Trapped with the Forbidden Duke (Forbidden Lords #5)

Chapter 8

Chapter Eight

“ T he parlor has been cleaned, My Lady,” one of the maids told Edwina the following morning as the bustle of a household she was not used to being busy woke her up.

In the main hall, she found an unfamiliar face who reported to her about the cleaned rooms.

“And the drawing room has been cleaned thoroughly. We were informed by Mr. Calloway that it had been some time since it had been deeply cleaned.”

Edwina could only frown and nod as she walked past in a daze, spotting more unfamiliar faces, all of them working—cleaning, brushing, sweeping. Someone was painting the entrance hall.

As she entered the breakfast room, she recalled the Duke of Stormhold’s words.

“I will help you get your household in order . ”

Was this part of that? She had assumed it would include a little bit of tidying here and there, but mostly helping them recover financially. But this… this was something else entirely, and she was grateful for it.

The Duke sat at the head of the table, notably alone , while he tucked into an array of food that Edwina hadn’t seen grace the dining table in some time.

She took it all in—ginger, saffron, caraway seeds, all lifted into the air in a strong aroma. Plum cakes and honey cakes were laid out on silver platters, with French toast glistening and drizzled with honey. The scent of cooked meats made her mouth water.

“What is all of this?” The question was out before she could express her gratitude.

The Duke looked up, setting down his cutlery. “This is the first of many things I will provide,” he began. “I have brought some of my servants to begin working on your estate. Your brother’s current state requires a proper, fuller household, and, quite frankly, so do you, Lady Edwina.”

She ignored the slight jab, still in shock. “Thank you.”

“Your brother is still in bed,” the Duke continued. “I have instructed your staff to allow him to sleep off his ailments, so he will not be joining us for breakfast, I imagine.”

Edwina nodded, fighting the urge to shake her brother awake and ask him what he had been thinking, throwing himself out of the window, where he had gone, and when he had returned.

The Duke’s voice broke through her thoughts. “I would like you to join me. Please sit. Eat with me.”

She slid into a chair near him, careful not to meet his eyes.

Neither had spoken since their kiss in the carriage the night before, and now she found her tongue leaden, even as she piled her plate well with food.

The Duke watched as she heaped on cakes and meats, finding them the most decadent thing she had eaten in a while. The look in his eyes was not judgmental, but the look of somebody who knew that a person was grateful for receiving something.

“Do you intend to watch me eat, too?” she asked, smirking.

“I simply find the way you conduct yourself fascinating.”

Edwina swallowed a bite of honey cake. “How so?”

“You are proud and stubborn, I see that. However, there is an undercurrent of… something in your eyes, and I am trying to work it out.”

“If you cannot, then perhaps it is not for you to know,” she said, trying to be teasing, but it came out sharp.

“Indeed.” His eyes bored into hers for a moment longer.

Edwina turned back to her breakfast, maintaining her nonchalance, and licked honey off her fingers.

She was aware of the Duke’s eyes on her, and she slammed her napkin down after she was finished.

“You have provided this, and I am grateful, but I suppose that makes you think you are entitled to anything now.”

“I am asking for nothing in return,” he quipped.

“Then what are you looking at?”

“I would tell you, but it would make you blush rather furiously.”

His gaze had fallen to her hand, and she realized what he meant a moment later. She licked honey off her lips and did indeed blush slightly. She swept her tongue over her lower lip again, and his eyes followed the movement.

“There is the seductress I assume you were trying to be back at the Raven’s Den.”

Edwina pressed her lips together tightly, glaring at him. “I was not trying. I was aware I was not convincing, but a lady cannot help but be nervous when forced into such a predicament.”

The Duke huffed a laugh. “Your dress alone carried the performance, not you. If that is any consolation.”

“No,” she admitted. “I do not think it is.” She paused. “You liked my dress that night?”

The Duke scowled at her before drinking deeply from his teacup.

When he lowered it, he answered, “I would have had a clearer opinion of your dress had certain… parts of you not practically fallen out of it.”

“So, you were distracted by me?”

“I was irked by you,” he corrected.

