“Oh, do I?” His tone was soft, almost courteous, but the glint in his eyes promised trouble. “Then I suggest you speak carefully, my lord. I am not a man you want to provoke.”
“The conversation is over,” Daniel declared impatiently. “My sister has already made her choice. We will not press the matter further.”
“This is a confounding morning,” Briarwood complained. “I hardly know what to make of this turn of events.”
“May I then suggest you take your leave, Briarwood,” the Duke replied. “You trespass not only upon the home of good people, but upon the peace of the woman I love. Leave her be. Harassment has never yet won a lady’s heart.”
The suggestion was more of a threat. Everyone in the cottage was aware of that.
“This isn’t over,” Briarwood said after a beat of silence. “You’ve all made a mistake. I have warned you all about what could happen if Lady Daphne does not become mine.”
He turned on his heel and strode out the door. A slam followed him. The old hinges rattled, making Mrs. Nicholson gasp.
“This is the most exciting thing that’s happened since Mr. Bell’s pig escaped into the churchyard!” she guffawed.
“It was quite the morning. I think I’ve forgotten about my illnesses,” the Reverend declared, chuckling.
“Care to tell me what that was about, Your Grace?” Daniel asked, this time, the Duke becoming the object of his suspicion and anger.
Daphne could not blame him. The Duke’s pretend proposal was preposterous. What kind of stranger inserted himself into a dispute like that?
“Ah. But it was a necessary performance,” the Duke declared. “You’re welcome, Lord Grisham. Allow me to properly introduce myself. Adrian Falkner, the Duke of Wolfcrest.”
Adrian, Daphne thought.
It suited him.
“Well, if we must follow propriety, then…” Daniel responded with a bow. “Daniel Brighton, Marquess of Grisham. This is my sister, Lady Daphne. Or—do the two of you already know each other?”
The Duke’s eyes fell on Daphne once more, and she curtseyed.
“Your Grace,” she said sweetly, displaying all the gratitude she could muster. “Thank you. You have rid me of a great burden today.”
“The pleasure is mine, my lady,” he replied as he bestowed a deep bow upon her.
Daniel stepped forward, placing himself between them once more.
“I may ask…” He appeared momentarily flustered. “I… Well, you see… The problem is that you made quite a claim, Your Grace. What happens when we return to London and Briarwood learns that Daphne is not betrothed to you?” He cast a quick glance at her. “That is the truth of the matter, yes? The two of you have not spent the last fortnight falling in love?”
“We only just met,” Daphne confessed.
At almost the same moment, the Duke answered, “That won’t happen. Because I was indeed offering for Lady Daphne’s hand.”
His matter-of-fact manner was amazing.
Daphne blinked. Once. Twice.
Daniel straightened. He glanced at Daphne.
“I have already made it clear, Your Grace, that I wish my sister to marry a man of her choice,” her brother said.
“I wouldn’t wish to force anything upon her, Lord Grisham,” the Duke clarified. “I said I was offering for your sister. She may refuse me, of course, and return to London and say we decided we weren’t a good fit in the end. Still, all of us here know that Briarwood won’t give up. He said as much before slinking out the door.”
His eyes darkened slightly.
“I know his kind. He will keep pursuing Lady Daphne. When he ruins her reputation, she won’t have a choice but to marry him.” His thick fringe of eyelashes fluttered as he looked down upon her. “And I saw the fear in your eyes when he was here, my lady. You know as well as anyone that Lord Briarwood is a menace.”
Daphne shifted, another shiver raking down her spine as she recalled the Earl’s lecherous gaze.
