Page 4 of A Duke Makes a Deal
As Clara’s eyes lifted to see the man whose hands were still on her, the words on her lips died away. He stood a whole foot taller, effectively towering over her. His black, wavy hair was pushed up in a fashionable, lazy style that most gentlemen tried to accomplish these days. His stormy blue eyes glared at her; his full mouth, set beneath a large nose in a stern face, was set in a scowl.
Clara swallowed hard as she stared at him, convinced that he was the most attractive man she had ever seen. Of course, Clara doubted he felt the same as he was staring at her as if she had just morally offended him.
“I-I’m sorry,” she whispered.
For a fraction of a second, the man’s eyes flashed with something dangerous, and Clara felt the pulse in her neck begin to flutter. His attractive face and imposing manner made her want to squirm. As his eyes drifted down her face to her chest, she felt exposed and slightly excited. She was sure she should be offended by his open stare, given that it felt as if he could see right through her, but she couldn’t manage to muster any offense.
Her cheeks burned with embarrassment as he looked into her eyes.
“The fault was mine.” His deep, cultured voice curled around his words.
He bowed slightly and turned quickly, leaving Clara slack-jawed, watching him as he disappeared down the long hallway of Elswick Terrace. What a terrifying man. She exhaled slowly, finally realizing that she had been holding her breath in his presence. Clara had never seen a man so commanding in all her life.
“Was that the Duke of Combe I just saw?” a feminine voice said behind her, causing her to be pulled from her private thoughts. She turned to see a very petite woman with dark hair peering down the hallway. She leaned towards her taller, redheaded friend. “I wasn’t aware he had rejoined society.”
“I’m surprised he had the audacity to come,” the redhead answered.
“But he and the earl are such good friends,” the other lady said. “Of course, he would come to Trembley’s first ball since the earl inherited his title.”
“Still, it’s astonishing that he would dare to show his face given all that’s been printed in theTimesabout how he treated his poor wife,” the redhead said, shaking her head. “Do you know, I heard he nearly killed the poor woman before divorcing her.” She made atsk tsk tsksound as she shook her head. “Supposedly, his temper is just as wicked as his dalliances. I wonder if he’s come here for one of Trembley’s famous card games.”
“To be sure. All men are affected by gambling. It seems the duke is no different.”
“I can only hope he’ll have the decency to confine himself to the card game and avoid the rest of the ball. After all, there are innocent ladies here.”
“Do you think his mere presence here might sully them?”
“Lord knows, but I wouldn’t let my daughter anywhere near a divorced man,” the redhead said as her eyes fell on Clara, who turned her head quickly and walked away.
Her cheeks warmed with embarrassment for eavesdropping so brazenly. But at the same time, she felt as if the ladies themselves should be at least a little ashamed of gossiping, especially about a man neither of them seemed to know personally. She didn’t think the divorced duke deserved such belittling.
Clara made her way back into the ballroom. She had read a bit about him in the gossip pages. When a story was large enough or wicked enough, it would always make its way around, and Clara vaguely remembered hearing about the duke and his unfortunate divorce sometime last year.
The papers had labeled him the Divorced Duke, and they had been brutal in detailing most of the ordeal. The Duchess of Combe had supposedly suffered greatly in her marriage with him until she’d fled to another man for protection, leading the duke to divorce her only three years after the two had wed. Rumors had persisted that the duke had wicked tastes and had forced the duchess into depraved situations of the carnal variety.
It seemed a large part of refined people’s day was spent gossiping, and Bettina had been particularly interested in anything scandalous. Only a week prior, while having tea at Bettina’s home during her mother’s weekly social gathering, Clara had overheard the Novak sisters being reprimanded by their mother for discussing an article about the former duchess’s new life in France. Mrs. Novak had pointed out that gossip wasn’t the best form of getting information, but her daughters had countered that it was best to pay attention to rumors, insisting that they always carried a grain of truth. Bettina had listened to the exchange with rapt attention. It was a shame that Bettina was away currently, visiting the country for the week. No doubt she would be astonished to hear that Clara had actually encountered the scandalous duke. Clara would have to be certain to tell her friend all about it when they met the next day, since Bettina and her family were travelling back to London sometime later that night.
The duke’s divorce had only been recently finalized as both the House of Lords and the House of Commons were required to grant it. It should have taken longer, but the duke was well connected and seemed to have rushed the matter through.
“I cannot believe it! I just saw the Duke of Combe,” someone to her left said as Clara sought her mother, who was sitting against the wall, dutifully waiting for the viscount return.
His attendance was not only interesting to see but to most of the guests. Within minutes of reaching her mother, Clara had overheard at least three other people talking about the duke.
Clara couldn’t understand it. It seemed relatively trivial to constantly talk about a man who had suffered a divorce. Divorce was a scandal in and of itself and quite rare, but it hardly seemed an interesting enough topic. And while everyone claimed that the duke’s behavior within the marriage had been quite shocking, no one seemed to know any specifics. All Clara had been able to gather from it was that she should be wary about marrying a man with a poor temper. She would not like to be indefinitely linked to a man who would raise a hand to her. Perhaps the duke was violent, and his wife had been lucky to escape him. And yet, having met him, she found it hard to believe. His touch had been tender, if not gentle.
What a silly thing to think. How could she be aware of what sort of man he was from an interaction that lasted for less than a minute? She had no way of knowing anything about him and would do well to push him entirely out of her mind.
And yet, as she watched the ladies and gentlemen pair off to start the dancing, wishing to join the happy couples, she found herself wondering about the duke. Her skin seemed to tingle where their bodies had crashed together, and she unwittily raised her hand to her shoulder and rubbed the spot where they had met. She wondered what it would be like to feel the duke’s arms around her as they danced across the crowded ballroom.
But those were foolish thoughts. She shook her head, trying to fight off her curiosity. She was nearly engaged after all, if only Hubert would come back from wherever he went and propose…
Chapter Two
Silas Winters, Dukeof Combe, was trying very hard to quell the rising apprehension he felt at his core.Damn it. He shouldn’t have come tonight. His nerves were raw simply from accepting the Earl of Trembley’s invitation, and while he had convinced himself that he wouldn’t let his foolish anxieties ruin yet another evening, he was finding it difficult to follow through. He was so preoccupied with his troubles that he had nearly run over a lady.
Silas fought the urge to peer over his shoulder, wondering if the blonde woman in the overly beaded jade color gown who he had knocked over was staring after him. A miserable reminder bubbled up in his mind. Of course she was. Every guest in attendance tonight would stare at him. He could see the shocked glances and hand-covered mouths as he walked deeper into the house. Could practically hear the disdain in their whispered voices. Curious stares from the men and frightened glares from the matron attendees made him second-guess his coming here tonight.
The Divorced Duke had finally emerged from his hiding, and everyone was eager to see how broken he was.
