Page 78 of His Grace, the Duke
“James is the best of men,” Renley declared from his other side. “He is Burke’s dearest friend and is doing everything in his power to break this engagement... with minimal damage to the lady’s reputation.”
“Wait a goddamn minute,” the captain snapped. “Does this Burke-Corbin character mean to jilt her, then? Leave her high and dry before the wholeton?”
Rosalie glanced from Renley back to the captain. “He respects the difficulty of her position. He means to help her if he can... but he will not marry her.”
The captain’s scowl crinkled his ghastly facial scar. “This is preposterous. What kind of gentleman in his position turns down someone like Livy? Is her dowry too great? The lure of a title too overwhelming? This Burke must be slow in the head!”
“Christ, Hart, look at me.” Renley took the captain by the shoulder and turned him. “Burke is taken, alright? There is no question of him marrying Olivia Rutledge.”
The captain’s back was now to Rosalie, and his broad shoulders blocked Renley from view, so she couldn’t read either man’s expression. Slowly, his shoulders stiffened under Renley’s hand.
“Taken?” the captain muttered.
“Aye,” came Renley’s soft reply.
The wind whipped around them, tugging at her dress. She was about to speak when the captain’s shoulders relaxed. “Fine,” he muttered, shifting away from Renley’s touch. “Well,it sounds like you’re all working on some kind of plot to get them out of this.”
“Quite right,” Renley replied. “The plan was all Rose’s idea.”
The captain glanced at her. “And what is this great plan?”
“She wants to be married,” Rosalie replied. “She wants it all—the husband, the children, the life. So, we are finding her a suitor worthy of the name. Someone more respectable than Burke, so she can jilt him without harm to her own reputation.”
Captain Hartington eyed Renley again. “There is no question that Mr. Burke agrees to be jilted?”
“None whatsoever,” Renley replied firmly. “In fact, it is his greatest wish. And we fear we need to move quickly. The forces pushing them together are quite determined. She needs to find a better match, and soon.”
The captain let out a slow whistle. “Well, this is certainly a Herculean task.”
“Perhaps not,” Rosalie replied, even as Renley nodded. “There is an innocence to Lady Olivia that she keeps hidden. I see it in her... I think you do too,” she added with a smile. But she couldn’t lay this on too thick. Not until she was surer of the captain and his shared history with Olivia. “She is strong because she must be. Her life and her status demand it of her. We aim to find her a partner who can be strong with her... strongforher.”
Captain Hartington flashed Rosalie a curious smile. “Yes... I can see why Renley likes you so much.” Before she could reply, he clapped his hands together. “Right, very well. I’m in. Tell me what you need me to do.”
36
Burke
“I’m sorry.” Thosewere the first words that came to Burke’s mind. The only words.
Across from him, Olivia sniffed. “Why should you be sorry? This is the perfect situation for you. A new name, a title, a fortune, a wife. Any man would be pleased—”
“I am not any man,” he replied sharply. Taking a breath, he scooted to the edge of the sofa, his elbows on his knees, hands clasped together. “Lady Olivia, it is very important to me that you know that I had nothing to do with this.”
She scoffed. “That’s hard to believe.”
“Youmustbelieve it,” he said, crossing the narrow expanse of carpet between them to sit at her side, his back to the card players. “Not ten minutes before I approached your mother in that ballroom, I was being harangued in the music room by the duchess, threatened into agreeing to this foolish scheme. If you don’t believe me, ask James. He knows every particular. You could even ask George,” he added, “if I thought he’d tell you the truth.”
“I’ll not be speaking to the duke again,” she murmured. “Imay be a captive in this house while the duchess has her way with me, but I’ve not completely lost hold of my dignity.”
He blinked, surprised she would admit so much to him.
She just rolled her eyes. “Lord James is your closest friend, and your infatuation with Miss Harrow has not gone unnoticed. You know what they know about me... don’t you, Mr. Corbin?” She narrowed her eyes at him, her lips pursed as she waited to detect a lie.
“Please don’t call me that,” he said. “My name is Burke. The duchess can try to make the Corbin name stick, but I will never be a Corbin... and I’ll never be Baron Margate either.”
Olivia sucked in a breath. “You can’t be serious.” For once, her mask of anger dropped. All Burke saw was fear. “Do you mean to jilt me, sir?”
Burke reached instinctively for her hand, wrapping his fingers around hers. “It doesn’t have to be that way.”
