Page 27 of The Duke's Gamble
“Then why do you not offer to marry her?” Lord Crawley tilted his head, though there was a look in his eyes that Samuel did not much like, as though somehow he knew what difficulty his question would present. “It would steal her from the Duke, which is whathewants.”
Lord Allington shook his head, a wretchedness in his face now. “Would that I could! Alas, I am all too aware that should I offer to do such a thing, should I give her my heart and plead with her to marry me, she would then be torn between her clear desire to step back from you, Your Grace, and her loyalty to her family.”
Letting out a long, weary sigh, he looked again at Samuel. “Recall that I am all too aware of what hold you have on her. If the betrothal ends, as you hope, then the marriage cannot continue and the house you have taken from Lord Haddington will continue to be yours. And she, in seeing this and in takingon your foolish offer, will take the house back from you on the day of her marriage and let it again return to her family, so they might be safe and happy and secure for the rest of their days.”
Putting one hand to his heart, Lord Allington’s eyes narrowed. “I have a great respect for the lady, more than I have had for any other in my company. She is willing to give of herself, to sacrifice her own happiness for the sake of others. And I have been a fool, willing to injure her most grievously in order to assist a friend… well, I shall do that no longer. Painful though it is, I must step back and leave her to your care, Your Grace. For she isyourbetrothed, and I shall make no attempt to steal her from you, even though my heart longs to do so.”
With this, and with another sorrowful sigh breaking from his lips, Lord Allington turned away and left Samuel and Lord Crawley to stand together. Samuel did not know what to say or even what to think, utterly nonplussed at all that had just been revealed to him.
Then, Lord Crawley chuckled. “It appears as though I have no need to speak to Lady Florentina after all,” he told Samuel, a brightness in his voice that Samuel instantly despised. “Lord Allington too has seen just what a gift Lady Florentina is and that, I believe, ought to give you much to consider.”
“I shallnotconsider it,” Samuel muttered, though Lord Crawley, with a roll of his eyes, immediately stepped away and left Samuel alone.
Then, without warning, a sudden loneliness took over. Samuel watched as Lord Crawley made his way to Lord Allington and, with a slap on the gentleman’s shoulder, quickly fell into conversation with him. Slowly, Samuel began to realise that not one but two gentlemen had now stepped away from him, no longer considering him a friend but instead rejecting him utterly. That was not what he had desired, not what he had wanted for himself and his standing within society and yet, thatwas what he was being left with. The threat he had made to Lord Crawley echoed back in his mind and Samuel winced, dropping his head and rubbing one hand over his forehead.
Did I truly utter such words?
His eyes closed tightly.
And would I have done such a thing?
For the very first time, Samuel saw a reflection of himself as though he were looking into a looking glass though, this time, it was the realization of howotherssaw him rather than how he saw himself. There was not a warm smile on his lips but rather a cold, calculating one. There was no gentleness in his eyes but instead, a hard glint. Over and over, Samuel told himself that he would never have truly broken Lord Crawley away from Lady Christina, that he had only used it as a threat so he might get what he wanted. But even that now made shame bucket down upon him, tearing at his soul.
Your only thought is for yourself.
“But there is nothing wrong with that,” Samuel said aloud, trying to convince himself that it was so. “It is quite understandable, is it not?”
And yet, as the music played, the laughter and the smiles dancing around him, Samuel felt nothing but regret seep into his heart. Without warning, he strode through the crowd, suddenly desperate to be free of them, needing to be entirely alone. Feeling every eye upon him, he rushed through the door that led to the hallway and then outside, into the cool evening air.
And yet, despite the space and the freedom, it still felt as though everything was still closing in.
Chapter Eleven
“Lord Allington has not called today.”
Florentina glanced to her mother, then to Christina who had spoken. “No, he has not.”
“He did not call yesterday either.”
“Yes, I am well aware of that,” Florentina murmured, turning her attention to her embroidery again. “But that is not so troublesome, is it? Unlessyouwere eager for his arrival?”
At this, Christina let out a laugh though there was a slight blush to her cheeks. “No, indeed not. I was thinking… well, truth be told, I was thinking about you. I have Lord Barlow and Lord Crawley to consider!”
Florentina frowned. “You know that I cannot consider anyone, Christina. I am already betrothed.” The truth was, her thoughts were not at all on Lord Allington and his absence. Instead, her thoughts had been fully centred on the Duke of Dartmoor, wondering why it was that she had been so upset and hurt by his willingness to throw aside his dance with her. It had not been his absence from her side that had been lingering in her mind but why her heart had ached… and why it still did so even now.
“Yes, but Lord Allington was so very wonderful.” Christina, interrupting Florentina’s thoughts, sighed and shook her head. “So much more amiable than the Duke, was he not?”
At this, Florentina could not help but smile. “Yes, I will admit that he is but that is not particularly difficult, given just how most disagreeable the Duke is!” This made her sister and her mother laugh and Florentina smiled along with them both though, much to her confusion, there came a slight twist of dislike over what she had said, as though, deep down, she did not truly mean that.
“You do not have to marry him, Florentina. You know that, yes?”
Florentina smiled at her mother, albeit a little wearily. “Yes, Mama. But you know that, regardless of your thoughts on the matter, I still shall wed him. The house will be returned to you and you shall not have a single flickering shadow on your reputation. And though I will admit that I might, thereafter, dislike my new situation as a Duchess, I shall have the greatest contentment imaginable, for I shall know that my family are all quite secure.”
Lady Haddington held her gaze. “If there was another way, then—”
The door opened without warning and, much to Florentina’s surprise, none other than the Duke himself walked into the room. The butler hurried after him, stammering somewhat in clear dismay that he had not managed to introduce the Duke as he ought to but Lady Haddington waved him away, quickly rising to her feet.
Florentina did the same, somewhat astonished to see the Duke arrive in such haste, noting how he bowed quickly but then began to pace up and down the room, looking at none of them and saying not even a single word.
