Page 78 of How to Seduce a Duke this Autumn
The simplicity of his response caught her off guard. It was neither condescension nor surprise, but rather the surety of someone who already knew the chaos that a gentleman could leave in his wake.
“Well… I’d rather not bore you with my troubles.”
“Woman troubles would never bore me.”
A sliver of amusement pierced through the pressure in her chest. “Spoken like a true gossip.”
“I daresay we all enjoy a bit of gossip.”
She couldn’t actually refute that.
“I just heard another one the other day.”
Charlene arched a brow, but something in the way he looked at her gave her pause. “Oh?”
“Your brother—”
Ah.
“—mentioned he would very much like to see you wed before the season is out.”
A chill ran down her spine. She wasn’t ready. Not for anyone her brother might have in mind just like she wasn’t to face David. “Has my brother told you what he intends to do?” she asked cautiously, her voice breaking just slightly on the last word.
The thought that another meeting with David—even one brokered by the rigid code of honor among men of their station—might result in more destruction filled her lungs with dread. “Because if he intends…” she trailed off, unable to finish.
Henry sat forward slightly, resting his hands on the silver head of his walking stick. “Your brother wants you happy.” He paused, reading her face before finishing. “That is the want of all brothers, I believe.”
“If he wants me happy, he shouldn’t meddle,” Charlene muttered. “I don’t want it,” she said suddenly, her voice firmer than before. “Any of it. It’s madness.” Her brother meddling. David back. Being lied to by Adam.
Henry’s brows lifted slightly. “You have every right to want peace, Lady Charlene. And I assure you, whatever measures your brother sees fit to take, please remember he loves you very much.”
Her chest ached at his words, at the caring tone that carried both reassurance and understanding. For the first time that night, the oppressive weight on her shoulders felt lighter, the noise in her head quieting enough for her thoughts to find a measure of clarity.
“Thank you.”
“I’m here if you ever need an ear to listen.” He gave a meaningful nod. “It would be my honor to be at your service. Personally.” He smiled. “In every way.”
His words were reassuring, but they didn’t give her the true reassurance she needed. How different the two brothers truly were. And had she been fooled again?
Chapter Nineteen
The nasty suspicionthat filled his gut brought Adam to knock on Charlene’s door, consequences be damned. If there was the slightest chance she had run into his brother, glimpsed his brother, he had to know.
This is what you get for holding off on telling her your suspicions.
The butler had informed him to wait, but his feet were as restless as his heart. He followed and almost wished he hadn’t.
He heard voices, Charlene’s and another man’s. Her brother?
Then the butler announced, “The Duke of Rotheworth is here to see you, my lady.”
A short silence before, “Tell him I’m not available for callers at the moment—”
Adam stepped up behind the servant before he could think better of it. He needed to see her, and the fact that she didn’t want to see him, confirmed his suspicions.
She knew.
She knew about David.
