To Catch A Duke (21 page)

Instead of being scandalized,
however, Lady Evanston only smiled, her eyes twinkling.
 
"Benjamin.
 
I see.
 
So should we be
looking forward to seeing a betrothal announcement soon, I hope?"

"I...
 
I do not know."
 
Julia still had no idea how Benjamin felt
about her.
 
She, of course, was in love
with him, and had been for as long as she could remember.
 
But she had no idea if the duke felt the
same, or whether, even now, he was still repaying what he believed to be an old
debt he thought he owed her.
 
"We
have not spoken of it.
 
Not exactly,
anyway."
 
She did, of course, omit
the fact that they had already been lovers, though she suspected that, given
what else Lady Evanston knew, that was probably not a secret either.

"Then I believe it is time we
discerned the truth.
 
Do you not
agree?"
 
Lady Evanston's eyes
sparkled with mirth now, and Julia found that she quite liked the woman.
 
"And I believe that tomorrow night
would be a most excellent time for it.
 
Remember, if you are strong, others cannot hurt you.
 
To that end, I want society to see you
tomorrow night as you truly are - proud, defiant and elegant.
 
They cannot win, and you cannot allow them
to do so.
 
Especially where it concerns
the duke."
 

Rising, she reached down and gave
Julia a hug, much to the younger woman's shock.
 
"I believe that true love conquers all," she said
softly, a far off look in her eyes.
 
"More
than the hate and the rage and the pain.
 
You have suffered more than your share of all of those things.
 
Now is your time to be happy.
 
Be joyful.
 
If my family and I can facilitate that in any way, we will be glad to do
so."

Julia rose as well, still in
shock.
 
"I agree, my lady.
 
And thank you."
 
She clutched the invitation tightly in her
hand.
 
"My brother and I will be
there."

"See that you are."
 
Then she nodded at her daughter.
 
"Amy, I will await you in the
carriage."

"I do hope this was
acceptable," Amy finally said when her mother had departed.
 
"I felt so badly about everything, and
when my mother mentioned yesterday that it was such a tragedy about you and the
duke, well, I thought that if I could help in any way, I should."

Impulsively, Julia hugged her new
friend.
 
"It was perfect and
lovely.
 
Thank you.
 
Though I do not know if Radcliffe loves
me."
 
He loved her body, but loving
her person was another matter entirely.
 
"We have been friends for a very long time.
 
I do not know if that will ever
change."

Amy shook her head.
 
"Affairs of the heart are tricky, but
in this case, they are simple.
 
You love
each other.
 
All one needs to do is look
at you both, and the answer is there for all to see."

"I pray it is that
simple," Julia said, not completely believing Amy as she ushered her to
the door.
 
"Even if it is not,
after tomorrow, I will be able to hold my head up in society again.
 
So thank you, and your mother, for
that."

"That is what friends do for
one another."
 
Amy blushed a bit,
as if still a little uncertain.
 
"And I do hope that after this, I can call you a friend.
 
I should very much like that, though I will
understand if you refuse."

Reaching out, Julia enveloped Amy
in a true hug.
 
"Friends.
 
I would not have it any other way.
 
And thank you.
 
Again.
 
For
everything."

"Until tomorrow
then."
 
Amy gathered up her skirts
and was about to depart to join her mother in the carriage when a large form
blocked the doorway and Cosgrove, who had been seeing Lady Evanston out,
hurried over.

"My lady, I am sorry," he
apologized quickly.
 
"I was not at
my post.

"No need.
 
It was entirely my fault."
 
Dr. Blackwell, Hastings' junior associate
gave a small bow and offered a bemused grin.
 
"Then again, the presence of two beautiful ladies often gives me
pause.
 
I am just here to check on Miss
Rosemont's health."
 
He said the
words to the room at large but it was clear that Lady Amy had captured his
attention rather thoroughly as his eyes were fastened on her.

Julia gestured to the parlor she
and Amy had just vacated.
 
"If you
would be so kind as to wait in there, sir, I shall be with you once I see my
guest out."
 
Then, she noticed that
Amy was still staring at Blackwell as if he were a ice from Gunter's and it was
the hottest summer's day on record.

"Dr. Blackwell," Julia
finally said, hoping to pull one or both of them from their trance-like state,
"may I present Lady Amy Cheltenham, the daughter of the Earl of
Evanston.
 
