Only a Lady Will Do by Tamara Gill
Chapter 29
Lady Sophie intercepted the duke as he made his way toward Miss Cooper. It was all that London spoke. That Lady Jane was back from Cornwall, back within the folds of her wealthy family and bringing her daughter Miss Cooper into the realm of that world with her.
Although Sophie was not privy to how Lady Jane was able to gain forgiveness for marrying the dreadful younger son of a penniless baron, it seemed all was forgiven if their little party of three, which included the Countess Buttersworth, was anything to go by.
Sophie smiled as she brought the duke to a halt. He crashed into her, a perfect end to her accosting him and would make him clasp her, worry about her health for a minute or two, which was all she needed.
She gasped, clasping her chest, and as expected, the duke held her elbow, just beside where her silk glove ended. His warm, gloved hand touched her skin, and she shivered at the feel of him.
How she wished he would be hers, and after tonight, she was determined that it would be so.
"I do apologize, Lady Sophie. I did not see you there," he said, letting her go when he was certain she was well and stable.
Sophie stumbled, moaning a little. He took her arm once again. "Oh dear, perhaps I have had a little wind knocked out of me, Your Grace. Will you escort me onto the terrace for some air?"
He hesitated, glancing past her, no doubt toward his intended, and she waved his hesitation aside. "I shall go, and I will be fine. You carry on to where you were heading." Sophie turned to go out onto the terrace herself and inwardly smiled when the duke came up beside her, placing her hand atop his arm.
"Forgive me, Lady Sophie. That was uncommonly rude of me, especially when I was the fool who knocked into you in the first place. Of course, I shall escort you outside for some air."
They made their way through the room, and Sophie could not help but glance over her shoulder. The sight of Miss Cooper, watching them, a dejected, worried kind of frown upon her pathetic features, just what Sophie wanted to see. She turned back to the duke and mentioned the warm night air as they stepped out onto the flagstone terrace.
Other parties of acquaintances stood outdoors, talking and smoking their cheroots. Couples strolled, and Sophie glanced up at the night sky, thanking the heavens that she finally had the duke alone. Well, away from Miss Cooper in any case.
"Thank you for escorting me. I already feel much improved."
He smiled and kept them within view of the other guests taking the air. "Of course." He cleared his throat. "How are you enjoying the Season, my lady? I do hope it's been as productive as I would expect it to be."
She threw him a coy glance, watching him from under her lashes. "Do you say that because you think I'm attractive, Your Grace?" she boldly stated.
His mouth opened, his lips moved, but no sound came out.
Sophie chuckled. "I am teasing, Your Grace. But the season has been less stellar than I hoped. But I'm here now, strolling with you, so it is improving by the hour." Sophie held his gaze, wanting him to see that she hoped their association would progress further than mere acquaintances. She wanted him as her husband. They were made for each other—equal levels on the social ladder.
He smiled, but she could feel the tension in his arms. "It is most enjoyable outdoors this evening, I would agree, and it is always pleasant to walk with friends."
Sophie bit back a groan. The man was playing hard to get, but she would persist. "There is a rumor that your engagement to Miss Cooper is at an end." She pulled him to a stop, taking his hand. "I do hope you know that as your friend, I'm very sorry for you if that is the case. If there is anything I can do to soften the blow to your heart, I'm more than willing to oblige you."
Josh stood rooted to the spot, unable to form a word of response to Lady Sophie and her blatant admission of interest. Never had a woman so highly born who was not already a widow disclosed such a suggestion before.
Had he never met Iris, Lady Sophie's attempt to persuade him into a liaison, a union, would never have occurred. While she would pass as a friendly acquaintance and he never bore her ill will, he did not see her in the romantic sense.
Nor was his engagement with Iris at an end, and it would never be if he could fix their relationship. His being out here on the terrace with Lady Sophie was not helpful either.
"My betrothal to Miss Cooper is not at an end, and I should hope you will dissuade people of that opinion should you hear the rumor repeated. In fact, before I so rudely ran into you, I was starting toward my betrothed and really ought to return to her." He held out his hand. "Let me escort you back indoors."
He read the disappointment on her face, the tightening of her mouth, but she laid her gloved hand atop his and conceded defeat. "Oh dear, I do hope Miss Cooper is not under the belief that we're now courting. How dreadful of me to have made your relationship with her more challenging."
"Miss Cooper would not think that way," he quipped, hoping he was right. As they made their way along the terrace, three ladies stepped outside, Iris's accusing blue gaze pinning him to the spot.
That Lady Sophie sidled up closer to him, leaning into him as if they were lovers, did not help the situation. Josh tried to remove himself from Lady Sophie's clutches without making a scene, but it was impossible. She was wedged firmly at his side.
