Page 55 of The Earl's Christmas Deal
As he continued, he smelt the faint hint of tobacco on the air and aimed for it, knowing how much the duke enjoyed his cigars. Upon finding himself outside the parlour room, Frederick stopped, noting that the duke was inside but unwilling to approach him if he were with his daughters.
Frederick leaned as far as he could around the door, seeing to his satisfaction that the room was empty. The duke was sitting with his legs crossed in a low chair, reading the paper, smoke hovering above him like a cloud.
Frederick entered casually, trying to look as though he had not been seeking out the man for the last half hour. The duke nodded to him as he came within his line of sight, and Frederick returned it with a nod of his own.
“Would you object to me joining you, your Grace?” Frederick asked as calmly as possible.
The duke didn’t speak, his eyes still on the paper in front of him, but pointed his cigar at the chair opposite, and Frederick sat down gratefully.
Where to begin…he thought, wondering how he might broach the topic without the duke becoming suspicious of his reasoning.
“Quite the storm,” Frederick said, looking out of the window at the flurries of snow and the high wind. The trees were swaying alarmingly against a background of dark grey sky. The duke dropped one corner of the paper, seeming surprised by the view that greeted him.
“Good Lord, I had not noticed. This will be hellish to travel in; I am glad we are happily ensconced within these walls and will only have to make our way to church in the morning. At least it is a short enough walk.”
He took a great pull of his cigar, and the smoke billowed out all about him. Frederick, who had never enjoyed smoking, held back the urge to cough, clearing his throat instead, and nodded at the duke.
“I have enjoyed this house party,” he said patiently, biding his time. “Lady Sternwood always holds the best events, and I was sorry that they had not held one for a little time.”
The duke’s foot twitched. “Indeed. Well, all of that will be behind them soon enough.”
“Of course, your Grace,” Frederick said swiftly, leaping upon the topic, “I hear that you are close to securing Lady Emilia’s hand. I can only congratulate you. It is an excellent match.”
The duke glanced at him pompously, and Frederick deliberately moved his expression into a frown, furrowing his brows and sighing heavily.
“Is something amiss?” the duke asked.
“Oh no, nothing but the obvious. It will not be a problem after today, as you say.”
The duke finally lowered his infernal paper and gave Frederick a long look. “The obvious?” he asked, his voice laced with suspicion, his own brows furrowing.
“I suppose it is inevitablethat a woman so beautiful will have other suitors after all. And all of it will be forgotten by the time you propose.”
He felt a thrill at the colour flooding to the duke’s face. “Other suitors? What are you speaking of man?”
Is the man so obtuse?Frederick wondered.So full of his own self-importance, he has utterly failed to see how much attention Adam has paid to Emilia. What a fool.
“I did not mean to overstep, your Grace. I merely wished to congratulate you.”
“What the devil do you mean, sir? Are you saying she has courted scandal once more? That there is some impropriety here?”
“No. Nothing of that nature. Merely that I have noticed Lord Bellebrook showing her some attention. I suppose it is harmless enough.”
To Frederick’s dismay, the duke seemed to dismiss the idea, shaking his head.
“Adam Bentley has no designs upon anyone. He is in mourning. Flouncing about in grief for all the world to see. It’s pathetic.”
Frederick was surprised that the duke spoke so openly to him—he wasalsoa Bentley, after all, but the duke seemed to be a man who believed that his wealth and status protected him from most things. Whatever the reason, Frederick was glad to be brought into his confidence.
“I only thought it odd, that is all,” he mused, speaking more slowly.
The duke sighed. “Thought what was odd?”
“The length of time they were together on the lake. Almost the entire morning, skating together and he had his arm around her waist.” That finally got the duke’s attention.“And then… at the piano last night, they seemed close. I thought it might have concerned you.” The duke sat forward in his chair, and Frederick took the chance to trivialise his own comments. “I am sorry to have troubled you with it. Clearly, I misunderstood.”
Frederick pretended to get up and stopped immediately when the duke held out a hand, halting him, his eyes sharp and calculating.
“His hand about herwaist?”