Lady Amy, this is Dr. Gibson
Blackwell, an associate of Dr. Hastings, the doctor who saved my life the other
day."

Blackwell offered Lady Amy a deep
bow, never taking his eyes from hers.
 
"My lady, I am honored."

"As am I," Amy
practically sighed as she curtsied in return.
 
Then she looked at Julia as if remembering why she had come in the first
place.
 
"I shall see you tomorrow
night."

"Of course."
 
Julia led her new friend to the door, though
it was clear that Amy wished to linger and ogle Blackwell a bit more.
 
"I would not wish to be any place
else."

When she was certain Amy was safely
in the carriage, she turned back to Blackwell who, despite being told to wait
in the parlor, had remained in the front hall until Amy had departed.
 
Watching her leave.

"Gibbs," Julia cautioned
as she turned back to the man she'd developed a kind of friendship with over
the last few days, "she is not for you."
 
She could have used his title, she knew, but the use of his
nickname would drive her point home in a much clearer fashion.
 
If nothing else, in the last few days Julia
had learned that sometimes it was best to address a situation head on.

He gave her a cheeky look and
hoisted his bag, trying to deflect attention from his obvious attraction to
Lady Amy.
 
"I'm only here for you,
my lady.
 
No other woman could capture
my attention at the moment."
 
The
words were lies but he spun them so well that Julia could not help but laugh.

"Scoundrel."
 
She led him towards the parlor.
 
"Just examine me, and then I will tell
you all you need to know about Lady Amy."
 
Julia found that she could not be cruel to Gibbs, especially when he was
so clearly enamored of the other woman.

"Give me a few moments to set
up, and I shall be ready for you, along with Cosgrove, of course, and a maid or
two," Blackwell replied jovially.
 
"But you must promise to tell me everything.
 
She is downright captivating."
 
Then he entered the parlor where Julia knew
he would set up his tools to examine her wound, and, hopefully, pronounce her
fit and more or less healthy.
 
It was
easier there than in her bedroom, even though it was probably a bit more
scandalous.
 
Not that she cared about
such things any longer.

She did, however care a great deal
about Benjamin.
 
Both Amy and Lady
Evanston insisted that he loved her.
 
Did he?
 
He had never said so,
and he'd had several opportunities, including when they were in bed lying
together after their lovemaking.
 
Then
again, she reasoned, she had never said the words, either, and her heart was
positively bursting with love for the dark, handsome man who was also her best
friend.

Could it be that two people who
were in love with each other were also too afraid to admit it?
 
Even to each other?
 
Looking at the invitation in her hand once
more, she knew that by tomorrow night, she would have her answer, for she had a
suspicion that if Benjamin didn't offer the words - any words - willingly, her
new friend would drag them from him

For once, Julia couldn't wait.

"Are you enjoying
yourself?"
 
Nicholas whispered the
words in Julia's ear, but she was terrified that someone else might overhear
them.
 
What had seemed like such a brilliant
idea yesterday in her drawing room now, most decidedly, didn't.

"Of course," she
responded, swallowing hard and trying not to show any fear.
 
"Why wouldn't I?
 
I have a lovely new dress and the most
handsome escort in the room."
 
Though that was only because Benjamin wasn't here yet.

Nicholas made a very un-gentlemanly
noise.
 
"Perhaps because you are
petrified to be in the viper's den knowing that all eyes are on you?"

He did have a point, though she was
loathe to admit it.
 
Despite the
invitation from Lady Evanston, Julia was feeling less than welcome at the
ball.
 
She could have blamed it on her
gown, which was a bold, emerald green and not at all the thing a first-season
debutante wore, no matter her age.
 
She
could have also blamed it on her hair, which was up in an elegant twist, making
her appear older, again something that most young women did not do.

However, she knew it was because
everywhere she went, the whispers followed, much as they had the evening she'd
hidden behind the large Grecian columns several weeks ago, even though that
ball now seemed like something from another lifetime.
 
Despite Lady Evanston's assurances of welcome, people were
talking - about her, about the duel, and about the damnable bet regarding her
scars.
 
Someone had ended the bet
earlier in the day, and the book on it was now closed.
 
The gentlemen in the room would not reveal
who had claimed the bet, but someone had.
 
It was all the talk.
 
And the men
who knew were looking at Julia as if they could see beneath the silk she wore
right down to her very skin.

It made her want to hide.
 
But she would not.
 
Amy, her new friend, had encouraged her to be strong when they'd
met at the door.
 