"Your Grace," the countess spat his name like it was wicked on her tongue, her cane tapping down hard once before her. "Are you so busy escorting other young ladies about town that you have forgotten to whom you are engaged?"
Josh swore. He had never wanted to come out here in the first place, but having almost barrelled Lady Sophie over, it was the least he could do as a gentleman. "I was coming to find you, Miss Cooper. I wanted to ask if you would like to dance."
Iris stared at him, her gaze flicking between himself and Lady Sophie. The accusation in her eyes chilled him. She was already angry with him over his keeping such a devastating secret from her that this only added fuel to the firestorm burning between them.
He swallowed, extricating himself from Lady Sophie less gracefully than he would like. "Come, Iris. We shall dance."
She cast a look at her mother and grandmother, but to his surprise, conceded, choosing not to make any more of a scene. Not that she had made any. Lady Sophie was doing a fine job of that all on her own.
"Lady Sophie, let us go inside for a glass of Madeira," he heard Lady Jane state, her voice brooking no argument.
Josh led Iris onto the ballroom floor. The feel of her in his arms, her warmth and sweet scent that he had come to associate wholly with Iris, warmed his blood. He'd missed her this past week, and it was past time that they spoke.
He pulled her into the waltz, glad to have her all to himself. "I have missed you," he stated, trying to catch her eye, which she was steadfastly avoiding. "Why have you not allowed me to call or received my letters?"
Her lips thinned, and he steeled himself. Was she angrier than he suspected? Mayhap she was unable to forgive him his sins. Was he pushing her too hard too soon after learning the truth?
"I was not ready to speak to you or read anything from you. I'm allowed to be angry for more than a day over your conduct, Your Grace."
"I thought we were on first-name terms. Please, do not start calling me Your Grace again. I'm Josh to you."
She took a calming breath, finally meeting his gaze. "I am not pregnant. There is no reason why our farce of an engagement should continue. I would like the contracts dissolved and soon so I may return to Cornwall with my parents."
Josh tripped during the dance, righting himself quickly. "What? You cannot mean what you say. We have not discussed the situation as much as we should. You have not had time to think clearly on the matter, to find forgiveness for my sins."
"And why should I forgive such sin? You lied to me. There is nothing to say that you will not do so again should the situation arise and you find it easier to be vague and untruthful to save yourself. I will not be a wife to you when it is clearly only an offer because we were caught. You kissed me, and I believe you kissed me out of pity and guilt. Nothing will dissuade me of that."
The hell nothing would dissuade her of those thoughts. "You will marry me, Iris. I will not listen to these absurd words that I know you do not mean."
"But I do mean them. I cannot see a way forward for us. Not with everything that stands between us." She caught his gaze, the shimmer of tears in her blue orbs breaking his heart in two. "I do not trust you, and I will not have my husband pity me, marry me out of that emotion. I suffer from such treatment from others, I could not bear it from the man I marry. No matter how difficult our separation may be, I know that it is what is best."
He went to protest, but she shook her head, stopping him. "I am not what you want, Your Grace. I never was. Seeing you tonight on the terrace with Lady Sophie… That is the kind of woman you ought to marry. Not me. We never fit, and there is a reason women like me do not marry duke's like you."
Josh could feel her pulling away. He could not lose her. "Do not do this, Iris. If I could take back time and tell you everything from the start, I would, but I cannot. We suit, more than I befit anyone else. I love you. Please do not leave me."
She looked past him, cold and aloof. "You will find a woman who meets your high expectations, and you will be relieved, maybe not at first, but in time that you did not settle for a vicar's daughter. Your wife will be beautiful, capable, and not scarred, just as you stipulated."
"I was a selfish, immature idiot when I said those things. I did not mean them."
She shrugged. "Let me go, Josh. I'm begging you not to make a scene or make this any more difficult than it already is."
Panic assailed him. What was happening here? The room spun, and he fought to breathe. She was leaving him. Truly? It was not possible that she would not see reason. Not want to fight for the love he knew they shared, even if she no longer believed in that emotion between them.
"I will not let you walk away from me when I know that we're meant to be together. You walked into my life, came into my world for a reason. That reason is love. Please, let me earn your trust. Let me prove to you that my love is true."
The music receded to a stop, and he swooped her to a halt. They stood in the middle of the room, other couples moving about them, preparing for the next dance. "There is nothing that you can do that will change my mind. Good evening, Your Grace," she stated, dipping into a curtsy.
Dumbfounded, he watched her walk away, spine straight and chin high, toward her family. Neither the countess nor Lady Jane offered any sign that they had seen him. They simply followed Iris out of the ballroom and out of sight.
"Fuck it," he muttered, leaving those about him wide-eyed and pale at his words. He departed also, determined to repair the damage, to fix what he had so obviously broken.
Their relationship was not over, nor would it ever be.
