Chapter 4 #2
The duke followed her hand with his eyes. “Lady Elinor, you are the daughter of a marquess. You are educated, intelligent, and … and you are beautiful.”
Elinor scoffed before she could keep the noise back. She cringed but answered anyway. “Your Grace, with the utmost respect, please do not mock me or insult my intelligence.”
She toyed with the fabric of her skirts, restlessly bunching it in her fist. How long did she have left before her family returned home?
She looked at the clock, annoyed it showed the wrong time, and she wished she had brought her father’s pocket watch with her, left in the top drawer of her bedroom vanity.
When she still didn’t look at him, she found that a hand raised slowly to her face, as if to draw her focus back to him, but he did not actually touch her. Still, it did what he wanted: her eyes found his once more.
He held her gaze, not quite smirking, but not quite a soft smile, either.
“Do you know what my favorite thing is about ladies like you?” Before Elinor could say anything, he told her, “Making them feel as beautiful as they are, when I know they do not believe it. And do trust me when I say my efforts are very thorough. Lady Elinor, there is a lot of beauty to you, so, as long as it takes to make you believe it, I will be most dedicated.” He flashed her a charming grin, and Elinor tried not to fall for the rakish spell.
I despise men like him, she thought, annoyed, and yet she could not take her eyes off him, could not stop her hands trembling, her heart from pounding.
Incorrigible, arrogant rake. That is all he is.
And yet he cared about the workhouse—unless that whole promise was a front to get her into his b—
Elinor shut that thought down with burning cheeks.
But the duke already spun away, striding through the room to peer up at the cabinet on the far left wall. He read the spines of books there.
“It will be easy for me to convince others,” he said, as if he had not just tugged the usually very secure, firm floor from beneath Elinor’s feet. “The only question that remains is …” He turned on his heel to her. “Can you pretend?”
“And will we only be pretending for the ton’s eyes?”
He gave an amused laugh. “Think of it as a performance, Lady Elinor. I imagine a woman like you has had to pretend to be composed when you wish to express your anger. Every lady in those ballrooms does. And with the way your stepmother is, I imagine you have had to mask plenty of parts of yourself to survive. So, see it as that way, a little play. I provide the script and direction; you just need to be my perfect actress.”
There was something about that comment that sent a shiver down Elinor’s spine that she loathed.
My perfect actress.
She was a lover of sciences, of reading—she was no actress, no good liar.
“I am not a good liar,” she told him, voicing her thought.
“It’s only for a short while,” he assured her. “I will smooth over any holes you may create with that shortcoming.”
Elinor scowled in offense, but the duke went on. “Once the Season is over, we will break it off, and then you may do whatever you wish to do next. Perhaps you can continue teaching. Or even marry.”
“After our engagement is off, nobody will come near me. They will wonder why we did not follow through.”
“On the contrary, I imagine this pretense will get you more interested suitors finally seeing you. If you are good enough for a duke, as we will convince them, plenty of gentlemen will be curious to see what I was after. That sounds good, no?”
He sounded terribly mocking, and Elinor clenched her jaw, rolling her eyes. “You must understand that the only thing I care about is teaching those children.”
The duke nodded, smiling more genuinely at her. “I do. Very much so. Do we have an agreement, Lady Elinor?”
Elinor straightened her spine, extending her hand. “We do.”
He paused at her offered hand, his mouth quirking. “Oh, darling, our kind of agreement is not sealed with a handshake.”
Elinor froze. “Then, what is it sealed with?”
“A kiss, dear Lady Elinor,” he purred. Before she could say anything, ignoring how inflamed her face was, the duke finally took her hand and swiftly kissed it.
But his mouth remained on her skin, and Elinor’s body stirred in a way she had never experienced.
Her breath quickened as the duke looked up from where he bent over her hand. She felt his smirk against her knuckles right before he let go.
“What, did you want more, my lady?”
Elinor cleared her throat, keeping her chin high.
“No, I was merely worried about propriety. Of course I did not want more, and especially not with a man who clearly is too well-versed in the ways of charming a lady.” She let herself widen her own smile.
“And what you will find out, well and truly, is that I am not like other ladies.”
