“She could have done so much better,” Charlotte protested. “Of course, the duke is rich, but….”
“He’s a beast,” Miranda said frankly, not mincing her words. “And his first two wives died in childbirth. She’ll be the third Duchess of Wight. It doesn’t bode well for her, the poor girl.”
Charlotte shuddered at the thought of Victoria, a sweet girl, being married off to that terrible old man. It was awful; although, she wasn’t sure why Miranda herself seemed so upset about it. Miranda was always very implacable, and Victoria had been an acquaintance rather than a friend.
Then Miranda voiced her concerns, whispering urgently to them both, and Charlotte found that she understood her friend perfectly.
“Girls, we need to start taking matters into our own hands as regards this marriage business. Because if we leave it to our families, or to chance, then poor Victoria’s fate is going to be our own.”
Charlotte wholeheartedly agreed.
CHAPTER 2
Henry,the fourth Duke of Arundel, needed rescuing. The Countess of Wembley had been talking to him very loudly about the charms of her young nieces for over twenty minutes now, and only a glimpse of his friend William heading toward him gave him hope of escape.
Unfortunately, however, as he turned to greet his friend, he spotted the gaggle of women behind him and realized that William had brought his own troubles along in his wake.
“Lord Arundel,” William said, opening his eyes wide at Henry with a panicked expression. “Have you met Lady Huntingdon and her… er… lovely daughters?”
A quick glance at the three sullen young ladies standing behind Lady Huntingdon was enough to convince Henry that “lovely” was entirely the wrong adjective to describe them.
He bowed to Lady Huntingdon. “Charmed,I’m sure,” he murmured, shooting William a scathing look that his friend pretended not to notice.
“I’m sure you gentlemen would love to dance,” Lady Huntingdon boomed. She was a thickset, red-faced woman dressed top to toe in lime green, and William positively wilted at the sound of her voice.
Henry’s mischievous side got the better of him. “Of course we would.”
He beamed at the three young women behind their mother and offered his hand to the prettiest, leaving William to choose between the other two. William glowered at him as he followed him to the dance floor with the tallest and most sullen looking of the sisters, the other having promptly announced her need to get a drink of water.
“You were supposed to rescue me,” William muttered too low for anyone else to hear as they lined up and waited for the music to begin.
“And instead, all you have done is ensnare us both,” Henry responded under his breath before greeting his new partner. She was a plain girl but with a lively smile, and Henry felt a pang of sympathy for her. She didn’t want to be here any more than he did, he was sure. Confound this marriage market and meddling mothers.
At the thought, he unwittingly glanced across the room to meet the eyes of his own mother, who gave him a cool nod of approval at his choice of partner. Henry bit back a sigh, regretting having allowed her to talk him and William into attending this event. She’d accepted an invitation on his behalf, and there had been no polite way to wriggle out of it.
Society had so many damn rules. He wished he were back at Oxford with William and not here in this endless round of ballrooms and dinners and afternoons at the club. It was tedious.
But his mother had her sights set on Henry being married this season and seemed deaf to his protestations. She insisted that he needed to wed. Henry, however, had determined that he never would.
Not with the dark secret of his past hanging over his head.
As the dance came to an end, Henry bowed to the young Miss Huntingdon and practically dragged William away.
“Why on earth did you bring them all over to me?” he hissed.
William shrugged helplessly. “I didn’t know what else to do. I couldn’t get away from her—the mother, I mean. And you’re a duke, which trumps a marquess, so….”
“So you thought you would transfer her attentions to me. Capital. What a way to treat your best friend.”
They both glared at each other for a moment before they simultaneously burst out laughing.
“Let’s get some air on the balcony,” Henry suggested. “It will give us some respite.”And get me out from under the watchful eyes of my mother, he added silently.
On the balcony, the two young men stared out at the gardens. A lake shimmered in the moonlight, surrounded by neatly trimmed bushes. A young couple walked arm in arm among them. Newlyweds, perhaps. Otherwise, they would either be chaperoned or not walking around so boldly. Henry felt a moment’s pang at the thought of his bachelorhood. He enjoyed it, of course, but did he really want to be alone forever?
Unfortunately, he had no choice.
“I saw you dancing with Charlotte earlier.” William’s voice cut into his thoughts.
