The Penitent Duke (The Untamed Nobles #1)

Chapter Sixteen

“I think it was the Duke.”

Rosalind shook her head. “It cannot have been. There was no reason for him to do such a thing.”

Lady Eleanor lifted her chin. “I think there is. I think that he has decided he no longer wishes to marry you and now must find a way to end the betrothal.”

A frown pulled at Rosalind’s forehead. “By knocking me into the pond?”

“By making it clear that your connection to him bodes ill!” Lady Eleanor exclaimed. “I think he is hopeful that you will choose to step away from him.”

Rosalind shook her head, her frown lifting. “My dear friend, the Duke of Strathmore is known for his odious and inconsiderate nature. I am quite sure that he would have no difficulty in telling me should he wish to end the betrothal. Indeed, he would not care about whether or not it had any impact upon me, would not even think about my standing in society thereafter. To do something so secretive but so intentional is not something I think that he would concern himself with.”

“You think he would be direct.” Lady Eleanor bit her lip and then looked away as they sat together on a bench in Hyde Park, well away from any body of water. “I can understand that thinking, I suppose.”

Rosalind smiled briefly but then looked away. The Duke of Strathmore was to be joining them at any moment, for he had not only written on multiple occasions over these last three days to make certain she was all right but also to ask if they might spend a little time together, something that had surprised Rosalind greatly. She had recovered very quickly from the fall into the pond but the Duke had clearly been concerned for her. That had been surprising certainly but Rosalind had been grateful for his concern, wondering if it was truly genuine.

I suppose I shall soon see.

“All the same, I am concerned for you,” Lady Eleanor continued, quietly. “Ever since your betrothal, you have endured not only a blow to the head but also a fall into a pond! If it had been deeper or colder or if Lord Westlake had not rushed in after you, who would have known what might have happened?”

Considering this, Rosalind reached to take her friend’s hand. “I would not have drowned, I am sure. I can swim, you know. ”

“I do know that but does not both of these incidents warn you away from the Duke?” Tears came into Lady Eleanor’s eyes, surprising Rosalind. “Lady Pearl came to a sudden and sorrowful end, did she not? What if you are destined for the same?”

“Because I am to wed the Duke?” Rosalind asked, quite astonished at her friend’s remarks. “My dear Eleanor, I cannot think that these two accidents have anything to do with my betrothal to the Duke.”

“And what if you are mistaken? What if there is something nefarious? Something that wants to push you away from him? What if these are warnings that the Duke is not a gentleman you ought to be connected to?”

Hearing Lady Eleanor’s voice rising, Rosalind squeezed her hand, seeing the fear in her eyes and wondering if she herself was not taking this situation seriously enough. Letting out a slow breath, she smiled and then shook her head. “I am grateful for your concern, of course, but I think these two incidents are just what they look like – accidents.” Seeing the tears in Lady Eleanor’s eyes, Rosalind leaned a little closer. “You are such a good friend to be so worried for me but I am sure that there is nothing to your worries.”

“I would not be so sure.”

Rosalind jumped in surprise, turning her head just as a figure moved to come around the bench to face them. Rising to her feet quickly for fear that this was some dark threat – Lady Eleanor beside her – Rosalind came face to face with a lady, her face veiled as though she feared the effect the sun might have on her skin. All the same, Rosalind could make out a pair of eyes from behind the netting, eyes that were searching hers.

“Who are you?” she said, heedless to just how blunt that made her sound. “Whatever is the meaning of this? You ought not to be listening to our conversation and –”

“I come to speak with you out of great concern,” the lady said, her voice quiet as Lady Eleanor took Rosalind’s arm, perhaps as a show of solidarity or protection. “I have seen what has happened to you. I agree with your friend, it is not merely an accident.”

All of the breath left Rosalind’s body as she looked back at the lady, trying to make out more of her face, trying to understand where such a warning came from.

“I cannot be sure but I must warn you to be careful,” the lady continued, one hand reaching out for just a moment to touch Rosalind’s arm. “I fear that you might be in danger.”

“Danger?” Rosalind repeated, the word tasting foul in her mouth. “In what way? Danger from whom? ”

The lady closed her eyes briefly. “I cannot be certain of it, as I have said.”

“But you can still give us a name,” Lady Eleanor protested, quickly. “You cannot simply expect us to believe all that you have said, merely because you have said it! We do not know who you are and it is clear that you wish to protect your own identity also.”

The lady sighed heavily, then shook her head. “Lady Rosalind, pay heed to my words.” She took a breath, then lifted her chin just a little. “Be on your guard. Be always on your guard. These two accidents are, I am sure, a way to try and injure the Duke of Strathmore.”

