Chapter 3
Chapter Three
“That’s the last of them,” Daniel, the Earl of Grayhill, said with an exasperated sigh as he collapsed on the couch. “What a morning.”
“I thought it would never end,” Eveline agreed as she slumped onto the couch beside her brother, her mind throbbing from the mental exertion of what they’d just been through.
“This was your idea,” Daniel pointed out.
“I am not complaining,” Eveline argued. “But that does not mean I have to enjoy it.”
He laughed. “True, true. Iris…” He looked toward their sister, who was still standing in the middle of the room, having just seen off Lord Chapman.
She stood with her hands clutched together, a frown on her face that told Eveline exactly how she felt about this last suitor.
“What did you think of Lord Chapman? He seemed nice. Not to mention interested.”
“They all were interested,” Eveline pointed out. “The question is, were any of them suitable. Iris?” She too looked at her sister. “What did we think?”
Iris’s face was scrunched tight. “He was… kind.”
“He has a good reputation,” Daniel agreed. “From a good family. I know his father.”
“They all have a good reputation,” Eveline said. “And they are all from a good family. What matters is what Iris thinks. So…” Still, she focused on her sister. “What did you think? Did you like him?”
“I… he is nice,” she said, sounding unsure and looking just as much.
“That’s a no,” Eveline sighed.
“I did not say no!” Iris cried, only to suck through her teeth as she looked at the doorway where Lord Chapman had just vanished, her face scrunching tight again. “He was friendly and has a nice smile.”
Daniel snorted. “Eveline is correct. You did not like him – which is fine, Iris. You can tell us the truth. This is your future at stake here. Better to be honest now than come to regret it.”
Iris grimaced. “He just didn’t excite me – not like that!
” she hurried, her big eyes widening as if she had said something wrong.
“But I want to marry someone who interests me. Who I look forward to seeing. Who I think about when they are not in the room. Who I can’t wait to speak with every day…
” Her eyes glimmered with hope and love and optimism found by those who believed in such fallacies as true love and romance.
Eveline sighed again, not at all surprised by her sister’s exaggerated response, even if she didn’t agree with it.
She is a romantic at heart, blissfully unaware of how detrimental it is to hope for such a thing when it comes to finding a husband.
It had been a long morning. An unsuccessful morning, too, based on Iris’s response to those who had paid them a visit. The idea for today had been Eveline’s brainchild, a means to wade through the muck in the hope that gold might be found at the bottom.
The ball two nights previously had acted as a wake-up call for Eveline.
All those singles together in one place, vying for attention, putting on airs of propriety and feigned interest brought about by desperation and a desire not to end the night alone.
An entire evening and not a single viable candidate had been found for her sister’s hand, leading to a new idea designed to cut straight to the point.
Eveline’s older brother, Daniel, had spent the previous day reaching out to known lords who were eager to marry, each one invited here this morning to meet with Iris so she might finally have a chance at finding that one suitor worthy of her hand.
And what did she get instead? A bunch of desperate lords so eager to marry that they would likely say yes to a pig if it dressed up in a nice enough gown. Five lords and not a one elicited even a modicum of interest.
“That answers that question,” Daniel sighed, sinking further into the couch. “Which leaves us to call this morning what it was. A failure.”
“I am sorry,” Iris said. “Truly, I do not mean to be so picky.”
“Do not apologize.” Eveline stood and moved to her sister, taking her hands and giving them a squeeze.
I am the one who should be apologizing, as the failure feels like my own.
There was no need to say that Eveline was taking her role seriously.
She needed to prove once and for all to her mother that she was capable of being trusted.
That she wasn’t a failure of a daughter, as had always been implied.
And just as she wished to prove it to her mother, she needed to prove it to herself…
“As I told you already, there is no rush,” she continued. “Somewhere out there is the man for you. And no matter how long it takes, we will find –”
A knock at the door cut through Eveline’s assurances.
“My lord, I am so sorry to disturb, but there is another here to meet Lady Iris.” Mr. Jethro stood by the door, wearing a look on his face that was concerned and unsure.
“Another?” Daniel blinked and looked at Eveline for confirmation. “I thought it was just the five?”
“It was…” Eveline looked past Mr. Jethro as if she might spy this sixth suitor lurking in the foyer. “Who is it, Mr. Jethro? What was his name?”