“And yet you are in my house, helping me, so I could not have irked you too badly.”

All the while, she could not stop thinking of how he had admitted to liking her attire that night. Despite how low the neckline of her dress had been, leaving her uncomfortable, a part of her was satisfied.

Edwina looked at the Duke, held his gaze, and raised a honey-smeared thumb to her lips, delicately licking it clean. She could not fight a triumphant smile as his gaze darkened.

Perhaps it was because he provided her with a distraction from her incessant worries, or because he was helping, or because of the ghost of their kiss, which she craved to taste again, but she felt emboldened.

“Careful,” he warned. “You do not wish to push me in such ways, My Lady.”

“How so?” she asked, overly sweet.

“I told you I am not usually tempted by virgins,” he reminded her. “And you are seducing me, again.”

“I am merely enjoying my breakfast.”

He set down his teacup with more force than necessary, the weight of his attention resting on her completely.

“If you wish to find out who I am when I am provoked, Lady Edwina, then do continue. But I cannot guarantee it will not be… overwhelming.”

Her breath danced over a laugh. “I am not easily overwhelmed, Your Grace.”

His eyes darkened. He stood up and walked over to her in slow, patient strides. Each one made her heart thump harder.

He loomed over her, staying silent, only letting her feel the weight of his unrelenting focus. Planting one hand on the table next to her plate, he leaned closer to her.

She met his gaze fiercely even though everything in her screamed at her to look away.

“See, your pride as Lady Edwina demands that you challenge me,” he murmured, “but I can see the woman beneath who wishes to give in. To know what it might feel like. To revel in what you let yourself think of so rarely.”

“Do you make a habit of being so forward with ladies?”

“I believe you are enjoying it.”

“How so?”

“You are breathless,” he told her, his voice low. “Affected. Tell me, is that why you did not say anything in the carriage last night? Because you knew that one word out of your mouth, in your state, would have given you away?”

Edwina was speechless, her body heating up at how he riled her up. He was merely teasing, surely.

“Perhaps you are breathless because you were thinking of how we ran into one another in the hallway yesterday,” the Duke continued.

A flash of his muscular back flitted through her mind. The torso she had gotten a generous view of, the muscles of his hips disappearing into his breeches…

She swallowed, and he smirked.

His face came closer, and she could only think about tasting his kiss once more. His hand rose, moving towards her face. Only for the sound of someone clearing their throat to have him redirect it and make a show of reaching for a plum cake, as if that had been his intention.

They both turned to see Mr. Calloway in the doorway.

“Lady Edwina, Lady Isabel Vaughan has arrived.”

Aunt Isabel?

Edwina was on her feet, anticipating the arrival of her aunt before the butler could even step aside to let her in. And then her aunt appeared, her face already split into a wide grin.

“My dear niece!” Isabel cried out, pushing past the butler. “Oh, Heavens , you poor thing! Oh, look at the squalor you have been left in. Have you noticed the wear on your furniture as you enter the house? It is most humiliating to know that these are the conditions my niece lives in. Oh, my darling ! You must hug your aunt!”

Edwina did not get a chance to even say hello, for she was pulled into a hug and buried in the thick layers of her aunt’s coat.

Isabel squeezed her tightly before pulling back. “Where is that brother of yours? I shall be having some words with him.”

“He is…” Edwina hesitated.

The Duke stepped in, clearing his throat. “Rather indisposed at the moment. I believe there was a celebration at the gentlemen’s club he frequents.”

The lie rolled smoothly off his tongue, and Isabel stopped short as if she had not entirely noticed him.

“And who are you ?” she asked interestedly. “For the rumors about my nephew and niece’s troubles did not mention a handsome stranger.”

“Aunt Isabel!” Edwina hissed and turned to the Duke. “This is Lady Isabel Vaughan, my late father’s youngest sister, Your Grace.”

“It is quite all right, My Lady,” the Duke assured her, taking Isabel’s hand to kiss her knuckles. “I am Lucien Fitzgerald, the Duke of Stormhold. A pleasure to meet you, My Lady.”

Isabel looked half bewildered as she pulled her hand back. She gave him a thorough look up and down.

