Page 19 of What's a Duke Got to Do With It
Miss Denby, who had been in the process of securing a shawl around her employer’s shoulders, hastily rose. “Is there anything you wish to hear?”
“Something jolly,” Lady Tesh said with a stern look. “None of those sad ballads you’ve been playing of late. And Mr. Bridling,” she continued as Miss Denby hurried to the pianoforte, Mouse close to her side, “you shall turn the pages for her.”
“It would be my pleasure,” Bridling said gallantly, following Miss Denby with alacrity.
Sebastian, for his part, couldn’t seem to take his gaze from Miss Denby. It had been the same since his arrival, of course, his eyes drawn to the busy, graceful way she moved, some part of her always in motion. Like now, as she adjusted her skirts over the bench and riffled through the music sheets before her. She blushed prettily as Bridling approached, her hand smoothing over her pet’s head, as if to seek comfort there, her soft laugh as Bridling spoke to her causing Sebastian’s stomach to clench in the most disconcerting way.
Focus on Bridling, he told himself brutally. Sebastian was to marry the man’s sister, after all. The whole point of this trip was to make certain that event, required to protect his family and those who relied on him, took place.
But no matter how forcefully he tried to set his traitorous mind on the path it was supposed to travel, his attention would invariably drift to Miss Denby, his eyes tracing the curve of her cheek, noting with a pang the deep dimple when she smiled, caressing the graceful arch of her neck as she bent her head to focus on the keys. How many times had he sat just like this, watching her hungrily from afar? And then, later, when he had gotten bolder and approached her, offering to turn the pages just as Bridling was doing for her now? She had gazed up at him with her sweet smile, and he’d felt on top of the world.
And then it had all come crashing down on his head.
“Your Grace,” Lady Tesh said, blessedly drawing his attention from the delectable sight of Miss Denby, “I thought it might be nice to have a private moment to get to know one another better.”
Sebastian inclined his head. “I would like that,” he replied by rote, though he felt anything but. The dowager was an incredibly shrewd woman, and the crafty look in her sharp eyes made him feel he would not like the conversation to come, not one bit. Would she remark on his former relationship with her companion? She had seemed to be watching them closely throughout the afternoon and evening, after all. If even Bridling had noticed the friendliness between them, there was no doubt in his mind that the dowager must have noticed as well. For a moment he cursed himself ten times a fool for putting Miss Denby’s position in dire straits.
But that was not what the woman wished to discuss, it seemed. Though the relief he should have felt was lacking, considering the true reason she wished to speak with him.
The woman pursed her lips, looking closely at him. “You may not be aware,” she began thoughtfully, “but I knew your father many years ago, when he was a young man.”
Shoulders tense, he fought for a bland expression, though inside he was a riot of emotion. Most people who wished to talk of his father did so out of a morbid curiosity to see how he would react. He had learned that particular lesson during his months in London, and had taught himself to remain virtually emotionless when the subject was brought up. Externally, at least. Internally, he was not so lucky, his gut invariably clenching with equal parts grief and anger for all his father had done, and all Sebastian was now forced to deal with in the aftermath.
“Is that so?” he queried lightly now.
“Indeed. I did not know him well, of course. He was a young buck around the same time that my son was searching for a bride, and so the present Lord Tesh knows him much better than I ever did.”
She narrowed her eyes, as if taking measure of Sebastian. Then, without warning, her expression softened. “I have heard about what transpired some years ago, of course. But I have also heard of your actions to repair the mess you were handed. That was quite honorable of you.”
Sebastian had not thought anything she could have said could have shocked him. But he had been wrong. A thickness filled his throat, and he forcefully attempted to swallow it down. “That is kind of you to say,” he managed. “But it is not any more than anyone else would have done.”
“Now, that is not remotely true,” she replied, much more gently than he thought her capable of. “It takes incredible fortitude to make such things right. Though, I daresay, you are not used to kindness when it comes to such things.”
What could he say to that? No, kindness had been the furthest thing from anyone’s thoughts when his father or the scandal was brought up. More often than not, the emotion that seemed to be present was a cruel glee.
Lady Tesh seemed to sense he needed a moment, for she pointedly turned her attention to the pianoforte. Sebastian glanced that way as well, thankful for the reprieve—and immediately felt the full weight of his mistake. Miss Denby had been all he’d wanted before his father’s death. And while he had been able to work toward recouping much of what had been lost, she was the one thing he could never claim again—and the one aspect of the whole mess he regretted most.
“They make a fine pair, do they not?”
Sebastian felt as if he’d been punched. He gaped at the dowager. “I’m sorry?”
But the woman was looking at Miss Denby and Bridling with close interest. “Mr. Bridling and my companion,” she explained, nodding their way. “They are both so attractive, it is like looking at a painting, don’t you agree?” She looked at him then, obviously waiting for a reply.
But what the devil could he say to that? Not what he truly wished to say, of course, which was that if she thought to match Miss Denby with that popinjay Bridling, it would be over his dead body.
“I suppose,” was what he finally came up with. A pathetic response, of course. Why it made the dowager smile so widely, however, he didn’t have a clue.
“Not that anything can come of it, of course,” Lady Tesh mused, turning to look back at the couple again. “Not with Mr. Bridling’s affections being secured quite thoroughly elsewhere. Though I admit to being surprised that his father would allow it. Lord Cartmel will have a very specific idea of exactly whom his children will marry, after all. But I suppose you know that better than anyone.”
What could he say to that? Blessedly, he didn’t have to say a damn thing, for she continued.
“I, of course, received a letter from Mr. Bridling’s father regarding his son’s sudden visit before your arrival. However, he did not inform me why a lively young man in good health would wish to visit a decrepit old woman in this sleepy place.”
“I would hardly call you decrepit, Lady Tesh,” he said.
The woman pursed her lips and lifted one steely gray brow. “And you are not answering the question, Your Grace,” she drawled. “While flattery will typically get you everywhere—and I am vain enough that I shall happily tuck that compliment away for later use—in this moment it shall not distract me in the least. So tell me, why is Mr. Bridling truly here? It is all too obvious he did not come willingly, and that he would be only too happy to have remained in London with his actress.”
The woman was entirely too quick. But after a hasty rumination, Sebastian could not come up with a good reason why he should not tell Lady Tesh the whole truth of it, especially as she had seemingly figured out a decent portion of it already, and in less than a day. It would only help to have her as an ally, after all.
