Page 56 of In Scandal with the Duke
Relief rushed through Elizabeth, and then her aunt surged forward. “I agree; however, Your Grace, we both know the damage has been done! His Grace knows what he needs to do to render my niece respectable.”
“Aunt!” Elizabeth cried.
James dragged a hand through his hair, his expression one of exasperated pain. “I see. Will you continue this charade too? Such commendable acting from all of you.”
“What … what charade?” Elizabeth managed to say, her voice barely above a whisper, her mind racing with panic and disbelief.
“Your Grace,” her aunt interjected primly, her eyes flashing with a mix of indignation and opportunism. “You took my niece behind a closed door and were so scandalously positioned. I am certain you know what it is!”
“Good heavens, have we truly interrupted a tryst?” one of the unknown ladies chimed in with a staged, dramatic whisper, adding to the theatricality of the moment.
“Never before has anyone attempted a trap with such spectacle. I am almost impressed,” James replied, his tone dripping with chilling incivility, his expression growing foreboding.
A trap?As in a deliberate compromise?Elizabeth’s heart thudded painfully slow, shock rooting her to the spot. She was mortified to see that James’s face was etched with an arrogant disdain, his expression darkening further as the gravity of the situation sank in. The evening was unraveling into a nightmare.
Tears burned Elizabeth’s throat. She wanted so desperately to allow her tears to fall, but she couldn’t. She fisted her hands at her sides, understanding the stage had been set, and everyone was now doing their part. She saw the knowledge and the disgust in the duchess’s gaze.
“Is this how gentlemen of thetontreat young ladies?” Her mother demanded, her voice laced with accusation and a calculated glint in her eye.
It was clear she was a part of this dangerous game, gambling on James’s honor to sway the outcome. Elizabeth’s heart fractured at the realization that her mother and aunt planned this awful deceit. Compromised, betrayed, and potentially ruined, she felt the weight of their actions like an anvil on her chest, crushing her.
A harsh breath escaped James, his gaze turning grimmer than Elizabeth had ever seen. “Somehow, I thought you were smarter than this, Miss Armstrong.”
“No,” Elizabeth said, shock and pain echoing through her voice. How could he believe she would engage in such deceit? A breath-crushing tension wrapped its arms around her chest.
“I would never do this,” she insisted, her voice trembling with emotion. “How could you even think so for a moment?”
A humorless laugh escaped from James, and the gaze that raked over her was cold and mocking. “You’ve won nothing but a ruined reputation, Miss Armstrong.”
Her mother’s eyes widened, a flicker of doubt passing through them before she quickly composed her expression. She shared a glance with her co-conspirator.
“I will expect you to present yourself to my husband first thing tomorrow, Your Grace,” her aunt demanded crisply. “It is the only honorable recourse.”
Another low, mocking sound came from James. “Oh?” he queried with disdain.
“Mother, Aunt, we will discuss this in the privacy of our home,” Elizabeth said, stepping toward them. “We must leave now, and I implore everyone for discretion in this matter.”
Her aunt avoided her, aiming her glare at the duke. “Your honor demands you to do the right thing, Your Grace. My niece’s reputation—”
“Do not be foolish, Viscountess Barnaby. Others have tried this distasteful scene to their loss. You will most certainly wait in vain. An offer will never be forthcoming from me.”
“Your Grace,” her mother began, her hand fluttering to her throat in a gesture of genuine distress.
Her words strangled in her throat when James brushed past her and the few strategically chosen witnesses. The pain and betrayal nearly brought Elizabeth to her knees as she watched him leave, her world spinning out of control around her.
* * *
“James,I had no knowledge of this!”
Ignoring Elizabeth’s strained cry, James walked away, slowly emptying his mind and suppressing the emotions writhing inside his chest. It felt as if he had lost something that was infinitely precious. The notion of marriage had always felt intangible, but the awareness that he could not envision a life without Elizabeth tossed James’s world into disorder.
“Who is it that has you so distracted?” his sister had teased only a few days prior.
James had surprised himself by telling her, “Miss Elizabeth Armstrong. She has me in knots that I never want to untangle.”
“Then marry her.”
At that moment, James knew the only woman who could boldly hold his hand and walk by his side was Elizabeth. A deep sense of betrayal pricked at his chest, stabbing too deep. A calm, logical mind could allow one to overcome anything, and that was what he needed to do now. With each step along the hallway, he felt as if he had left something important behind.
