Chapter 2 #3
“It’s my friend Kit…” he began. “He’s been gone a very long time.
Seven years, in fact. He’s only now just returned.
His new wife, Suzannah, has painted the sets for the play we will see tonight on Drury Lane, and I wanted everything to be perfect.
It’s important to Kit, and what is important to my friend is important to me.
” He was rambling now. He, the cool, collected Duke of Tiverton, had found himself flustered and nervous like a silly schoolboy.
“And now with Uncle Ben…I am not myself this evening and for that I deeply apologize for any rudeness I’ve shown. ”
“I understand, Your Grace. Friendships matter a great deal. I had only one friend growing up, a girl named Celina. When her family learned I was not Uncle Ben’s child, I was deemed an unfit companion.
I’ve had no deep friendships since. You must cherish and protect those you have.
” Her gaze dropped to the floor. “Grief wounds the heart in ways we can never prepare ourselves for. You mustn’t fault yourself for anything done in a state of grief, certainly not on my account. ”
Darius could not deny the pain in Meredith’s eyes and scrambled to put her at ease. “I shall introduce you to Suzannah this evening. She is wonderful and I believe she will not hold the circumstances of your birth against you. You will need suitable friendships and hers will be an excellent start.”
“I would like to meet her.” She paused and then with a blush she asked. “And what of the gentlemen that surrounded Lord Kentwell this evening? Are there any among them who I could look to for a possible match?”
Darius hadn’t considered this possibility until she brought it up.
Were any of his friends suitable as a husband for her?
His immediate reaction was a violent snarl at the thought.
They were honorable men, of course, and true friends.
Yet he’d seen how they enjoyed women’s company.
He could trust Meredith’s life to them, but her future wedded happiness?
They were the sort of men to offer to keep her as a mistress, not to marry her, not from any fault of hers, but because none of his friends, aside from Kit were ready to settle down.
Even Kit’s marriage had been quite the shock to Darius, a welcome one, but a shock nonetheless.
“No…while they are gentlemen, they are not the sort of men I would set in your path for matrimonial candidates.”
“Oh…” Her look of dejection hit him full in the face like a physical blow. Had she formed an instant attracted to one of his friends? She’d only seen them for a brief moment and hadn’t even been formally introduced to any of them.
“Not because of you,” he hastened to add. “But because they are a bit…wild. You need a gentleman ready to settle down.”
And the more he considered any of them, especially the ever charming Vincent or wicked Warren, putting their hands on Meredith, the more Darius’s vision turned red.
That stunned him. The group of boys he’d grown up with, Kit, Lionel, Vincent, Felix, and Warren, were as close to him as brothers.
Yet he would fight any of them if they set their sights on seducing Meredith. Why?
I am simply protective because Uncle Ben was protective of her, that’s all. She is my ward. I am responsible for her.
It was certainly not because he was reacting to this woman in a way he hadn’t reacted to a woman in a long time.
It must be the shock of losing Uncle Ben, he mused. I’m not acting like myself out of such an unexpected grief.
The coach stopped and Darius glanced out the curtained window. They had reached the theater. One of his footmen opened the door and Darius climbed out, then turned to assist Meredith.
The moonlight accented her swelling bosom as she leaned down to exit the coach.
Darius caught the footman focused on the same distracting sight.
With a half-cough, half-growl at the servant, Darius took Meredith’s hand and helped her down.
They passed by the queuing people outside the theater who were busy gossiping and socializing.
Darius spotted a woman selling oranges and waved her over.
“Two, please.” He slipped a couple of coins into the woman’s palm and was handed two plump, ripe oranges. He gave one to Meredith and kept the other. Her brows rose in confusion.
“Once we’re seated, you may eat it. After the play, when we return home, I shall see you properly fed.”
“Thank you, Your Grace.” An attractive blush lit her cheeks as she clutched the orange close to her chest. Why that made his heart turn over, he wasn’t quite sure. This was certainly no spoiled little creature, not that he’d expected her to be.
Darius tucked Meredith’s free arm in his and led her inside the theater.
Her eyes grew round as she took in the large stage, flanked by the gilded theater boxes on either side.
Lush red curtains draped over the stage, illuminated by bright lamps.
A decadent dimness hung about the rest of the theater, adding a hint of mystery to the milling crowds and the wealthy attendees that had begun to fill the seats.
Darius had always enjoyed the theater, but had rarely attended plays in the last few years.
It was Kit’s marriage to Suzannah that had brought him back one of the great pleasures of his life, and he found himself eager to see the performance.
“This way,” he said as he led Meredith up a staircase to the left and down to the private boxes closest to the stage. Kit and Suzannah would be joining them soon, while the boxes on the opposite side would be filled by Vincent, Felix, Warren and Lionel.
Kit met them as they entered the box. “Ahh, Darius.” He then bowed to Meredith.
