Page 5 of The Odd Riddle of the Lost Duchess
He chuckled.Emmeline, you never fail to defend the causes of your gender.
“Do you consider yourself anoriginal, Cherie?” Ladies who did not always follow social norms were considered Originals. Some took it as a compliment while others despised it.
Emmeline bristled and Noah mentally grinned. “First of all,Your Grace,” she emphasized sternly, “it is not appropriate that you address me thus. You, of course, are aware of this more than I.”
“Indeed, I am,My Lady.” The Duke grinned like a scamp. “I apologize for my inappropriate behavior. I have no excuse except that my bad habits from the past are hard to drop.”
“Well, I should be affronted,” she said thoughtfully. “You know I would not want you or any other gentleman to think he can take such liberties.”
Noah inclined his head. “I have gotten too used to certain…type of company. I hope you accept my apology.”
Emmeline nodded, “It is quite all right, Your Grace.”
Noah couldn’t help but notice the bewitching golden color her eyes were, and how they elegantly matched the lovely dull-gold gown she wore. From the little he knew of the current social trends, the color of her gown was out of favor. It appeared Emmeline had a unique style of her own, that suited her personality.
Is she exhausted from the social confines of the ton…and would she thrive after receiving the liberty of marriage? Noah wondered.
As he stood silently observing her, Noah dimly noticed how she shivered under his scrutiny. He tore his eyes away from her and glanced at his pocket watch. “I am afraid I have to leave.”
Emmeline smiled. “Despite our family rivalry…and our meetings in the past, Your Grace…it was a pleasure meeting you–the realyou.”
“The pleasure is mine, My Lady.” He truly meant his words. “Perhaps we can let this…peace between us grow upon further meetings? You do not have to answer now–I’m sure you’ll tell me on those occasions.”
After providing the name of the book, Noah stood at the base of the stairs, watching her as she perused the shelves, and felt soft pleasure when she gave a gasp of delight on finding it. Bowing to her with an exaggerated flourish and a cocky smirk, Noah left the library in much higher spirits than he had entered it.
He thought how he would have missed the encounter if it were not for Viscount Croxton’s insistence on attending the event.
Emmeline…how you have changed.
* * *
With surprising dismay, Emmeline watched the Duke leave. She had enjoyed herself immensely for the first time since she had set foot on the Croxton property.
A small part of her wanted to think that she had seen a similar emotion in his eyes but, perhaps she had merely become fanciful of late–a consequence of reading all those Gothic novels.
It was a wonderful shock seeing Noah–and though she knew it was proper to call him by his title, in her mind he would always beNoah–and felt a strange resurgence of intrigue for him. The boy she had met once and the youth she had debated with thrice, were all miles apart from the man she had just had a civil conversation with.
The moment he had touched her had sparked something under her skin, but it wasn’t only his appearance. Noah’s tall and broad-shouldered figure was impressive and intimidating.
His face was a sculpture of hard aristocratic lines, and his hair the definition of rakish. In all, he was an attractive package, but the one thing that Emmeline liked about him was his sharp wit–he kept up with her. Yes, he aggravated her by doing so, but he kept up with her.
The Duke was significantly distinguishable from the brightly-colored dandies in the ballroom below. For some strange reason, many of the gentlemen preferred shockingly bright colors–vivid reds and garish greens, looking more like peacocks and parrots than men.
George would be most displeased if he heard of this encounter, she decided as she held the book.But why do I feel like this is not the last I’ll be seeing of the Duke of Newberry?
Chapter 2
Sneaking to Vauxhall
The parlor at Lady Alford’s townhouse in London was furnished in dour shades of blue and green. Bronze antiquities sat on various surfaces, reflecting the dimmed light from a waterlogged sky outside the windows.
Emmeline had opted to stay with the Earl and Countess of Alford, her Aunt Catherine and Uncle Charles, instead of the townhouse once owned by her father, the previous Duke of Leverton. George had converted the town residence into a bachelor’s abode, with dreary colors and unremarkable furniture. Her aunt had argued with George that her own townhouse was more suited for entertaining a young lady’s admirers.
Lord Alford, Emmeline’s uncle, was another man who was eccentrically interested in archaic items retrieved from various tombs in Egypt and Asia. His library at his country residence in Suffolk, was overflowing with Mesolithic antiquities, with the more precious gold items of Roman origin locked away.
Emmeline studied the wooden figurine of a man-beast creature gaping at her with its mouth open in pain, and grimaced at her uncle’s taste in collecting.
“My Lady,” Hudgins, the butler entered. “Miss Benwick is here on a visitation.”
