Chapter 15 #2
“I see no reason to pretend otherwise,” he said.
It was the truth. The strange gap in his memory had erased his past, but it had also stripped away certain habits of caution he suspected he might once have possessed. Now, when something pleased him, he saw little purpose in concealing it.
Lady Salford continued watching him. Then, slowly, her expression shifted, and a smile spread across her face. It was the smile of someone who had just discovered a particularly entertaining development.
“Well,” she said with deep satisfaction, reaching again for her tea, “this should make breakfast far more entertaining than usual.”
Alexander glanced briefly toward Diana again.
She still had not looked up, but the faintest hint of a smile had appeared at the corner of her mouth. And for reasons he could not entirely explain, the sight of it pleased him far more than Lady Salford’s teasing ever could.
By the time they arrived, the garden party was already in full swing.
The wide lawn behind the neighboring estate had been arranged with careful elegance, hedges framing the space while small tables were scattered among the flowers as guests moved through the summer afternoon.
Lady Salford stood near the center of the gathering like a general observing a battlefield she had personally arranged.
The afternoon progressed easily enough for a time. Alexander greeted guests with calm courtesy, answering questions about the estate and his health while keeping careful awareness of Diana beside him.
It had been three days since that night. Three days in which Diana had behaved with careful composure, polite conversation, and a very deliberate effort not to linger too close to him when others were present.
For the past three days, she had been… nervous.
He understood it. The realization had come to him gradually that Diana had spent much of their marriage carefully protecting herself from him. The man she had married had left her alone too often, disappeared into his work, and expected her to endure it without complaint.
She relaxed gradually. He could feel it in the way her shoulders loosened, in the way she began speaking more easily with the guests who approached them.
Then he heard the whispering.
Two women standing just beyond the rose hedge glanced toward Diana while speaking in low voices that were not quite low enough. Alexander listened.
“It must have been something dreadful,” one of them murmured.
“Men do not abandon their wives for months without reason.”
The other woman nodded slowly. “Perhaps the Duchess proved… difficult.”
The quiet warmth of the afternoon evaporated almost instantly.
A moment earlier, the garden had been filled with the pleasant murmur of conversation and the gentle clink of porcelain cups. Now the air seemed to sharpen around him as the whispering reached his ears.
He did not need to turn to know who they were speaking about.
Diana’s hand rested lightly on his arm, but he felt the faint tightening of her fingers before the women even approached.
They arrived a moment later with carefully arranged smiles.
“Your Grace,” the first said sweetly, dipping into a polite curtsy.
“And Your Grace,” the second added toward Diana.
Their eyes lingered just slightly too long.
Alexander recognized that look immediately: curiosity sharpened into something far less kind, politeness polished carefully over the edge of quiet judgment.
“We were just saying,” the first woman continued pleasantly, “how unfortunate it must have been for the Duke to remain away from his estate for so long.”
“Business matters can be terribly inconvenient,” the second added lightly.
Alexander regarded them calmly.
Outwardly, he did not move. But inside, something cold settled into place with quiet certainty. He knew this tone. Polite cruelty disguised as curiosity.
Beside him, Diana remained perfectly composed. Her posture did not change, her expression still carrying that elegant calm she had worn all afternoon.
Alexander admired that, but he had no intention of allowing it.
“Indeed,” he said mildly.
Both women turned their attention fully toward him now.
“Business,” Alexander continued, his tone perfectly even, “does require a certain degree of intelligence to understand.”
The women blinked. For a brief moment, the carefully rehearsed politeness in their expressions faltered.
Alexander watched the reaction with quiet satisfaction.
“I suppose,” he added calmly, “your husbands do not discuss such matters with you.”
The first woman flushed immediately. “My husband is a very successful man, Your Grace.”
Alexander tilted his head slightly. “Then I am certain he understands the importance of discretion.”
The second woman shifted where she stood, clearly beginning to realize that the conversation had not taken the direction she had expected.
“We meant no offense,” she said quickly.
Alexander’s voice cooled. “No?”
He stepped forward slightly.
The movement was small but determined. His position shifted just enough that he stood subtly between the two women and Diana, his shoulder angled protectively without drawing overt attention to the gesture.
“Then allow me to clarify something.”
Both women froze.
Alexander’s posture remained perfectly calm, despite the fury boiling inside of him. “You will not speak about my wife in that manner again.”
Silence settled over the small space between them. For a moment, neither woman seemed entirely certain how to respond. Then they both nodded quickly.
“Of course, Your Grace.”
“Yes, of course.”
They retreated almost immediately, their composure hastily gathered as they turned and disappeared back into the small clusters of guests scattered across the lawn.
Alexander watched them go for a moment. Then he turned back toward Diana and found she was looking at him with unmistakable surprise.
For a brief second, neither of them spoke.
Alexander felt the faint warmth of her hand still resting against his arm, the small contact suddenly far more noticeable now that the tension had passed.
Then Diana smiled, small but genuine.
“I never expected to say this,” she said quietly.
Alexander raised one brow.
“But I am very glad you are here.”
Something warm settled firmly in his chest. A quiet, steady feeling that felt strangely satisfying in a way he had not quite anticipated when the afternoon began.
“Yes,” he said softly. “So am I.”