Page 33 of Duke of Bronze
Anna blinked. "You mean tospyon me?"
"Oh, do not be so dramatic," Petunia chided, waving her hand again. "It is notspyingif it is done out oflove."
Anna let out a breathless chuckle, shaking her head in disbelief.Love, indeed.
The butler announced Fiona, Nancy, and Hester just then, and Petunia clapped.
"I shall go and find your father then," she declared. "Sebastian needs to hear of this travesty. Sherefusesto let me dress her properly! I cannot believe it." She walked out of the room, still grumbling, her skirts rustling furiously as she disappeared down the hallway.
Anna let out a laugh, shaking her head at her aunt's petulance.
"Oh, I see you are already perusing the latest news," Nancy observed, plucking the discarded gossip sheet from the table with evident delight.
Anna resisted the urge to groan. She had long since grown weary of Society's incessant theatrics, yet it seemed this particular scandal refused to be ignored.
"My aunt left that there," she said dismissively, hoping to divert their attention before they inevitably launched into discussions about the promenade.
"Oh, but we have readallabout it," Fiona interjected, her eyes alight with excitement.
Anna barely suppressed a sigh. Of course they had. And, of course, they had come precisely to discuss it.
"So," Hester prompted, settling herself comfortably into the nearest chair. "How did it go, Anna?"
Anna arched a brow. "I should think you already know, considering how thoroughly it has been documented."
"Oh, but reading about it in the gossip sheets is one thing," Nancy teased. "Hearing it directly from the lady herself is quite another. Don't you agree?"
Anna folded her arms, regarding them all with mock reproach. "And you are here merely for this…experienceandnotfor the simple pleasure of paying a social call upon your dear friend?"
"That comes second," Fiona admitted shamelessly, a mischievous smile playing at her lips. "Now, tell us everything."
Anna sighed, leaning back into her chair. "I... survived it."
Hester gasped. "Well, that isdisappointing. You make it sound as though it was an utterly dreadful affair."
"Not to worry, Hester dear," Fiona said with a knowing grin. "It is only a matter of time before Anna succumbs to his charms."
Anna scoffed. "I beg your pardon?"
"Why, you sound so certain, Fiona," Hester giggled.
"Perhaps my certainty stems from the fact that he is the most charming rake Society has ever seen," Fiona replied airily.
"More like the mostinsufferable," Anna muttered, rolling her eyes.
"But are those not merely rumors?" Hester asked, her brow creasing.
"His rakish reputation, you mean?" Nancy interjected. "Certainly not. It is well-earned, I assure you."
That, predictably, led to an entire discussion on the Duke of Copperton's reputation, each lady contributing whatever tidbit of gossip she had managed to glean.
"I have heard it said that it is quite impossible to resist his charms in person," Nancy supplied, leaning forward conspiratorially. "So much so that even the gentlemen are taken in by his glib tongue, finding themselves investing in whatever businesses he proposes."
Anna stiffened.
The memory of their picnic surfaced unbidden, and with it, an uncomfortable truth—shehad nearly fallen prey to those very same charms.
She hadalmostlet herself be swept away, lulled into some ridiculous notion that there was something more beneath thatroguish exterior. And the worst part of it all? The yearning. That inexplicable,dangerousyearning that always seemed to awaken in his presence.