“That is my favorite sort.” His eyes flashed. “I will do whatever you desire. All you have to do is ask nicely, Lady Elinor—but nicely, of course.” He leaned in closer, his hands back casually in his pockets. “I think the word please would suit that pretty mouth of yours.”
Heavens.
Elinor swallowed, clearing her throat, and she turned to fiddle with the paperweight she had knocked over earlier, trying to distract her new, wild thoughts.
From behind her, she heard footsteps retreating, the floorboards creaking.
“Meet me in Hyde Park in two days for a morning promenade. Dress in …” He turned back to her, and Elinor’s breath labored, waiting to be told to dress pretty.
He only looked at her dress up and down.
“This sort of thing. I am rather fond of the unconventional ways of it. It is refreshing from the women who dress in gaudy things to distract a man from their bland personalities.”
Elinor almost laughed at that, but she nodded, finding herself surprised by his dislike of the ton’s flourish and performance.
How peculiar for a man who performed himself.
She nodded, and the duke jerked his head for her to follow him. “I noticed you had no carriage or horse outside, so I will see you into a hackney. I noticed you being worried about the time, so the sooner you return home, the better.”
Elinor bit her lip, grateful, and followed him to the back entrance as he hailed a hackney for her. He paid the driver more than handsomely, if the heavy look to the coin pouch was anything to go by.
“Do ensure Lady Elinor makes it home discreetly and safely. And make haste.”
He opened the door for Elinor, and she clambered in. As he closed the door for her, the duke shot her a wink, and Elinor quickly yanked the curtain closed before he could see how much she still blushed.
The house was still empty when she was dropped off and climbed up to her chambers, ensuring to leave the matches back in their hiding place for Natalie to collect before anybody noticed they were gone.
Stood in her room and let the weight of the evening settle over her.
She had agreed to a deception with the duke.
She had been caught trespassing on his property, and instead of reporting her, he had asked her to stay.
To keep teaching. Whatever his reasons, however selfish the arrangement might prove, he had looked at what she did in that schoolroom and decided it was worth preserving.
That alone was more than anyone in this house had offered her in four years.
She stared around her room, dread pitting in her stomach when she thought about her stepmother finding out. Rebecca Caverleigh was a high achiever, pushing her daughters through the marriage mart, so Elinor knew that if she had approached the duke with Belinda …
Only to find out that it would be Elinor betrothed …
Her thoughts couldn’t complete, and she pressed a hand to her stomach, trying to breathe through the panic.
The consequences would be severe, she knew, and if the duke could not see the engagement through to a marriage, then she would be forced to remain in Morland House, enduring the displeasure and cruelty of whatever would result of the news breaking.
The duke would come to the house. Her breathing quickening, Elinor did the only thing she knew would settle her, for her mind was too scrambled to read: she sat at her writing desk, snatching up a fresh piece of paper and pen.
My dearest, most-missed father, she began, and then she poured herself into the letter, letting him know how much she missed him.
I still wish to visit you, but I know you want me to stay here, in the ton, doing what young ladies should …
Her father could not know how ignored she was. Her stepfamily only acknowledged her when they wanted to be nasty, and Elinor had always protected him from knowing that.
Do write back and tell me of your recent reading materials, for I am in need of more.
I have returned to Dr. Waylan’s journey to Greece and find myself captivated all over again, though I can never find any discoveries beyond that essay.
Have you ever been successful in finding them?
I miss our studies together. I wish we could have just one more.
Perhaps I can visit soon, just for a night or so, and we can indulge.
Once again, I miss you terribly.
Always your daughter, and most attentive student, Elinor.
She sealed her letter and tucked it beneath her pillow to discreetly hand it to Natalie. Although her stepmother knew she wrote to her father, Elinor went through lengths to ensure her letters were personally sent so her stepmother could not read them.
After all, her father had given his old friend, Mr. Penwright contact for Elinor to offer her the teaching opportunity. It was their secret, among many innocent ones.
Feeling calmer, having omitted anything about the duke of Fairmont beyond mentioning he had made an appearance as the new owner, Elinor climbed into bed, finding herself more tired than she realized.