Rosalind snatched in a breath, going cold all over. “The Duke? My betrothed? Why would whoever the perpetrator is seek to injure my betrothed? I do not understand.”

“You should end your betrothal.” Lady Eleanor, not listening to Rosalind’s questions nor waiting for an answer from the veiled lady, turned to grasp Rosalind’s arm. “This is proof enough that what I have said is true! You must end your betrothal.”

A wall of protests raised itself up between Rosalind and Lady Eleanor as her friend spoke. Rosalind could not explain it but the thought of ending her betrothal was not an idea she quickly accepted, nor one that she wanted to grasp a hold of. The Duke had, she admitted, begun to change and it was that change which gave her pause.

“I cannot tell you what to do, Lady Rosalind, nor would I even think to do such a thing,” the veiled lady added, still speaking just as quietly as she ever had, “but I fear that these accidents , as you have suggested they are, will only increase the longer your betrothal holds.”

Rosalind swallowed hard, then sank back down onto the bench, her mind swimming with thoughts. Lady Eleanor sat with her but the veiled lady stood before them, her gloved hands clasped tightly in front of her. Closing her eyes, Rosalind let out a breath, then lifted her gaze to the lady once more.

“Who is it that is doing these things?” she asked, hoping that she spoke with enough firmness but not overly so. “Surely the answer is to discover who it is that is injuring me while seeking to wound the Duke, rather than for me to end my betrothal?” Seeing the lady spread out her hands, Rosalind got to her feet again, albeit feeling a trifle unsteady. “I understand that you cannot be sure and that you might, then, be reluctant to express it but we must know of your thoughts, at least. That will bring us a little comfort as well as offering us a path by which we might go forward. ”

The lady hesitated, then nodded. “I suppose that such a request is not, by any means, unreasonable.”

“Then you will tell us?”

The lady nodded in answer to Rosalind’s question, only for her eyes to widen, her gaze somewhere over Rosalind’s shoulder and, when Rosalind turned to look, she saw the Duke of Strathmore hurrying towards them.

When she looked back, the veiled lady was gone, hurrying away into a copse of trees nearby, clearly wishing to hide herself from them.

“Rosalind!” The Duke was upon her, catching her hands, gazing down at her with searching eyes. “Are you all right? I know you said in your letters that all was well but you look pale still.”

“I am well,” Rosalind reassured him, a little surprised at the sudden heat which rippled up through her, her fingers pressing through his of their own accord. “You need not worry, Strathmore. I am well, I assure you.”

The Duke swallowed hard as Lady Eleanor moved away, permitting them a little more privacy. “You cannot know of my worry,” he told her, his voice rasping just a little. “I have been having all manner of thoughts and concerns and now, to see you whole and without prolonged injury has brought me a good deal of relief.”

Rosalind, realizing that the pain of what had happened to Lady Pearl was still in his mind, squeezed his hand gently, her sympathy growing swiftly. “You need not worry, truly. The reason I look pale is because, truth be told, I have had something of a shock.”

“Oh?” The Duke’s eyes flared again. “What has happened now?”

“Nothing of concern,” Rosalind answered quickly, wanting to reassure him. “Please sit down and I will tell you all.”

The Duke did as he had been requested though his fingers still remained laced through her own. His eyes darted across her face as though seeking to reassure himself that she was as well as she had said and, seeing the concern there only warmed Rosalind’s heart all the more.

“I have just had a very strange visit,” she began, speaking quickly so that he would hear all and hoping he would not interrupt. “A lady came to speak with me, a lady who wore a veil across her face. She told me that I was in danger, that what has happened to me are not accidents, as I presumed, and suggested that it is because whoever this is, whoever is behind my accidents wishes to injure you.”

“What?” There was a hoarseness to the Duke’s voice, betraying his surprise as Rosalind nodded. “Someone seeks to cause me pain by injuring you? ”

“That is what this lady said,” Rosalind said, calmly, “though she would not tell me who it was that she believed was doing this. I did ask her but she said she could not be certain and, therefore, did not want to say his name openly.”

Blowing out a breath, the Duke pushed one hand through his hair, shaking his head as though this was all quite unbelievable.

“She was going to tell me,” Rosalind finished, “but when she saw you approach, she practically ran from me.”

This seemed to confound the Duke all the more, for he simply stared at her for some moments, no sense of understanding in his eyes. Then, he closed his eyes, setting his jaw for a moment – and Rosalind’s stomach clenched.

There is something more here.

“After you fell in the pond, I was given a message by someone,” he told her, surprising her utterly. “This message was from someone unknown but a lady all the same. Perhaps the very one that came to speak to you for it was clear that she had no desire to come and speak to me herself. She wanted to be hidden, wanted to keep herself away from me so that I would not know who she was.”

