Page 13 of The Duke’s Matchmaker

Nathaniel groaned at the idea. “You can see why I need you,” he said. “Do most people know these things? Who is related to whom?”

“Well, most people would have realized that Lady Mary and Lady Elizabeth were related,” Dorothy chuckled. “They look alike!”

“No they don’t!” Nathaniel protested. “Lady Mary has that beautiful dark hair, and Lady Elizabeth’s hair is mouse-brown.”

“They have the same facial features,” Dorothy explained patiently. “And I didn’t realize you were partial to dark hair.”

Nathaniel looked away, suddenly embarrassed. Dorothy had dark hair herself, a rich chestnut color, and it hadn’t occurred to him to make that connection. He wondered whether she was thinking in those terms, whether it had occurred to her that his being partial to dark hair might mean he admired her looks.

She is very pretty. And I am fond of her hair. But…there are a lot of ladies with dark hair. It doesn’t mean anything, and I wouldn’t like her to get the wrong idea, especially with her sisters standing over there attaching extra meaning to everything that happens between the two of us.

Fortunately, Dorothy wasn’t looking at him. She was scanning the group of ladies by the water, perhaps looking for someone with dark hair. “There,” she said at last, nodding her head toward the group. “The one under the tree, do you see her? She might be a good fit for you.”

“She’s awfully far away,” Nathaniel said. She did have dark hair, but he could tell from here that she wasn’t quite the type he sought. She was watching the other ladies near her with a scowl on her face. “She looks mighty unhappy, too.”

“Well, I suppose she does,” Dorothy agreed.

“I can’t have someone like that responsible for Colin’s upbringing,” Nathaniel said. “He ought to have a cheerful mother, not someone who looks as though she can’t bear to be standing in the sunshine. I wonder what her problem is, anyway. Do you know?”

“How could I know?”

“I don’t know. You seem to know what’s going on with everyone around here.”

Dorothy sighed. “That’s Lady Caroline,” she said. “And if I were to hazard I guess, I would say she’s probably frustrated because her younger sister—the fair-haired one there—is considered to be the more desirable of the two. Lots of gentlemen are waiting eagerly for the day when Lady Caroline will marry so that Lady Victoria will be available, and then they will make their move. I suppose it all makes Lady Caroline feel rather unwanted. But since you aren’t planning to marry for love, and since you think she’s pretty enough—you do, don’t you?”

“Oh, yes, there’s nothing wrong with her appearance,” Nathaniel agreed. “It’s just how displeased she looks. If she allows things to upset her like that, I’m not convinced she would make a good mother. And that’s what matters most of all. I need someone I can count on to be a good mother. It’s more important than what she looks like—more important even than whether I get along with her. I just need to know that she’ll be suitable for Colin. If she can do that, I can overlook almost any other flaw.”

He sighed and stuffed his hands into his pockets.

“And that is the heart of the problem,” he went on. “Because how can I possibly know—really know—whether any lady would make a good mother, unless I allow her to meet Colin first? But how could I ever allow anyone to do that, if I wasn’t confident she was the right choice?”

CHAPTER 7

Dorothy and Nathaniel made their way over to a bench by the edge of the water. “Would you like to sit?” Nathaniel asked.

She glanced at him. “People will remark on the two of us sitting here together,” she told him. “There will be things said about it.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that,” he countered. “After all, without you to report on us to the gossips, I’m not sure anyone will take any notice of us.”

“You truly believe me to be the biggest source of gossip in all of London,” she exclaimed, taking a seat on the bench.

He couldn’t keep the smile off his face. “I’m only teasing,” he said. “You aren’t the one who writes those things, after all.”

“And I rarely send anything in,” she said. “I have no interest in scandal.”

He frowned. “Why did you send my list in, then, if it isn’t the kind of thing you usually do?” he asked. “What made you respond differently because it was me?”

“It wasn’t because it was you,” she said. “I wouldn’t have even known the list was yours if you hadn’t put your name at the top—that was a rather foolish thing to do, don’t you think?”

“Perhaps,” Nathaniel allowed grudgingly. “Still, I can’t see why you were so intent on damaging my reputation.”

She looked away. “There was no reason.”

Well, that certainly wasn’t true. It was clear by the look on her face that she was concealing something. But she’d respected his privacy, and he knew the right thing to do now was to respect hers. “If you say so,” he told her, hoping that she understood he was allowing her to get away with her little fib. “Anyway, my point remains—I don’t think anyone is going to think too much about what you and I are doing on this bench, especially given that your sisters are just a few yards away from us.”

And so saying, he sat down next to her.

She tensed a little, as though unsure whether this was something she wanted, but in the end she permitted him to stay. “Perhaps you’re right,” she told him. “Maybe nobody will think anything much about it.”