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Do not believe that there is recourse to be found here in Finsbury Square!
Felicity, you must know that my father would look upon this with apathy.
As ever, he holds the Quality in scorn and is disinclined to save your reputation.
Sincerely,
Thine cousin, Cecil
Post Script: I await your confirmation of receipt of this missive and any enlightenment regarding your marital status you may see fit to impart.
“What news?” the duke asked.
“Nothing to speak of.” Her hands shook as she folded up the note and thrust it into a pocket in her jacket.
“If your uncle has written you ill…” His Grace’s tone promised death and destruction.
“It is from my cousin Cecil, informing me that all is as I expected it to be from that quarter.”
“And what is to be expected?” The duke’s voice was mild, and yet Felicity sensed the pressurized disturbance in the air that was becoming familiar.
“That I have no recourse to family.” She took a shaky sip of cooling tea. “That I am left to my own devices.”
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the duke straighten in his chair. His hands clenched into fists. The footmen quivered, chins aslant, and Mr. Coburn stood as though carved from marble next to the sideboard.
“You are not left to your own devices.” His voice sounded calm, but its very stillness made Felicity’s hair stand on end. His face was set in mild lines, but his eyes were like ice. “You are not alone. You are here. You are under my protection. You are mine.”
“I,” said Felicity, “am not yours.” A thrill had run through her at the wordmine, something heady and grounding, a paradoxical mélange of giddiness and stability.
“May I read the letter? Perhaps in your upset you have misread it.”
“You may not. It is quite clear. All the world knows of my abduction, and my uncle cares not for the shame brought upon the Templeton name. This is, of course, all your fault.”
She calmly held his gaze, watched as he struggled to keep his composure before his servants, perceived his need to demand she allow him read her letter, to take action, to do something—watched him fight for control as she defied him. The footmen were agog, and Mr. Coburn seemed oddly rapturous. When the duke sat back and nearly smiled, she turned to the butler. “May I trouble you for a fresh pot of tea? Gentlemen,” she said, addressing the footmen, “if one of you could fetch me a scone? I would hate to see them go to waste, as delicious as they must be.”
“Allow me.” The duke rose to fetch her a scone from the sideboard, still piping hot. “I would tailor our tour to your interests.” He leaned over her shoulder as he placed it before her, his voice deep and low, close to her ear. “What is your pleasure?”
“The, em, tenants?” There might be something in this smelling of a person. She took a breath and swore she would recognize him from his scent alone, of sun-washed, laundered linen, the way he smelled of earth and fresh air. “And the animals. I’d like to see the situations the rest of your animals enjoy.”
“Then let us finish our meal and kill two birds with one stone.”
* * *
They were still arguing over his phrasing as they descended the terrace at the front of the Hall to mount up. Felicity stopped short on the final stair.
“Jupiter?” The gelding, so fiery the day before, flicked an ear half-heartedly. “Are you well, my friend? You look somnambulant.” She turned to regard the horse that stood on Jupiter’s offside. “And you, sir,” she said, running a hand down the large, enervated cob’s neck, “I doubt very much that you are able for an outing.”
“He’ll be fine,” said the duke. “He’s always like this.” He pulled down Jupiter’s stirrups, then the cob’s.
“This is your mount?” A less lordly equine could not be envisioned. He was hairy and piebald, with hooves like serving platters and a back like a hay wagon.
“He is.” The duke patted the horse on the flank; it shivered as though it might bolt but stayed in place.
“The poor creature looks to have been mesmerized.”
“That has to do with animal magnetism, does it not?” He came up next to her; Jupiter twitched. “Perhaps it is my fault he is so torpid. Perhaps I have an excess of such a quality.”
She lowered her lids and smiled, sultry. “That practice is said to promote unseemly behavior in ladies.”
