Page 2 of Matters of a Duke's Heart
Hurriedly, she went toward those arches.
She continued to curse her lovely, excitable sister in her head over and over.
Daphne had gotten swept up in her debut eagerness, wanting to attend every social event the ton had to offer, but Felicity wasinto her third Season, and her own elation had flagged a long time ago, replaced by disappointment.
Toying with a lock of her auburn hair to steady her nerves, Felicity sped up, glancing around before she picked up her skirts a little to help hasten herself. So focused on her panic and need to return, Felicity didn’t realize anybody approached from around the corner as she veered around it. She smacked right into somebody and cried out in surprise as she stumbled back.
Her breath wheezed out of her as she immediately lifted her gaze.
Her eyes landed on a man perhaps a few years older than her. A lord, if anything was to be guessed by his fine tailcoat and silk, black cravat. Felicity’s hope rose even as no apology was offered.
“Forgive me, my lord,” she said instead. “I did not mean to—to walk in your path.”
She met eyes of pure, icy blue, and she blinked, taken aback. Most men smiled, offered a hand to steady a lady, apologized first out of proprietary, perhaps hoping to earn favor if the lady was pretty and desirable enough. But this lord… he merely looked detached and stoic as he looked down at her.
“It is fine, my lady,” he said, nodding once at her before striding on. “Enjoy the celebration.” Aghast, Felicity wondered if he really wouldn’t apologize for not looking where he was walking,either. The man paused at her staring after him. He frowned but continued on.
“Wait!” Felicity cried out, her hand reaching to stop him from walking away. Her fingertips improperly grazed his coat cuff, and she cringed, yanking her hand back. “I apologize again. I—it is just that I do not want to wander the gardens alone. I do not really know my way around. At least not these parts.”
Those hard eyes stared at her from beneath raised brows, as if he did not believe her. Felicity blushed when she realized how it sounded like an attempt for companionship. Despite the lack of feeling in his gaze, his face was otherwise very handsome.
A strong jawline and pronounced cheekbones framed a mouth that was pulled into a grimace. His dark hair curled at his coat collar and was swept from his forehead in a way that made him only more dashing.
Yet it exposed those cold eyes, giving him a stare that was intimidating. Paired with his dark clothing, Felicity tried to keep her wits about her.
“I do not mean it improperly,” she was quick to amend. “I am trying to find my way back to my family, but I do not usually enter the way I did tonight.”
“The Kennington Lane entrance,” he guessed, nodding behind her. “It is relatively new.”
“I believe so,” she said. “My father usually takes me through that way when we are visiting casually. But my mother guided me today through Mr. Barrett’s residence for the celebration.”
The lord hummed at her, his mouth twitching. His eyes swept around them, and she desperately wanted to tell him that she was not the sort of woman to swindle or trap a man. But it was clear he held no trust for anything else.
“Please,” she tried again. “I—I just do not want to be separated and need your help to—”
“No.”
The cold response came bluntly, suddenly, and it caught her off guard. “Sorry?”
“No,” he repeated, his jaw clenched as he stepped back. This time, the distance was too great for her to reach for him. Her hope fell as she looked around, the walls and trees rising too high to see her true way. Felicity’s chest tightened with panic. “Good day, my lady.”
And then the man was gone, striding away with the nonchalance of a man who thought he was too good and too high above to help her. Dismayed, Felicity watched his retreating figure, finding nobody else walking the pathway. In the face of the crushthrough the main walkway the silence was a blessing, but in terms of Felicity quickly finding her way back, it was not.
Making a rough noise of irritation in her throat, she began logically walking in the direction of where the entrance ought to be.
Vauxhall Gardens was expansive, and when it came to the more hidden trails—trails designated for secret lovers and public lovers who simply wanted privacy away from the ton’s gossip mill—Felicity was out of her depth.
Only once did she turn back to seek out the handsome but rude stranger who had dismissed her so abruptly. She couldn’t help but wonder who he was.
I ought to be glad, Felicity thought to herself. Better a rude stranger than a man to take advantage of her while alone. Still, his slight against her had stung.
Moments later, she looked behind her again, pausing. The back of her neck prickled, as if she was being watched, but when she searched around, she only saw several couples up ahead paying her no mind.
The paths all intersected with one another, and she swept her gaze over them all, trying to find the source of her worry. When there was nothing there, she turned her attention back in the direction of the Orchestra.
The prickling didn’t dissipate. Felicity inhaled sharply, trying to swallow down her fear. Perhaps the lord she had met wasn’t far away and had come back to check on her.
Shoes on the paths behind her had her glancing again but as soon as she did, there was a skid of
