Page 80 of Claimed By the Beastly Duke

He saw it, just the slightest twitch in her eyes. She was annoyed.

Good.

He knew the only way to coax the truth out of his mother was to annoy her, and he was determined to do just that today.

“Why are you here?” she asked again. There was an edge to her voice.

“I just cannot help but wonder why a duchess would choose to live in such a small house when she can live in a grand estate with her son—the estate she had spent the better part of her years in.”

Her face contorted into a frown.

“How many rooms are here? Five?” Edwin shook his head as though he pitied her.

“If you only came here to ridicule my home, then I’m afraid I will have you thrown out,” she sneered.

“Thrown out?” He gave a dramatic gasp. “I would certainly love to see you do that. I suppose you think your servants’ wages and the money you spend on your wardrobe just magically appear.”

Now, she was truly annoyed.

“Fine! Take it all away. Take it away and see if I will suffer or want for anything.”

Edwin laughed. “Now, let us not get ahead of ourselves, Mother. I am not taking away your servants or your allowance. But even if I did, you would not be so bothered now, would you?” He took small, deliberate steps towards her. “After all, you have Wilbury to take care of you.”

She let out a small gasp, and her face paled in shock.

Edwin smiled in satisfaction. He did not wait for a response before continuing. “I cannot help but wonder what the ton would think if word gets out that the respected Dowager Duchess of Gillingham is conducting a passionate love affair with themarriedLord Wilbury.”

“Lower your voice!” she hissed, her eyes darting around frantically. “Or do you want the entirety of London to know?”

Edwin shrugged one shoulder. “I suppose I would not mind. Who knows, I might even give the newspaper a hint of where to hide so they can see the good Earl leave your house at dawn. You would love that, wouldn’t you?”

“Edwin,” the Dowager Duchess said in a calm voice.

Her face was back to the tauntingly calm expression she had on when she descended from the staircase earlier.

Edwin was not daunted. He knew that a storm was brewing beneath her calm exterior, especially now that he had revealed her secret.

“Now, would you tell me why you are truly here?” she pressed. “We both know if you wanted to hint to the newspaper about my affair with Wilbury, you would have done it already, instead of coming to my house and engaging in a rather meaningless conversation.”

Edwin shook his head. “You do not know that I will not reveal your secret.”

The Dowager Duchess laughed. “I know if you wanted to do it, you would have.”

“Are you calling my bluff?”

She nodded. “Indeed, I am. Now, tell me what you are here for, or leave my house this instant.”

Edwin threw his hands up in surrender. “You are right. I would never go to the newspaper. You are my mother, after all, even if you do not possess any motherly instinct.”

His mother smiled. Edwin knew she took his last statement as a compliment.

“I would rather casually mention your affair at the next ball while standing next to some of the ton’s most notorious gossips. I am certain the news would reach Lady Wilbury before daybreak.”

Her lips thinned.

Edwin knew she was now distressed. “Imagine the field day the gossip rags would have. It would be the scandal of the century.” He gave a dramatic gasp. “The Dowager Duchess of Gillingham taking a married earl as a lover in her old age.”

“You may expose me, but you must remember that we are family,” the Dowager Duchess said. “Whatever ridicule I face will certainly affect you and your offspring. It is the way of the ton.”

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