“Well, you might be the Duke of Stormhold, but I believe a storm has taken hold of me.”

Laughing at her own joke, she sat down at the breakfast table and finally shed her coat.

“May I join you, Edwina? You would not wish to see your old, dear aunt go hungry, would you? Mind you, I have come to assist, so perhaps I should not?—”

“No, please do,” Edwina said. That way, she did not have to face the full intensity of the Duke’s attention alone. Even if it meant enduring some of her aunt’s teasing and humor. “Just, please, do not speak of your… internal storms.”

“Oh, darling, we all have them at some point over a man or two—or several, in my case. The ton was full of many handsome men back in my debutante days. Oh, here I go again, reminiscing like an old spinster. Do tell me about your predicament, dear, and do not hold back. I am family, and family helps out even if they do not have a lot to give.”

Isabel’s grin turned sober, and she smiled up at Edwina, her eyes softening with empathy.

Edwina knew it would have only been a matter of time before her aunt caught wind of her and her brother’s state, and there was no point in denying it now that her aunt had seen the state of the house.

“Are you staying for long, Aunt Isabel?” she asked.

“I hoped to stay for perhaps a month or so,” Isabel answered curtly, smearing preserve on her French toast—a most strange combination, Edwina thought. “If I am not imposing. It is only that I cannot think of leaving you both like this now that I know just how dire your situation is.”

“I am sure you do not need to keep saying such things,” Edwina muttered under her breath, smoothing out her skirts. “Regardless, I shall explain. Nicholas and His Grace were friends before Nick joined the army. When His Grace… found out about our predicament, he came to help us out. He is also staying with us. Almost all of the servants you see are his.”

Isabel reared back, surprised. “Oh, they are? How incredibly generous of you, Your Grace. Although, I am not entirely sure that it is proper for you to stay here. After all, Edwina is an unwed lady. I would not want my nephew and niece to be at the mercy of gossip.”

“I assure you that I will ensure that they will not be subjected to gossip about my stay,” the Duke answered smoothly. “In fact, I was just thinking of how I might assist their lovely aunt.”

Edwina looked on, amused by the way he was charming her aunt.

“Perhaps a new gown for an upcoming social event?” he suggested. “Or, I hear you have a beautiful rose garden in your estate. I would love to gift you a new dining set to view your roses. After all, you would be a rose among roses, no?”

The flattery, in Edwina’s opinion, was rather overboard, and she fought back laughter. But her aunt’s face lit up.

“Heavens, you are charming, Your Grace. I am still unsure, though.”

“I assure you that the ton will appreciate my help,” the Duke persisted. “They would not wish to lose one of their own. The Earl has friends in the ton, as does Lady Edwina. I would not want to see either of them cast out, so I endeavor to help very privately.”

Isabel still looked slightly unconvinced, but she only said, “You are most gracious, Your Grace. Thank you for looking after my family.”

“It is nothing.” The Duke waved her off.

He shifted uncomfortably, as if he did not like the woman, or as if something about her made him uneasy. Edwina wished to ask, but she could not risk it. Instead, she gave a watered-down version of the past year to her aunt, regarding Nicholas handling their finances and the estate, finding his feet, and adjusting.

By the time she was finished, her aunt was shaking her head.

“It simply will not do,” Isabel muttered, looking around. “He is an earl. It has been a long time coming—he needed to grow up. I thought joining the army would help him, but he cannot neglect his duties. Or you, my dear Edwina.”

“He is not neglecting me,” Edwina corrected quickly. “I am perfectly cared for.”

Isabel’s gaze flicked to the Duke and back to Edwina. “I am sure.” She clapped her hands together. “Well, I am here now, and I intend to get you back on track—help you be the lady your mother was proud of raising. And no proper lady would stand for such a home. Your resources have been dwindling, but you still could have done something . Fear not, my dear, for I will employ some of my magic.”

She winked as if they were in on a secret, and Edwina barely got a chance to call after her before Isabel was walking around, already barking at the staff to move furniture to a different place.

Edwina looked at the amused smirk on the Duke’s face and sighed. It was going to be a long, long visit.