Page 77 of A Game with the Rakish Duke
She turned around, listening to her inner voice, and pushed through the crowd, looking around desperately. Her eyes landed on the maze at the very far end of the grounds. There was no one there at all.
She hiked up the skirt of her gown and took off. Her lungs were burning, but she was unable to stop. The urge to escape was so strong that she couldn’t think about anything else. She didn’t care if people were looking at her, wondering what on earth she was doing. She simply did not care.
He lied to me. He is just like my father. I was a fool to believe him when he told me he would never do that to me. And I was a fool to fall in love with him.
Chapter Thirty-Six
“Dunford, take my glass,” Thomas said, frowning, holding out his tumbler to his friend. “Quickly.”
As his friend took the glass, Thomas’s frown deepened as he watched the scene unfolding before his eyes. He had been feeling unsettled for a while as he watched the Earl of Afferton talking with his wife, but he had tried to ignore his suspicions, telling himself he was just suffering from the green-eyed beast as always.
But he couldn’t help glancing back at them. Lord Afferton was getting increasingly closer to his wife. He took her elbow, leaning down, placing his face so close to hers that it almost looked like he was trying to kiss her.
Thomas started to get really concerned when he saw Catherine’s face. She looked devastated, drawing away from the Earl and shaking her head vigorously.
And then she simply hiked up the skirt of her gown and started running across the lawn, towards the far end of the grounds.
Thomas didn’t think. He simply took off after her, running like the wind. He saw shocked faces in his peripheral vision as he flew past them, even knocking a glass out of the hand of one gentleman, sending it flying into the air. But he didn’t look back, nor did he care. His sole focus was Catherine.
She was a fast runner, ducking and diving between trees. He finally caught up with her when she had almost reached the maze, grabbing her arm and stopping her mid-flight. She spun around, colliding with him.
“Catherine.” He was panting hard, trying to catch his breath. “What on earth is the matter?”
To his shock, she put her hands on his chest and pushed him back so hard that he staggered slightly.
“What was that for?” He gaped at her. “What is going on?”
She looked furious, her green eyes glittering dangerously, her cheeks flushed. Her hairpins had been dislodged during her run, and now, her hair was half hanging down, tangled and messy.
“I will not be made the laughingstock of the ton,” she cried, tears springing to her eyes. “If you are having an affair with another woman, why cannot you bediscreetat least?”
He kept gaping at her. “What the deuce are you talking about? I am not having an affair! Why do you say such a thing?”
“Oh, stoplyingto me,” she growled, glaring at him. “Lady Isabella justhappensto be everywhere we go?”
He swore underneath his breath. “I do not ask her to appear,” he said, staring at her. “She just appears and approaches me. It would be impolite to snub her. There is nothing more to it than that.” He took a deep, ragged breath. “You think I am having an affair with the lady based on that?”
She kept glaring at him. “No, not just because of that, but I have noticed how she keeps popping up wherever you are, batting her eyelashes and flirting outrageously with you. Other people have noticed too, Thomas.”
He shrugged. “I cannot help what other people think. They will always make false assumptions.” He frowned. “But you are mywife, Catherine. You should know that just because a lady is flirting with someone does not necessarily mean anything…”
“Oh, yes, if she were justflirtingwith you, then perhaps I could turn a blind eye,” Catherine said in a tight, angry voice. “But it is much more than that. Your affair with her is an open secret. I was just informed about it.”
His jaw dropped. “What? By whom?”
“That does not matter.” She jutted her chin, glaring at him. “What matters is that other people are aware of it. And now I am aware of it, Thomas. Your secret is exposed.”
Thomas cursed underneath his breath again. He was shocked by her accusation, and now, he was furiously angry. He knew who had informed her of this supposed affair. It was so obvious as to be blinding.
“So that was what Lord Afferton was saying to you when I saw him accost you,” he said, his face tightening. “I should have known it was something like that to provoke such an extreme reaction.”
“Are you denying it?” Her voice was outraged.
He took a step closer to her, gazing down at her. “Of course, I deny it,” he hissed. “It is outrageous! I am not having an affair with Lady Isabella Lyndon. Not now, not in the past, and certainly not in the future.”
Her eyes narrowed. “I do not believe you. I have watched you flirting with her!”
“I wasnotflirting with her,” he insisted, glaring down at her. “I admit that she was flirting with me, but I was only polite in return. Besides, she flirts with many gentlemen. She flirts with Dunford, and she was flirting with Oakdale just now as well.”
