The vehemence of his response concerned him.It is probably fear for Phoebe.Though what if he had misread her interaction with the woman? It would not be the first time he had misunderstood his niece.
“Phoebe?” he knocked on the doorway to get her attention, suppressing a wince at the way his voice cut through the silence in the room.
“Your Grace.” Lucy curtseyed, her smile bright. “I did not expect to see you. Lady Phoebe was just showing me some of her drawings.”
“I would like to see them.” Theodore took a step into the room.
Phoebe looked from him to Lucy, but she did not move away. He took this as a good sign, and moved closer, watching her for even the slightest sign of discomfort. She remained where she was, her eyes fixed on him.
He looked at the drawing of a rose that Phoebe was half-way through. He recognized it as a copy of one of Lady Harriet’s drawings, though he could not see the original anywhere.
“Did you do this from memory?” Theodore asked.
Phoebe tapped her fingers on the table and glanced at Lucy, who said, “She wanted to see if she could.”
Theodore could feel Phoebe’s eyes on him, and suspected she was waiting for something. He looked down at the drawing, thinking of something to say. It was an impressive attempt, though she had not quite managed to capture Lady Harriet’s style.
“The smudge in the corner could be avoided by being more mindful of the position of your hand.” He gestured to the blot on the otherwise impressive drawing. “To do this from memory shows dedication and an attention to detail that you could apply to your other subjects.”
He saw the light dim from Phoebe’s eyes. Despite his best efforts, this had not been the right thing to say. His niece looked from him to the drawing and pushed herself away from the table, moving to a corner where she continued to work on the sketch.
He swallowed, feeling as though the walls were pressing in around him. “What did you think of Lady Harriet? The woman who gave you that sketch?”
Phoebe looked up at once, her head tilted to one side. He watched her feel around in a pocket and pull out the sketch with his note on it. She held it up, biting her lip.
“Yes, that is the one.” Theodore felt his heart speed up. “Did you like her? Lady Harriet?”
Phoebe nodded, and Theodore thought he saw a flicker of emotion in her eyes. “Would you like to see her again?”
Phoebe clutched the sketch to her chest, and that was all the answer Theodore needed. He inclined his head to her and swept from the room.
“I will speak to her in the morning and formally ask for her hand.” Theodore muttered to himself. “Our union must happen, for Phoebe. She has waited long enough for this, I cannot allow her to wait a moment longer.”
This was about his niece and her future, and he would do whatever it took to give her what she needed.
CHAPTER 5
“He did what?” Fiona gasped as she leaned towards Harriet from the sofa opposite.
It was two days since Harriet had visited Irondale Hall. Two days since the Duke had asked her to be his Duchess—and the proposal seemed no less mad to Harriet now than it had done then.
She felt as though the whole thing had been a dream, as though she had watched some other woman who looked like her live the sort of life she could never live.
Fiona, Louisa and Catherine peered at each other. They were sitting in the drawing room of Devonmere Manor, a forgotten plate of biscuits and rapidly cooling tea between them.
“He asked me to be his duchess,” Harriet repeated, grateful that her cheeks did not redden as her friends stared at her. “I… Well… He found some of my drawings and-”
“- what do you mean he found some of your drawings? What drawings?” Fiona’s brow furrowed.
Harriet felt her cheeks redden. She mentally kicked herself. She would have to admit the truth to her friends.No doubt they will think I am mad.“I um… well… I like to sketch, you know that. It helps calm me… and so I have been leaving the odd sketch in books in different libraries. I always use my own paper, of course, it seems rude to just take such things from other estates.”
“Is that what you do when you sneak away from balls?” Louisa’s eyes widened.
“It is just a silly little thing, I do not even know why I started it and I certainly did not expect it to lead to anything like this. The whole thing feels utterly surreal.” She felt like her face was on fire, and wondered if it was possible to die of embarrassment.If you think so little of your own drawings, why do you leave them dotted around in libraries throughout the land?
The Duke’s words echoed around her head as though he had whispered them into her ear. Unconsciously, she massaged the nape of her neck, feeling the prickle of gooseflesh that made her hairs stand on end.
“I think it is rather fantastic. Like something out of a novel.” Fiona’s voice jerked her back to the present. “The dark, dangerous Duke who had his heart stolen by a mystery artist. Though, I will admit I am rather surprised to find the man has a heart to steal.”
