Page 9 of Her Tiger of a Duke
Within seconds she was on his arm, and they were wandering the park together. As they did so, he studied her demeanor and tried not to pay attention to how warm she was. It was curious, but he also noticed how she tried to make herself as small as possible, hunching herself in as she walked. He did not like to see her do it, and it was a habit that she would have to stop before she became his duchess. It would not look right for a duchess to not be proud of herself.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked. “Have I done something wrong?”
He looked sharply ahead, feeling guilty for her having noticed him staring.
“Not at all, I was only wondering if you always carry yourself like that?”
“Sometimes. My apologies. It is because of the scandal, I suppose. I do not want anyone to see me, though that is impossible when I look the way that I do.”
Owen blinked. Yes, Lady Beatrice had a curvaceous figure, but it was not as though she was particularly large. He rather liked her stature, for it made her look far womanlier than the delicate waifs who threw themselves in his direction, but he knew that polite society did not think so.
“You need not make yourself smaller just to be liked. You should know that I think you look perfectly fine.”
It was a compliment, but she did not seem to take it as one. Of course, she would have liked to hear that she was beautiful, , but it was not the time nor the place for that sort of flattery. He only wanted her to straighten so that she did not cause herself any injury.
“Thank you,” she replied meekly. “Did you say that out of obligation, so that I would stand properly?”
“Why do you ask?”
She laughed softly at him, and he felt relief at it. He would have hated for her to have so easily seen through him.
“My mother always tells me that my posture is horrendous, even with a corset. I never seem to remember to correct myself. It is a rather silly thing to forget, but I cannot seem to do it.”
“We shall have to fix it. It will not do for the Duchess of Pantheris to appear small or lacking in confidence. I have a proud family name, and I do not want that to change.”
He expected her to cower, or to quietly agree and promise to try harder, but she did not. Instead, she straightened, setting back her shoulders and lifting her head.
“You are right. I will do better.”
She was eager, at least.
“Hello, Your Grace.”
Owen turned to see a group of older ladies. When Lady Beatrice saw them, he felt her bristle beside him. He did not recognize them, but it was clear that she did.
There were three of them, short and rounded with strangely exaggerated pouts.
They look almost like witches, he thought, and then immediately had to stop himself from smirking.
“Good day to the three of you. Lovely day, is it not?”
“Indeed,” the same lady replied, “and it is nice to see you out in public after such a tragic situation at your wedding. We cannot quite believe that anyone could be so bold.”
“Yes, well, when it comes to matters of the heart anything is possible.”
He glanced down at Lady Beatrice, willing her to play her part. She blushed, looking down before turning to the ladies with a smile.
“He is right. I apologize for any distress that I caused, but I could not stand by and let it happen.”
“Well, you are on his arm now.” Another lady smiled. “So what you did seems to have worked beautifully. Congratulations.”
They continued on their way. Owen was pleased, knowing that they had effectively silenced the group of gossips, but there was a terrified look in Lady Beatrice’s eyes as they walked.
“Did I say the right thing?” she asked.
“What you said was adequate. It is a good way to begin a courtship at least, especially one as short as ours. Do you not agree?”
“Yes, it is just… those ladies are not kind at all. The three of them are widows, and they spend their lives spouting gossip. If you say one word out of place, they ruin you.”
