Page 1 of Anything But a Duke
Chapter One
March 1845
London, Belgrave Square
She absolutely could not be late.
Diana Ashby approached the looking glass in her dressing room and tightened the ribbon she’d gathered around her dark, unruly hair. She’d gotten distracted in her laboratory and now the clock ticked dangerously close to the top of the hour.
An exception had been made for her and she couldn’t squander it. One of her former tutors from Bexley Finishing School had arranged a private scientific lecture at his home for a few colleagues and had extended her an invitation.
Diana rushed toward the door, scooping up a notebook and pencil on the way, and reached the top of the stairs at the precise moment her mother called her name.
“Diana. Come down and greet our visitor.”
She gritted her teeth and prayed this wasn’t some machination to thwart her evening plans. Mama didn’t approve of her pursuits or of ladies stepping out unaccompanied, but the Woodsons lived a short cab ride away, and her tutor and his wife were more than sufficient chaperones.
She descended the stairs warily, hoping whoever had come could be put off quickly. Relief washed over her when she spotted Samuel, Lord Egerton, a friend of her brother’s.
Though her father had been the second son of a baronet, he’d inherited enough of a living to provide Diana and her brother with an excellent education alongside the children of England’s noble families.
“I’m afraid Dominick isn’t at home. Most likely getting into some mischief. I’m surprised you’re not with him.”
“I wish to speak to you, Diana.”
Di scanned the hallway, but her mother was nowhere in sight. It was unusual to be left alone with a visitor, but Lord Egerton and his family were longtime friends.
Still, she sensed something wasn’t right. A prickle of hesitation raised goose bumps on her skin.
She studied her brother’s friend. Half-moon shadows darkened the undersides of his eyes and there was an odd tremor at the edge of his jaw. For a normally jovial young buck, he looked decidedly fretful as he gripped his gloves with a white-knuckled hold and twisted them nervously in his hands.
“Is something amiss with Dominick?” Her twin brother was a reckless sort. She lived in fear that one day he’d stumble into the kind of trouble one couldn’t get out of with charm alone.
When Egerton shook his head, Diana breathed easier.
“Shall we talk in the parlor?” Without waiting for an answer, she led him to the room.
He shocked her by slipping the door shut behind them.
“What’s troubling you?” Gentleness was hard to muster when the hands of the clock on the wall edged ever later, but she tried. They’d never been confidants, but as an acquaintance of many years, she was willing to hear whatever ailed the young man. For some reason, he’d come to her with his burdens.
“I’m not certain how to begin,” he whispered, a quivery wobble in his tone. “There is an endeavor I should like to undertake and need your guidance.”
“Whatever it is, I’m sure you’ll do well. You always do.”
He was an ambitious young man. Far more so than her brother. While Dominick had been happy to return from university with nothing but memories of frivolity and mischief, Lord Egerton had taken top marks in mathematics and philosophy and won trophies in several athletic endeavors. Di knew whatever competition he entered, Lord Egerton strove to win.
He stared at her, his mouth curved in a warm smile. The expression struck her as odd. Friendliness, she expected. But there was something more in his grin.
“You’ve always been kind, Diana.”
The way he said her name, the care he took with each syllable, filled her with unease.
“I do try to be kind.”
He stepped closer, and one hand hovered between them as if he was considering whether to reach for her. “You’re also quite the prettiest girl I have ever known.”
Diana took a step back. Then another. Fear of what was to come set her heart fluttering like a bird that’s just noticed the bars of its cage.