“His Grace, the Duke of Blackwood,” Mr. Jethro said. “He said that he is expected.”
Eveline groaned when she heard the name. Daniel scoffed with derision. But Iris perked up, a smile taking her face that reached her eyes, and she spun about hopefully while looking to the doorway as if expecting the duke to sweep inside and pick her up off her feet.
“He’s here? Now?” she cried, snatching her hands away and clutching them to her chest as if she meant to keep her heart from bursting through. “Truly?”
“He is,” Mr. Jethro said. “Shall I send him in?”
“No!” Eveline said quickly as she turned to Daniel. “What is he doing here?”
“How should I know!”
She sucked through her teeth as she remembered speaking with the duke two nights ago. A moment I would rather forget. “His Grace is… we cannot allow this, Daniel. You know he is not a viable option.”
“Why not!” Iris complained. “Why is His Grace not an option?” She looked at her brother. “Please, Daniel. Do not send him away. At the very least, meet him. He came all this way.”
“I do not need to meet him,” Daniel said, thankfully seeming as unpleased by the prospect as Eveline was. “I know the man well enough. And he is…”
“A scoundrel,” Eveline said. “And a rake. And the sort of man that does not deserve you, Iris. He is not serious! And whatever this is, we would do best to avoid it.”
“What if he is serious?” Iris pleaded. “He came all this way. What if he has changed – let me meet him, please. And if then you think he is up to something, send him away. But please, Eveline. Please, may I see him?”
Eveline groaned to see her sister so determined. And where good sense told her to deny this request, even if Iris hated her for it, the love she bore for her sister made it damn near impossible to do. She will hate me if I send him away. Just as I will hate myself if I allow this to happen.
“Fine,” she said, knowing that denying her sister this would only make her want to see the man more. “Let him come – but I am going to be watching him, Iris. And I ask that you do to.”
“Thank you!” she swept to her sister, took her hands, and pulled her into a hug. “Oh, you will see, Eveline. He is not what you think. I know he is not.”
Eveline had heard the rumors about the duke.
She had met him a few times , enough to confirm the rumor and know without question that he was the man everyone said.
That he seemed to be so interested in Iris…
I will not believe his intentions are pure.
He is up to something, and I will find out what. And then, I will stop it.
Iris began pacing as they waited for the duke to enter the room. She straightened her gown. She touched her hair. She took a series of deep breaths to calm herself. She was more eager for the duke than any of the other lords so far, and that was a problem in itself.
“Good morning,” the duke announced as he strode into the room.
“Although the word good falls criminally short, wouldn’t you say?
” He found Iris waiting for him, his smile reached his eyes, and he strode for her without delay.
“Lady Iris. In the light of day, your beauty outshines the sun.” When he reached Iris, he took her hand and gave it a kiss.
“Even the moon is jealous of your radiant glow.”
Iris giggled dramatically, her cheeks flushing bright pink.
“Your Grace,” Eveline said with a hint of a sneer. “Nice to meet you again. And so soon.”
He beamed at her. “Somehow I doubt you think so but watch as I change your mind.” He winked coyly and looked past her. “And Lord Grayhill, always a pleasure.”
“Your Grace.” Daniel rose and walked to meet the duke. “Thank you for coming…” He extended his arm, which the duke took. “Although I am confused, admittedly. I do not remember informing you of today’s arraignment.”
His smile was all teeth. “I confess, I might have done a little snooping. But do not be alarmed…” He chuckled as he turned back and gazed upon Iris, who giggled helplessly.
“I prefer for my actions to be seen for what they are. An unbridled obsession with your sister, which I hope to prove to you is one of honorable intent.”
“Oh, please,” Eveline snorted.
Does he really think this will work – that Iris will not see what he is doing? It is just so fake and obvious that even a blind man can see it. Frustratingly, one look at Iris was all that was needed to confirm that she was as besotted by the duke as he was pretending to be by her.
The duke was not traditionally handsome, Eveline thought.
His features were large and flat, his head entirely too big.
And his body was a hulking mass of muscles and brawn, nothing classically attractive about him whatsoever.
But he was confident and assured, and he had a presence about him that demanded attention.
It was a type of self-assurance that was common among dukes, men who were never wrong about anything, even when they were.