Page 77 of Project Duchess
“Are you mad? If I wouldn’t give myself to Uncle Armie to save this house, why would I give myself to Grey?”
Her brother snorted. “Because he’s handsome and knows how to flatter a woman. Better than Uncle Armie did, anyway.”
“You’re certainly right about that, but no, Grey didn’t ask me to be his mistress. You heard him—he wants to make me his wife.”
Joshua flashed her a pitying look. “Ah, duckie, wealthy dukes do not marry penniless—”
“He’s not like that,” she said stoutly, not wanting to hear him voice her own fears. “You don’t know him the way I do.”
“Don’t remind me of the wayyouknow him.” His eyes narrowed. “I can still ride over to the hall and challenge him to a duel.”
She planted her hands on her hips. “If you even try it, Joshua Wolfe, I will never speak to you again. Then I’ll be forced to live in the streets, since you will be hanged and our aunt will want nothing to do with me after you kill her son.”
Joshua walked over to a hall chair and sank heavily into it. “So you thought I had killed Uncle Armie.” When she remained silent, not wanting to wound him further, he glanced up at her. “Did Greycourt think so, too?”
She debated how much to tell him. But he needed to know what he was facing. “He speculated that you might have. Except he thought it would be to thwart Uncle Armie in his plans to sell the dower house.”
Joshua grimaced. “I hope you told him I would never kill anyone over property. Or did he merely use his suspicions to blackmail you into sharing your bed with him?”
She huffed out a frustrated breath. “You simply have to stop inventing ways Grey must have taken advantage of me. I told you—I wanted to be with him. If anything, I seducedhim.” When that made Joshua eye her askance, she added, “He isnotthe man you think he is.”
A muscle worked in Joshua’s jaw. “Meanwhile, you think your own brother is a murderer.”
Going to kneel at his feet, she caught his hands in hers. “This is precisely why I never told you my suspicions. Because if they proved groundless I would have hurt you needlessly. But the truth is, I only suspected such a thing because I knew you would kill to protect me. Which merely demonstrates I know how much you care.”
He stared at her. “Even when I don’t show it? When I haven’t yet found a way to make sure you’re taken care of if something happens to me?” He dragged in a heavy breath. “When I may not even be able to keep a roof over your head, thus forcing you to sell yourself to a man like Greycourt?”
“I did not sell myself! Ilovehim, Joshua.”
When he blinked at that, she realized what she’d said. The words were true. She loved Grey, even with his reluctance to speak of his past and his suspicions. She loved his wit and his kindness and the fact that he didn’t blameherfor what had happened with Uncle Armie.
Until she’d met Grey, she had never felt free to say what she wanted when she wanted, even to Joshua. How wonderful that was!
How she wished Grey felt the same freedom with her. Clearly, he did not or he would answer her questions about his family. But for now, having him want her to wed him was enough.
“Does he loveyou?” Joshua asked.
“I don’t know. You didn’t give us much chance to sort that out, you know.”
His expression hardened. “Yes. He was too busy trying to convince you he wasn’t engaged to this Vanessa woman.”
Jumping to her feet, she glared at him. “Fine. You’re not going to believe what I say until you see the truth of it with your own eyes. So let’s agree to disagree, shall we? He’ll be back for me. You’ll see.” She bent toward him. “And when he is, you must promise you’ll give your consent to the marriage.”
“All right.”
She straightened to eye him with rank suspicion. “You mean it?”
“Of course I mean it. Because he won’t be returning. At least not without a new fiancée in tow.”
“Ooh, you can be so infuriating!” Turning on her heel, she marched away to go back to bed.
“If you have any remaining doubt about the night Uncle Armie died, I can prove that I was in Leicester that night.”
She pivoted to stare at him. “That doesn’t prove a thing. You were probably in some inn where you had plenty of time to ride back here, pull Uncle Armie off his horse to break his neck, and ride back there before anyone realized you were gone.”
“Actually, I wasnotin an inn. I was with a woman.”
“A woman!” As she realized what sort of woman he must mean, her mouth dropped open. Poor infatuated Gwyn would besodisappointed!
