Page 18 of A Virgin for the Duke of Depravity
“I believe she intended for you to get ready in your rooms, not in the pantry. She would have helped you braid your hair.”
“Kitty is gentler,” Annie explained.
With that, Kitty pinned up her braid, and her nimble fingers went back into her lap. Of the two of them, Kitty was the less likely to cause trouble, but she would follow Annie to the ends of the earth.
Leo sighed and rubbed a hand down his face, still tired from his long night. It would not do to mete out punishment to the girls so early in the morning. They would not take his reprimands to heart anyway.
“We will be having guests over for the next few days,” he said, looking each girl in the eyes. “You must be on your best behavior to make a good impression on our guests.”
“Will the pretty lady from the other night be here, too?” Annie asked. Her eyes widened with excitement at the prospect of meeting someone new.
He wondered what she recalled about Margaret, how well the girls would get on with her.
“Yes,” Leo said. “Would you like that?”
“Yes, we did not have time to introduce ourselves,” Kitty said with some reserve.
Annie took Kitty’s hands in her own, and the two girls giggled at the prospect of meeting the lady with red hair who had helped locate them. They likely thought she would give them more ideas for hiding places, and he did not doubt that they were right.
“Great,” he muttered. “The women in this house may make me lose my mind before the week is over.”
Annie and Kitty looked at him with curiosity. His exasperation was nothing new to them. Annie slipped off her stool and tugged on her twin’s hand. The girls walked out of the kitchen and back up to their chambers, where Joan was no doubt waiting for them.
With the girls found and breakfast in hand, Leo went back to his chambers to finish getting ready. He splashed his face with the cool water that the servants had left in the basin.
He pulled a set of dark clothing from his armoire and began to dress. The current fashion was lighter colors, the shades reminiscent of the spring flowers that bloomed in the gardens. But Leo always wore the darkest colors he could find. It suited him fine not to have to buy new clothes every time new trends started.
He was fastening his pants when another knock sounded at the door.
“Your guests have arrived, Your Grace,” the footman said from behind the door.
“Tell them I will be with them shortly,” he called.
He took one last look at himself in the mirror. He was ready to face whatever Margaret would throw at him today.
“He is no doubt getting ready,” Aaron said. “This is early for him, but it was his invitation.”
“I cannot believe I have not been invited to Leo’s estate before,” Theresa said as she paced around the room. She ran a fingeralong the spines of his books. “I have been to Olympus, but I have not seen his sitting room.”
“He is not much for social gatherings,” Aaron explained to Margaret.
She did not comment on the types of social gatherings she knew Leo partook in. He claimed to be King of Olympus, and his parties were certainly just as decadent as what the ancient gods themselves would have participated in.
Theresa continued pacing around the room, taking in the art adorning the walls. She stopped at the third painting and turned to her husband. “Why are there none of your paintings in your friends’ homes?”
“Those are for my enjoyment. I do not want to force them on my friends,” Aaron laughed. “Perhaps you are the only one who enjoys what I create, dear wife.”
“I would not mind having one of your original paintings,” Leo said from the hall. “I would give it a place of honor in the dining room.”
“You are up and dressed early today. No late nights at the club last night?”
“A late night, indeed. But the girls went missing again today, and Joan summoned me to help locate them.”
“And where did you find them?” Margaret asked.
Theresa gave her a strange look, and Margaret remembered that she should not know about the girls or their habit of hiding from their uncle. She hoped to move past the indiscretion.
“They were in the kitchen,” Leo said, before turning his attention to Theresa. “Forgive my manners, ladies. I have not greeted you properly.”
