“We are leaving now,” he said curtly, turning and motioning for his brother to walk out ahead of him. “This conversation is over. We shall return to the garden party, stay for another quarter of an hour--during which you shallnotspeak or even look at MissHolloway--and then we will return to the house. Once there, you will apologize to your sister and reassure her that from now on, you will never abandon her when you have promised to chaperone her and that you will never put her in such a risky position again. Not that it matters, as I will never allow you to chaperone her again.”
Henry grit his teeth and shouldered his way past Lucien and down the pathway.
“Oh, and I hope you got a chance to really get to know Miss Holloway,” Lucien said, “because after what you did today, you will never speak to her again.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“What?!” Henry whirled around on the path, and the look he sent Lucien was so alarmed and so shocked that Lucien almost felt bad for him. “You cannot command that of me! This is the woman I love! And it’s not as if anyone saw us together.”
“You love her, do you not?” Lucien snapped. “If you do, then you must agree the best thing for her is to be left alone so that she can find a gentleman who is worthy of her and will not dishonor her.”
“You are only doing this to punish me!” Henry cried. “Please, Lucien, don’t do this. This will only break her heart on top of everything else. I promise, I can go about this the right way. Let me speak to her father and court her officially; let me do this the romantic way she deserves.”
“No,” Lucien said flatly. “I cannot risk anyone seeing you together after today. It is better if all communication is cut off entirely.”
It is a better deal than I got,he wanted to add, but he restrained himself.At least I am not forcing you to marry someone you don’t even know.
“You are truly a villain,” Henry said, his eyes filling with tears. But Lucien was unmoved.
“I am not the villain in this story,” Lucien corrected. “Even now, she is probably terrified that you have ruined her forever and that she will never make a good marriage. If you stay away from her, then she will have a chance to do so.”
“She knows I intend to marry her,” Henry said hotly.
“I would be shocked if she still wanted you to propose. What kind of woman wants to marry a man who has so little respect for her? No, she will be relieved, and you will focus, from now on, on doing your duty to your family, and not on women. I know the pain of this feels intense now, but over time, it will fade, and in the end, you will be glad of my decision.”
“You cannot do this,” Henry whispered, and Lucien heard the desperation in his voice. “I am over one-and-twenty. I don’t need your permission to marry.”
“I would think very carefully before crossing me,” Lucien said coolly, his anger mounting once again. “I can make your life a living hell--no matter how far you try to run.”
Henry turned away and said nothing more for the rest of the way out of the maze. Lucien didn’t care. His brother really was nothing more than a spoiled, entitled child. He probably fancied himself in love with the girl, but he was too young and irresponsible to get married. He would get over her in time, and when he was older and finally ready to take a wife, he would be glad Henry had interfered.
But when they returned to where everyone was gathered, nothing seemed to be amiss. Leah was still talking to the other young ladies near the fountain as if she hadn’t even noticed they were gone, while the rest of the party were gathered in small groups, chatting and drinking lemonade and champagne. A few people glanced at Lucien and Henry as they reentered the group, but the glances appeared more perfunctory than intrigued.
Glancing around, Lucien spotted Emery and Miss Holloway standing nearby where Leah was, both holding lemonades. Emery was smiling and chatting to a lady next to her, and although her smile was a bit tight and her eyes kept darting over to Leah, Lucien thought she was doing a good job of acting as if everything were normal. Miss Holloway looked considerably less relaxed. She was holding very tightly to her lemonade and wore an expression of deep worry. Her brow was knit together and her face was very pale, and she even appeared to be shaking slightly.
I shouldn’t have said that she had been compromised in front of her.Lucien felt a twinge of guilt in his stomach about that. He’d only frightened the girl and made it harder for her to act natural. Still, she should be aware of the consequences of her actions.
He looked again at Emery. As if she could sense him watching her, she glanced at him, and their eyes met. Immediately, a wave of understanding passed between them.Leah is alright, her eyes seemed to say, their expression soft and wary.No one has said anything to make me think we have become embroiled in scandal.
Lucien felt a small amount of the tension in his shoulders lesson, but they were far from out of the woods. Nor did it change the fact that somethingcouldhave happened. They may have gotten lucky this time, but next time, things might not go in their favor.
It was difficult to wait the requisite fifteen minutes, and Lucien felt anxious the whole time, unable to make conversation with any of the lords or ladies who tried to speak with him. At last, he decided enough time had gone by and he turned to Henry.
“Let’s go,” he said in an undertone. “Get your sister and meet me at the carriage.” He then paused. “On second thought, you go get the carriage, and I’ll collect Leah. I can’t trust you not to lose her.”
“You’re being very melodramatic,” Henry snapped, but Lucien gave him a look that was so cold and commanding that Henry shivered and then left at once to call for their carriage.
After collecting Leah and Emery, Lucien said his goodbyes to the O’Farrells and made his way quickly and efficiently to the carriage, which was waiting for them at the entrance to the O’Farrells’ house.
All the way back across London, Emery, Lucien, and Henry were silent. Leah, meanwhile, gabbed away happily about what a success the party had been and how many new acquaintances she had made. Lucien tried hard to smile and nod along to what she was saying, but it was difficult. The only good thing was that she seemed not to have noticed that anything at all had happened.
Once they arrived back at the townhouse, Leah went upstairs to bathe and change for dinner. Henry also slunk off to his room without giving Lucien another glance or saying another word.
“Make sure my brother doesn’t leave the house again tonight,” Lucien said in an undertone to the butler once Henry had made his way upstairs. “That’s an order.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Lucien sighed and turned to head to his study and almost ran head-long into Emery, who was hovering behind him, looking anxious.