Amy had also told her
not to flee or run, but to stand tall and proud, to let them talk.

That was, of course, easy for Amy
to say.
 
She was not the subject of
rabid gossip, though if she didn't stop mooning over one Doctor Gibson
Blackwell, that might change, as well.

"They do not frighten
me," Julia declared with more conviction than she felt.
 
"I will stay for a few sets, and then I
shall depart.
 
You can remain all
evening if you wish.
 
It is the last
ball of the season and I mean to be here, at least for a time.
 
They cannot chase me away."
 
She did not need to add that, most likely,
it would be the last ball she would ever attend in London, and not being
present would have left a hole in her spirit in some small way.
 
She would leave, but on her own terms.

She turned to gaze across the
ballroom.
 
"Besides, I wish to see
Radcliffe one last time before we depart for Sussex.
 
It is the proper thing to do."
 
Not to mention that she wanted to look into those lavender eyes
and see if what Amy and her mother had said the day before was the truth.
 
She knew that if he loved her, the truth
would be there, hidden from the world except for her.
 
No one could read him as well as she could.

"Still angling after the
duke?"
 
From behind Julia, she
heard Henrietta Cartwright snipe at her, though it was not unexpected.
 
Out of all of the young unmarried ladies of
the
ton
, none had tried harder all season long to catch Benjamin's eye
than she.
 
"Just because he saved
your life - twice - doesn't mean he wants you for a wife."
 
She patted her hair.
 
"After all, you're hardly a diamond, as
I am."

In that one sentence, Lady
Henrietta had broken so many rules that Julia couldn't catalog them all.
 
From referring to the scandals of her
scarring and the duel, to calling herself a diamond - something no proper young
lady ever did - Henrietta had committed any number of transgressions.
 
And from the glare Nicholas was shooting
her, he was more than ready to announce it to everyone.
 
They did not need that, so Julia laid a hand
on his arm.

"I am afraid I do not know
what you mean."
 
Julia took Lady
Evanston's advice and appeared unaffected by the other woman's words.
 
She intended to keep up the act she'd
perfected the day before.
 
"I see
that you have been listening to silly gossip again.
 
On all counts.
 
That is
unbecoming for a young lady of your station."
 
She knew she was dangerously close to crossing a line herself, but
coming near and actually crossing were two very different things.

"Why of all the
nerve!"
 
Henrietta sputtered,
unable to believe that anyone had spoken to her unkindly.
 
"I'll have you know that..."

"That you are a shrew with a
sharp tongue?"
 
The familiar, deep
voice swept over Julia like a balm, soothing her instantly.
 
He was here.
 
She knew he would be.
 
"That is what you meant to say, Lady Henrietta, was it not?"

Benjamin stood before them, tall
and strong, cutting an imposing figure in the crowd.
 
He raised a single eyebrow that told Julia that, for him anyway,
the fun was just beginning.
 
Oh, how she
loved him!

"My lord!" Henrietta
simpered unabashedly.
 
"I did not
see you there.
 
Rest assured that if I
had, I would not have..."

"Would not have spoken to my
intended as if she were less than you?"
 
There was an edge to his voice and Julia had to bite her lip to keep
silent at his words.
 
Intended?
 
When had that happened?
 
Not that she was about to correct him.

Henrietta was nothing but apologies
now.
 
"I would never, my lord.
 
I have the utmost..."

He waved a hand in the air,
unimpressed.
 
This was the chilly,
vaguely angry Duke of Radcliffe, and in that moment, Julia could not have loved
him more.
 
"You would have simpered
and bowed before me.
 
Yes, I know.
 
You and a dozen other young ladies like
you."
 

Benjamin glanced back at Julia, a
wicked sparkle in his eyes.
 
He was
enjoying himself and saw no reason to stop so long as the woman he loved could
bear the spectacle he was about to make of himself.
 
When she did not object, he continued gleefully.
 
"That is precisely why it is so
difficult to pick a woman to be your duchess.
 
She must be able to stand up to you, to tell you when you are being a
'mutton-brained idiot.' I believe that is the precise phrasing, anyway."

He paused and when Julia nodded, he
fairly beamed at her with joy.
 
"She must be kind and loyal, but she must possess a good heart, one
that has the capacity to forgive even the most grievous of hurts."
 
He reached out and clasped Julia's hand in
his.
 
"Above all, she must love you
for who you are and not what you are.
 