“Miss Montague, may I introduce you to my wife, Suzannah?” He stepped back to reveal the petite figure of his wife.
She was a lovely woman, with blonde hair and hazel eyes, much like Meredith’s.
Where Kit was large and as intimidating as a badger, his wife was a sweet little kitten who wielded an incredible talent with a paintbrush.
“Miss Montague, it is lovely to meet you,” Suzannah stepped forward and held out a hand. “I would like to have you over for tea tomorrow if that would suit you?”
Meredith gave Darius a hopeful look, and he nodded his approval.
“Thank you. I would like that very much, Lady Kentwell.”
Suzannah brightened. “Wonderful. You must come and sit down at the front with me to have the best view.” Suzannah gently took Meredith’s hand and urged her toward the front of the box.
Kit lingered next to Darius in the doorway. “You did not have Miss Montague with you when you attended the unveiling of my portrait this evening. You said she arrived from Yorkshire?”
“She arrived just as I had retrieved my gloves,” said Darius. “It was an unexpected encounter. I should have left her at home to recover from her journey, but my uncle’s death seems to have robbed me of my sense.”
“I’m sorry about your uncle, if I remember you were deuced close to him.”
“I was,” Darius admitted. That bleak hole in his chest seemed to be carved out wider and wider by grief and regret. “I didn’t visit him in Yorkshire, and I should have. He came to London only occasionally. I feel as though I lost too much time with him.”
Kit placed a hand on his shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.
“And what of the girl?”
“Hmm?” Darius pulled his thoughts away from his uncle.
“Who is she?” Kit prompted. “I thought you only had one cousin. That fellow Harry? I admit I’m damned curious where she fits into all this. Out with it.” Kit’s dark brown eyes sparkled with mischief. Darius was glad to see a hint of the old Kit in his friend, even if it did come at his own expense.
“Miss Montague was his ward, and she was sent to me upon his death. It seems I am charged with the task of finding her husband. A good one.”
Brows rising, Kit glanced at his wife and Meredith. “Your uncle’s ward?” The question was there, silent, but still Darius heard it. Was she Uncle Ben’s child? That was what Kit wished to know.
“She is the daughter of a woman my uncle once loved very deeply. Enough that when the man she choose to be with instead of my uncle left them, my uncle stepped in to care for that woman and his child.” He could see Kit putting the pieces together.
Meredith wasn’t even Uncle Ben’s illegitimate child, but another man’s.
“Ahh…Well, then my next question is, will you be respecting the rules of mourning?” Kit inquired.
Mourning…blast and damn. He hadn’t even thought of that. What the devil was wrong with him? But to lose a whole year in mourning? That would not help with his task of finding her a husband. He glanced at Meredith, who seemed to be glowing with joy talking to Suzannah despite her exhaustion.
“No, my uncle wouldn’t wish for that. He always despised the custom. And it will slow down my ability to introduce Meredith to society.” Darius met Kit’s gaze. “You do not mind that she and Suzannah might form a friendship, then?”
Kit gave him a baffled look. “Why would I mind?”
“Because of the circumstances surrounding her birth.”
Kit chuckled as he understood. “I served seven years in Australia’s penal colony. I’m hardly one to pass judgement on others..”
“You forgot to mention that you were wrongfully convicted,” Darius added.
Kit flexed his arms slightly. “That doesn’t change my past.”
There was a flash of pain in his friend’s eyes.
If Darius could have some stopped Kit from being transported to Australia seven years ago, he would have.
He had fought like the devil to free his friend, but the three men who had set Kit up to take the fall for stealing goods from his own shipping company had laid their trap perfectly.
Not even Darius or his father had had enough influence to keep him from transportation.
Kit deftly changed the subject away from his past. “I’m sure Suzannah will be happy to help you find a companion for Miss Montague.”
“Companion?” Darius was confused by what he meant.
“Yes. As she is not your wife or any direct relation, she will need a companion to live with you. Someone to act as a chaperone, will she not? It would leave you and Miss Montague free of gossip and strengthen her chances of a good match.”
Darius had not even given that a thought, either. Where had his thoughts been? Oh yes, on Meredith’s lips, her spectacular bosom, her eyes.
“You’re right. I will gladly accept Suzannah’s help if she offers it.”
By now, the crowd had taken their seats, and as the red curtains on the stage were pulled back, a hush settled over everyone. Darius and Kit took their seats behind the ladies.
Darius leaned forward and passed her the second orange.
“You may eat your orange now, and mine too,” he whispered in her ear.
“Thank you, Your Grace.” Her breathless reply was so sweet, so soft and husky, it hit him with a powerful bolt of lust. He was glad for the dim theater atmosphere to hide his face as he sat back in his chair.
Kit was grinning at Darius like a jackal, damn him. The bastard knew he was attracted to Meredith.
Darius turned his focus to the stage and away from the woman who had literally stumbled into his life an hour ago.