Rosalind swallowed hard. “What did she say?”

“She warned me that I had to be careful, that there was more to him than I knew.”

“Him?”

The Duke sighed and shook his head.

“So,” Rosalind continued, speaking slowly as she pieced one thing together with another, “we now have a situation where this secretive lady is coming to speak to both yourself and to me, albeit in different ways, and both of these messages contain a warning.”

“Though they are different warnings,” the Duke continued, searching her face now. “Does this mean, Lady Rosalind, that you wish to step back from me? I can well understand why you might wish to, for you have endured two dreadful situations already and I would not like for you to suffer more. The only reason you are doing so is because of your betrothal to me.”

Rosalind did not immediately answer. There was a certain pull towards ending their betrothal, for she certainly did not want to suffer any further injuries or embarrassments! But yet, as she considered this, she also had to admit that the Duke himself had changed since their first meeting. Never could she have imagined that he would have been so very considerate of her that he would offer her the chance to end their engagement! The gentleness in him, the kindness and consideration was an indication to her that he was changing in his character. Was that something she was willing to hold onto? He might not change any more than he had at present, but what if he did? Was she willing to risk further injury in the belief that she might, in the end, have a happy future with the Duke?

“I do not think that I shall, no.”

The Duke’s eyebrows lifted in clear surprise.

“I understand and appreciate your concern for me but we have already made an agreement, have we not?” Rosalind smiled at him and, as the Duke gazed back into her eyes, the edges of his mouth lifted in what was the first genuine smile he had ever offered her – and everything changed in that moment. Rosalind’s heart jolted, her whole being warming with a furious heat that rushed through her, stealing her breath. The Duke’s eyes lightened, no longer the dark blue that she had come to expect from him, but instead a golden hue rising within them. He was more handsome than she had ever seen him, more handsome than she had ever wanted to admit before and with this in her heart, she leaned a little closer.

The Duke’s eyes widened and Rosalind pulled back instantly, mortified with the realization of what it was she had been about to do. Losing herself in her emotions, she had been caught up, forgetting all about what they were discussing and seeking a new closeness with him – though quite why she was desiring that, she could not explain.

“The warnings.” She closed her eyes to shut out the sight of him. “What are we to do?”

The Duke’s eyes held hers for a long moment. “I do not know,” he said, eventually. “I am confused as to who this lady is and why she is warning both you and me – but hides her face. Is it someone with whom we are both acquainted?”

Rosalind’s lips pursed as she thought. “I could not say but surely the gentleman that she warns us about is known to us both. Otherwise she would not have spoken to you and to me. Indeed, she was about to offer me his name before she saw you and I am sure that I would have recognized it, had it been given to me.”

“So it is someone we both know,” the Duke murmured, rubbing one hand over his chin, his gaze pulling away. “That does not make things any easier for there must be many gentlemen that we are both acquainted with.”

Rosalind nodded but then, finding herself leaning closer to him again, waited until the Duke’s eyes met hers. “I think it is a gentleman of a close acquaintance,” she said, softly. “Think about what was said to you. She spoke in a way that suggested intimacy, did she not?”

The Duke hesitated, then began to nod slowly, a fresh glow coming into his eyes. “Indeed, I think that she did! Goodness, Rosalind, you are quite wonderful!”

This made Rosalind blush for the kind remarks were joined with a broad smile that was directed solely at her.

“I mean every word,” the Duke continued, speaking a little more softly now as he continued to gaze at her. “I truly believed that you would end our betrothal when given the chance, Rosalind. But you have decided to stay, to continue on, to commit yourself to me – and I cannot understand why.”

Rosalind took in a breath, pressing her lips tight together for a moment as she wondered whether or not she ought to be honest with him. There was something all the more altered about him, the change having come over him all the more during this single conversation. Her heart began to beat a little more quickly, her hands pressing tight together as she looked back at him.

Then, she closed her eyes. “You have changed a little, Strathmore, whether you realise it or not.”

The Duke’s voice dropped low. “Changed?”

“Yes, you have.” Opening her eyes, Rosalind looked back at him, her fingers twisting together in her lap as she tried to find the right words. “You are not the dismal Duke that I was first introduced to. You are not inconsiderate and heedless to my own situation. You are concerned for me, worried that I might be injured all the more if I continue on this betrothal. I do not think a single word about yourself has come out of your mouth! That is not something I expected to hear from you but that is what you have offered me. So yes, when I say that you have changed, it is because I see a change in your character, Strathmore. You have become kinder, more considerate and gentler in your manner.”

