Page 4 of The Duke's Return
It was this moment that gave her the push she needed to slip out the door––closing it before her husband’s face––and hasten to her friend’s carriage.
“Thank you, Phoebe,” she said in relief.
“Why are you so flushed? Is something amiss? And that wasn’t who I thought it was in the doorway, was it?” her friend pestered.
Genevieve could feel her heart pounding as she leaned back on the porch and closed her eyes. She needed a minute to catch her breath. Bewildered over her encounter with her husband, she wondered how many mistakes she had made. Several, probably. What had she been thinking, stepping on his boot? How childish she had acted. How stubborn—and charming—he had behaved.
“It was nothing,” she told her friend at last. And then she prayed this to be the truth.
CHAPTER 2
Homecomings for a naval soldier were supposed to be celebratory.
After all, not everyone came home. Those that did were forever changed, as Julian had been forced to discover for himself. The number of harsh lessons he learned in the past eleven months were more than he cared to count.
He slipped his hands into his waistcoat as he studied the closed door where his wife had just left him. The urge to follow her grew, his heels feeling light and ready to move after a long day riding through town.
And do what? I’d be stalking a stranger through London.
It was a skill he had now, on ground and at sea. But that would be useless here. There was no need for a duke to bury his elbows in the dirt or stealthily move around in the shadows. He had never been a man to worry much about his title. In the navy, he had simply been another soldier.
Yet now it felt like a weight on his shoulders.
“Blessed saints and Mary. I couldn’t believe a word out of Mr. Norman’s mouth until I saw you there.” Mrs. Culpepper’s familiar gravelly tone had Julian turning around. He set his thoughtful mood step aside so he could smile at her. “Ah, the dashing duke. Your Grace, how wonderful it is to see you again!”
“And you, my dear Mrs. Culpepper. What is it you’re drinking these days, the fountain of youth? I believe you are growing younger every day.”
She chortled. “Imagine that! I won’t be put back in leading strings, Your Grace, not when there’s a household to run.”
“And run perfectly it appears to be,” he told her with a fond smile. He’d always liked the housekeeper. She had been here longer than he had ever been around. Even when he took his own rooms in town during his bachelor days, the housekeeper visited weekly to ensure his servants were keeping the place well. “I’m glad to see you still appear hearty and hale.”
Upon reaching him, Mrs. Culpepper paused to offer a neat little curtsy as she was wont to do. “Indeed. I wish I could say the same for you. But I see you’ve grown thin and you’re not sleeping. Shall I prepare some soup?”
The devious woman had always known too much.
Julian shook his head and offered a short chuckle before explaining, “I am well enough, thank you.”
It wasn’t the right response judging by his housekeeper’s doubtful expression. She eyed him before offering a small snort. “At least I shall have the time necessary to put you back to rights.”
That made him wince. “I’m afraid I shall not be here long. I was granted leave to stay in order to tend to my affairs. I have every intention of shipping back out in two months’ time.”
“Whatever for? You are a duke. There are others to serve this country, Your Grace.”
He leaned forward. “Would you believe I have come for my wife?”
She stepped closer, clearly curious. “Are you finally going to do right by Her Grace?”
“I am.” In a sense, at least. “Perhaps I’ll sweep her right off her feet.”
She shook her head. “What has changed in you?
There were plenty of reasons he could give his housekeeper, none of which were her business. Even now, Julian was still testing out which sort of answer he might deliver to his wife. They’d made an agreement he would leave her in peace as he might request his own peace far away. It had been working well for some time.
Or so I thought. Funny how even being born into a dukedom isn’t enough to solve every problem.
Julian enjoyed trouble as much as the next gentleman. He’d made a fun go of it during his bachelor days. His family—and especially the ton—had been amused for the most part. For a short while, there was a single gossip rag dedicated solely to his misadventures. And Julian had saved a copy of every one of them.
But now, his wife was in the picture. Her name would be sullied alongside his. Tricks and trouble had been small compared to his situation now.
