“Hart?”
He cast a much less patient look at Fleur. “What?”
“Without Contraries is no progression.” She kept her voice soto voce. “Attraction and Repulsion, Reason and Energy, Love and Hate, are necessary to Human existence…”
“My God, are you quotingThe Marriage of Heaven and Hell?”
“You lummox. Youwouldfocus on that and not the quote’s actual meaning.” She frowned. “I was pointing out the irony of our presence here together and Blake’s views on the dichotomy of life.”
Hart kept staring at her like she had three heads.
Heat painted her cheeks. “I pity your future wife.”
The minute she said those thoughtless words, she wanted to call them back.
“Hart,” she said, stricken.
“It is fine. I’ll be sure and pass along your condolences.”
She eyed his impassive frame. Everything about him said he didn’t care about anything. But after what he had shared earlier, she knew that wasn’t the case. His pride mattered a great deal.
“It isn’t fine,” she said. “It was very insensitive of me.”
“I have twenty in the back!”
“I’ve told you before. The marriage wasn’t a preferred one. The only thing insensitive is your refusal to adhere to any silence.”
Splendid. He wouldn’t let her apologize. Now, he was being the bigger party here and even making light—just doing it in his blustery way.
“I am sorry I said what I did.”
“Then we are even as I bought your book.”
“About that… Are you certain you aren’t open to the possibility of selling?”
“No.”
Fleur sighed.
They didn’t speak the rest of the auction—though it was a chore for Fleur to keep from speaking or asking him questions. She was a McQuoid, after all.
When the gavel hammered home the end, applause went up, and the patrons began taking to their feet at various times.
She and Hart stood, both with seeming reluctance.
No. It was imagined.
The duke bent Fleur a polite bow and started to go.
Now, that definitely did not bother Fleur. Not even a speck.
“Lady Fleur.”
She turned towards that voice which had raised up over the various conversations taking place all at once. Baroness Chilton moved gracefully through the milling crowd to reach Fleur.
Propriety bid that Hart remained to greet the hostess, and the Duke of Hartwell would never do anything less than what Polite Society dictated.
They waited until the lady’s arrival.