“That is because of you.” The Duke leaned towards her, his voice husky now, his hand settling over her two joined ones. “There is something about you, Rosalind, that has burned itself into my heart regardless of what it is I determined to do – or to feel.” He closed his eyes and then shook his head. “I do not pretend that I am the gentleman I ought to be, of course. But all the same, between Lord Radcliffe and yourself, I have been made very well aware of just how poorly I have behaved in society.” A small sigh broke from him. “The truth is, Rosalind, I have not even permitted myself to think on my behaviour, telling myself that I was quite right to do as I pleased. Every time my mind has begun to question such things, I have dismissed it but I can see now that I ought to have been listening to my conscience.” Another sigh broke from him and he shook his head. “I – I am sorry.”

Rosalind blinked in astonishment. She had never expected to hear such a thing from the Duke’s lips, had never once believed that he would be as honest with her as he was being at present. This was not the Duke that she knew but, then again, was he not now becoming an entirely different fellow to the gentleman she had first been introduced to?

“There is more for me to say,” the Duke continued, looking down at their joined hands. “But I must think a little more. I must consider what has been said to me – this warning I have been given – and what we are now to do. And, in truth, I must also consider the state of my own heart and look at the fears to which I have been clinging.”

“About Lady Pearl?” Rosalind could not help but ask and instantly, the Duke’s head lifted and he looked straight into her eyes. Rosalind’s skin prickled, a sudden dread washing over her as she began to worry that she ought not to have mentioned the lady.

Then, much to her astonishment, the Duke threw back his head and let out a low groan. She could only stare at him, horrified now at the upset she had caused him. The Duke’s hand pulled from hers, then scrubbed down his face before he got to his feet.

Rosalind tried to apologise, tried to find the right words to say but nothing came to her. She could only stare at the Duke, afraid now that she had ruined what had only just been built between them.

“I see it now!”

Swallowing tightly, Rosalind watched him as he began to pace up and down the path in front of her, gesticulating as he went.

“I see it now,” he said again, looking at her as though she would understand. “For so long I have heard Lord Radcliffe say the same thing to me over and over again and I have always believed that he is the one who does not see it. But now, now that I see what it is that we could share, understand what happiness might be present for us if only I would permit myself to do so, I see it now.”

“What do you see?” Rosalind asked, a little hoarsely, her fingers once more clawing together in her lap. “I do not understand.”

The Duke sat down beside her again, one hand going to rest on hers. “The guilt,” he said, softly. “I see now that the guilt I have carried for so long has robbed me of even the smallest hint of joy. I always believed that I wanted it to be my burden, that I wanted it to be something I held onto because it was what I deserved. I deserved to have the weight upon my shoulders because it was my words that permitted her to come with me. While that might still be true, I have pushed myself into such darkness and shadow that there has been not even the smallest chink of light in my world… that is, until you came, Rosalind.”

This was all so astonishing that for a few moments, Rosalind could not speak. She could only stare at him, wondering if this was really and truly the very same gentleman that she had known for these last few weeks.

“When I asked if you wanted to end the betrothal, that came about from a true concern for you,” he continued, when she said nothing. “I have a real and heartfelt desire for you to be quite safe, Rosalind, for you to be protected and yet, even though I put that question to you, there was a terrible fear in my heart of what would come if you accepted.”

“You did not want me to end our engagement?”

The Duke shook his head, his hand gripping hers tightly now. “More than that, Rosalind, I was afraid of what would happen if you did bring it to a close. I saw my future spread out before me with nothing but regret and disappointment within it. Regret that I had not realised the wonder that you are and disappointment that I had not been able to make you my bride. I do not know why I have not seen such a thing before but I can promise you that, here and now, I can think of nothing worse than being separated from you.”

Rosalind looked into the Duke’s eyes and saw nothing but truth there. Her heart lifted, opening towards him, filling with a new affection for him – one that held hope that this change she had seen in him would only grow.

She let out a slow breath.

“I think you might need to separate yourselves just a little.”

The voice of Lady Eleanor broke through Rosalind and the Duke, forcing her to look to her friend.

“I understand that you are betrothed but there are still matters of propriety,” Lady Eleanor continued, a small smile on her face. “And there are many gentlemen and ladies now joining us in the park since it is near to the fashionable hour.”

“Then what say you to a stroll around the grounds?”

Rosalind, her chest still heaving from the great swathes of emotion and awareness which had harnessed her for the last few minutes, nodded but found she had no strength to speak. What was it that she now felt for the Duke? Why was she glad that their engagement was continuing? What was it about their connection that now made her glad, made her heart fill with hope ?

And might it be that all she had once hoped for – a marriage of love, affection and happiness – could still be hers?