Page 46 of The Duke's Vice

“No need to apologize, Your Grace.” Graham smiled with ease. “I’d rather have a woman be honest with me than to placate me with unfounded niceties.”

Sarah waved her hand to clear the air. “We appreciate your candor, Your Grace.” She looked over her shoulder towards her butler who was standing in the doorway. “If you’ll excuse me, I think dinner is about to be served. I want to check on a few things before we eat.”

Sarah kissed her mother on the cheek before giving a nod to Graham and a cheeky wink to Beatrice.

“Oh, Eleanor is back.” Charlotte exclaimed. “Beatrice, we must go say hello to her before we sit down.” Charlotte turned to Graham. “If you will pardon us, Your Grace. We should say hello to my oldest before dinner.”

Graham dipped his head and stepped off to the side to allow them to pass.

Beatrice breathed a sigh of relief that their interaction was over. She didn’t know how much more she could take speaking with the Duke with her mother and sister in attendance.

As she swept by Graham he lifted his hand to grab hers, stopping her at his side.

“Had I known you had a brash tongue I would’ve have put it to good use the other night.”

It took her a few moments for her brain to catch up with her body. She stood there for a moment until she realized that he had dropped her hand and she was still standing there. Her eyes re-focused on the room around her. Curious eyes followed by whispering mouths watched as she tilted her chin in the air and joined her mother and sister by the door.

It took a small miracle for Beatrice to get through dinner. Luckily, the Duke was seated further down the table from her,but unfortunately, he was on the opposite side which allowed her eyes to drift to his.

Every time she stole a glance, his eyes were already on her.

One unfortunate time, she was bringing her water glass up to her lips when she looked at him. The intensity of his stare startled her and caused her to spill some of the water on herself. One very unfortunate time, she was cutting a particularly stubborn vegetable and his laugh caught her so off guard and her knife missed the potato causing it to fly off her plate and land in Lord Shelding’s lap.

Her nerves were frayed, and her head was pounding. Between the potato incident and her nervous stomach, she didn’t eat much at dinner. Now that dinner was over and the guests retreated to the parlor for after dinner drinks, her stomach regretted not eating.

Sarah’s parlor led to a veranda with her lush gardens surrounding it. Seeing no one on the veranda Beatrice stepped into the cool night, knowing that at least the night’s breeze would help settle her nerves.

“I just had an enlightening conversation with a friend of yours.”

Beatrice’s stomach flipped. Unfortunately for her, she knew it was because of the man who had stepped onto the veranda and not the lack of food.

She swallowed as she turned. Graham stood in the waning light, the shadows of the coming night showcasing his chiseled face and lean, yet muscular, body.

“Oh?” Her voice squeaked.

“Lady Jane? I had no idea the human palate could register so many different tastes.”

Beatrice relaxed slightly at the mention of her friend. “Yes, Jane is a connoisseur of sorts. Her family travels a lot and her favorite part is trying new foods and dissecting the different tastes. She says that throughout all of her travels, Sarah’s cook has the best food. It’s quite a compliment in her eyes.”

Graham nodded in agreement. “Are you well-travelled, Lady Beatrice?”

She shook her head. “No. Perhaps that is why I read so much. I do my traveling through the pages of a book.”

Beatrice caught herself. She was still on edge from their earlier conversation about books, bringing it up again may have just put her back in spotlight. Her eyes flittered around the empty veranda. Who was she fooling? It was only the two of them out here, there was no escaping his gaze.

A bubble of laughter came from the parlor. A reminder that just inside were people who would be very interested in knowing thatit was just the two of them out here. If the wrong person saw them it would most likely mean ruin for herself.

Eleanor stepped through the door with Sarah close behind her. Her sisters nodded in their direction before moving to the other side of the veranda. It looked like Sarah was showing Eleanor her newest addition to her garden but Beatrice knew their true intentions. They were keeping an eye on them. And while she doubted she wanted them to overhear anything her and the Duke would discuss, she appreciated them keeping her reputation in mind.

Even if her reputation was the furthest from her own mind.

Her eyes floated back to the Duke before dropping under his gaze.

“Yes. It seems our earlier conversation concerning books was interrupted.” Graham noted.

Beatrice nodded as she shuffled her feet. Her body began to hum, something she was becoming quite accustomed to when in his presence.

Her fingers started to fidget while she took slow breaths to regulate her breathing.

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