Page 104 of His Grace, the Duke
Rosalie felt so tired. She let out a slow exhale. “There is no question of my dangling Lieutenant Renley—”
Marianne snatched hold of her arm. “Tom ismine. I will not abide competition. Do you understand me? Certainly not from the likes of such a three-penny upright. Why don’t you crawl back to whatever Covent Garden alley you came from!”
Rosalie jerked her arm free. Every instinct told her to run. To hide. But then she glanced over Marianne’s shoulder and locked eyes with a face in the crowded room.
The duke was watching her. With a wink, he gave her a little nod.
Be a lioness. Fight your corner. Hold the high ground.
If Marianne wanted to call her a harlot, that is the role Rosalie would play. She inched back, flashing the lady a false smile. “You know... just the other night, I asked Tom whether he still held any affection for you. Do you want to know what he said?”
Marianne was close to tears, but Rosalie didn’t care. This woman had dared to take a bite out of her confidence for the last time.
Rosalie’s smile widened. “He said nothing. You see, he couldn’t speak with his tongue in my cunt—”
A feral scream erupted out of Marianne and then she was on her, scratching at Rosalie and slapping whatever part of her she could reach. In a panic, Rosalie tried to grab hold of her wrists. Loud voices echoed all around as Rosalie tried to get the demon off her. In moments it was over, strong arms pulling them apart.
“Alright, that’s enough!”
She gasped, sucking air into her lungs as the duke dragged her to safety.
“I’ll tear your tongue out!” Marianne shrieked. Another gentleman had her by the shoulders. She looked crazed, her face a mask of inhuman rage. “Whore!”
Next to her, the duke went still as stone. Suddenly, she was shifted behind him. He kept one arm curled possessively around her, even as he turned to address the room. “Let everyone bear witness that Mrs. Young has attacked my ward!” He pointed an accusing finger at the lady. “You will be gone from this place and never darken my door again!”
Marianne broke down in tears, trying to cover her face as the whole room went silent as the grave, watching the mild-mannered Duke of Norland castigate her.
“Any friend of mine will be no friend of hers,” he called to the room. Turning to his footmen, he muttered, “Take her out. Make sure she doesn’t come back.”
The room broke into waves of whispers and gasps as two footmen took Marianne by the arms and pulled her away.
“This isn’t over, you strumpet!” she shrieked. “You wretched, scheming whore! You’ll tear his heart out! You’ll ruin him for sure, and then what shall he do?”
One of the footmen had the good sense to wrap a gloved hand over her mouth to silence her, which left the lady squealing and thrashing in their arms. The whole room watched, utterly entranced as she was dragged out.
As soon as she was gone, Rosalie sagged on the duke’s arm, letting out a ragged breath.
“No, no, no. Not here, Cabbage. Just hold on.” He gripped her tight under the arms, and she let herself be led away. The sounds of the party turned into little more than a hum.
The duke shoved open the door to James’ study with his shoulder. It was empty inside, but a fire crackled in the hearth and several candles were lit on the desk. He led her around the back of the sofa and set her down. She didn’t even realize she was crying until he dropped to one knee before her and handed her his handkerchief.
“Should I go get a maid, Your Grace? Or Lord James?” asked a footman.
The duke tucked one of Rosalie’s loose curls behind her ear. “No... get Lieutenant Renley. Discreetly, Finch,” hecalled after the footman. “And keep Burke and my brother away. Tie them down if you must!”
The door shut and Rosalie let out a shaky breath, tears of shame stinging her eyes.
The duke disappeared into the corner. A soft clinking and rattling and he was back, curling her fingers around a glass of port. “Oh Cabbage... what did you do now?”
“I’m sorry,” she murmured.
“Why are you apologizing?”
She glanced up, biting her lip. “Because you said not to embarrass you again and now look at what I’ve done—” She couldn’t even finish before her voice broke with a strangled sob. This would be the last straw. If not for him, certainly for the duchess. Rosalie would be out on the street.
But the duke just chuckled. “You think I was embarrassed? Cabbage, that was amazing! You were better than the fire-eater. They’ll be talking about this for weeks.”
Rosalie covered her face with her hand. She was ready to drown herself in the port.
