Page 112 of Courting Scandal With The Duke
After what she had done, she knew she would never see him again. Could never. It would be far too painful. For her.
Because now he must despise her utterly. She had seen it in his eyes in that brief second when their gazes met in that horrible place full of men and smoke and… She shuddered.
She never wanted to see that look from him again.
She was not the right wife for him and he had only offered marriage because hesaw it as his duty.
Marriage under those circumstances was out of the question.
‘Oh, dear,’ Aunt Lenore said vaguely. ‘I thought you two were getting along well. The way he looked at you at the theatre. And you him. April and May, I thought for sure—’
‘Aunt! Please. Stop.’ She threw her toiletries in the portmanteau.
‘Your father needs to hear about this.’
‘Father is not here.’ As usual. ‘You can tell him all about it when he returns.’
Her maid came in with her hat and coat on and with a footman. ‘The hackney is outside, my lady, and James is ready to take your bags down.’
‘Thank you.’
‘A hackney?’ her aunt said. ‘Why is Charles not coming to fetch you?’
‘Because he needs to hire a carriage and I am meeting him at the livery.’ In fact, she had hired the coach, since she would need it for her onward travels, but she did not want her father to know which stable she had used and trace her whereabouts. She had arranged for the hired coach to meet her at Charles’s lodgings.
‘Excuse me please, Aunt, I am already somewhat late, and if I delay further this hackney will cost far more than it should.’
She stepped back to allow the young man to pick up her trunk and followed him downstairs with her maid carrying the bag.
At the front door, she bid her aunt farewell. She gaveher only a brief kiss on the cheek, and felt terrible, because likely she would never see the woman again. She had grown fond of her.
Unexpectedly, tears burned at the backs of her eyes. She was going to miss the old dear. She turned away quickly in case she revealed too much.
Her aunt was her father’s creature and would always take sides with him. Barbara could never trust her with her secrets, at least not anything important.
Out of her aunt’s hearing, she directed the hackney driver to Charles’s lodgings and climbed aboard with her maid.
Charles was waiting for them on the pavement when they arrived.
‘I was beginning to think you would not come,’ he said. ‘Or that I had misunderstood and I should come to fetch you.’
Barbara lowered the veil on her hat. For once, she did not want to be recognised. ‘You are sure you do not mind staying overnight?’
‘Positive.’
There was an odd note in his voice.
She frowned.
‘Do not worry, my dear. All will be well. By tomorrow your little mistake will be old news and everything will be as before.’
He clearly did not understand English Society. ‘You are such a good friend to me, Charles.’
He beamed. ‘Please. Get in thecoach and let us be on our way. I will ride with the coachman if you do not mind. The confines of the carriage upset my digestion.’
They climbed aboard.
Barbara leaned back against the squabs as the coach started off. She had done it. Finally she had escaped the machinations of her father.