She must love you with her whole heart so that when you offer her yours
in return, she treasures it and treats it carefully.
 
For the heart of a duke is a very fragile thing, indeed."

Henrietta stood there with her
mouth agape, but Julia didn't see her.
 
She didn't see anyone else at all.
 
The only person she saw was Benjamin.
 
There was love shining from his eyes, warming her heart and making her
feel as if she was the most beautiful woman alive.
 
In that moment, there were no scars, no whisper of scandal.
 
There was no duel and no Landover.
 
There was nothing but Benjamin and his love
for her.

"May I have this dance, my
love?" he asked and extended his hand to her.

"I would be honored,"
Julia replied, barely able to breathe.
 
She was thankful that he was mindful of her injury when he swept her
into his arms and onto the dance floor where a waltz was just beginning.

Once they were lost in the crowd,
she looked up at him, needing to be certain that he'd meant what he said.
 
"You called me your intended," she
whispered, her voice hitching slightly.
 
"Did you mean that?"

"I did."
 
There was a softness to his gaze that hadn't
been there before, as if the jaded duke had finally found what he was searching
for.
 
"For so long, I told myself
that what was between us was just friendship, that it was me repaying you a
debt for what my father had done.
 
And
in the beginning, that might have been true.
 
But no longer.
 
It hasn't been like
that for a good long time."

He pulled her closer then, far
closer than was proper.
 
"I meant
what I said, Jules.
 
My wife must love
me for me.
 
Not because I am a duke, or
because I am wealthy."
 
He let his
gaze take in the other dancers.
 
"Those other women, they do not see me as you do.
 
They do not know me.
 
None of them ever have.
 
They never wanted to."

"I know you," she
breathed, unable to believe in the magic of the moment, but allowing it to fill
her, flow around her.
 
"I know all
of you, Ben, the good and the bad, and I love what I see.
 
The hot and the cold, the anger and the
passion.
 
Without it, you would not be
you, and that would be a tragedy.
 
So
yes, I love you.
 
All of you.
 
Each and every part."

"Thank God."
 
He let out a breath, and until then, Julia
didn't realize he'd been uncertain of her response.
 
"Jules, I love you so much that sometimes, I think my heart
will break with the sheer power of it."

She looked up at him through
lowered lashes, a coy glance that she knew he would find humorous.
 
"Then I think you should allow me to
look after your heart.
 
For always.
 
Just in case.
 
I promise that I will not break it."

He laughed, causing the other
dancers to stare at him, not that he cared a bit.
 
"I think that's a splendid idea."
 
Then he leaned close, so close that only she
could hear.
 
"Julia, will you do me
the great honor of becoming my wife?
 
I'm afraid that if you don't, my heart would not be able to tolerate
life much longer.
 
And it will break
without you."

"Yes."
 
A tear slipped down her cheek, though for
once, it was a tear of joy and not pain.
 
"Yes, Benjamin, my love.
 
I
will marry you."
 
Then she looked
up, needing him to see her love for him shining in her eyes, just as she had
seen it in his.
 
"I should not be
able to live with myself if I neglected to watch over your heart."

She wanted to kiss him then.
 
In fact, she wanted to do a great deal more,
but it was completely inappropriate for anywhere outside of a bedroom.
 
Or a secluded, dark garden.
 
Instead, she basked in his love and the
thrill of the dance as they spun around, the entire room a blur of color and
light, laughter and music.

For once, Julia felt a part of
life, not separate from it.
 
Over the
last few weeks, she had learned to live and embrace everything that life
offered, even if she feared it.
 
There
would always be women like Henrietta, women who would rather ridicule and hurt
than be her friend.
 
She could not
change them.
 
She saw that now.
 
However, there would also be those like Lady
Amy and her mother, people with good hearts who wanted to help, even if it
wasn't always the easy thing to do.

By the time the waltz had ended,
Julia was positively giddy with delight and she could see Nicholas across the
room.
 
He was smiling, and she knew that
Benjamin had clearly already spoken to him about asking for her hand.
 
All that was missing was a betrothal ring,
but that would come soon enough.
 
She
had the man.
 
The jewels were secondary.

As Benjamin led her to the
refreshment table, Lady Amy approached, her own face glowing with
happiness.
 
"Julia!
 
Lord Radcliffe!"
 
There was no hint of malice in her tone,
just pure joy for her new friends.
 
"I only now received the wonderful news!
 
Congratulations!"