do not dare threaten me, Sir! I shall not be strong-armed into compliance when it is your wretched son who ruined my daughter!”

The unknown man—tall, imposing, and expensively dressed—whirled with a growl. “Ruined? They are equally culpable, and you know it! Your daughter is no innocent in this.”

Lord Newton advanced until they stood nearly nose to nose, both shaking with fury. “How dare you, Sir! My Aurora is the epitome of virtue! Your profligate son seduced and ruined her, destroying her reputation!”

Comprehension struck Victoria then. This imposing, well-dressed man must be Joseph Robinson’s father. Which meant…

She crept closer as the argument raged on. They seemed oblivious to her presence.

“If your precious daughter was so virtuous, she would not now be breeding a bastard child!” Mr. Robinson thundered. “Your family is as much to blame as mine! I’ll see you all exposed for the hypocrites that you are!”

Lord Newton paled but stood his ground. “Is that a threat, Sir? Because I promise you will not prosper from this vile scheme. No one of good standing will sympathize with your son once his depraved behavior is known!”

The two men glared daggers, quite beyond reason. Victoria hovered a mere few feet away now, holding her breath. She had never seen her father so enraged and unhinged.

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