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“But—but that was a pittance!” she cried. “It’s nearly gone now, you obviously know that. He intended for me to stay at Kendal as the dowager duchess—”
“I don’t care if you’re the former duchess,” Xavier spat. “I don’t care if you’re the Queen of fucking Narnia. You whored your way into my father’s bed for who knows how many years and abandoned him and his brother when they needed you most. You don’t have any rights tomyestate while I’m the duke. And even if that’s only for a few more days, that’s still too long for you to spread your stink on it any longer.”
“Xavier,” Imogene put in. “Don’t you think that’s a bit heartless? She’s nowhere to go.”
Xavier paused, and I was genuinely surprised his expression didn’t turn the girl to stone.
“No,” he said. “And let that be a warning for the rest of you and anyone else you’d like to tell. No one threatens my family. In any way. Ever again.” Without waiting for a reply from any of them, he took my hand. “Come on, babe. Let’s go home and see our girl.”
“Sounds good to me,” I replied.
“You’ll regret this!” Georgina called from the melee that broke out immediately as we left the room. “Mark my words, you cannot make enemies in society and survive, Xavier! You’ll see!”
“As if I fucking care about that anymore,” Xavier muttered.
We strode through the grand hallways, accepted our coats from Bledsoe with a stiff bow and a sniff, and left nearly as quickly as we’d arrived.
“Are you all right?” I asked as the oversized door slammed behind us. Bledsoe had seemed more than happy to see us off.
Xavier sighed. “I honestly don’t know what I am right now. Exhausted, maybe. Angrier than I’ve ever been. But mostly just relieved it’s out there. They know where we stand. Now, we’ll just have to let the chips fall where they may.”
I grabbed his arm and gave it a thorough squeeze. “I’m proud of you. Standing up to a room full of bullies isn’t easy for anyone. And you didn’t even lose your temper.”
For that, I received a sardonic smirk. “I didn’t?”
I chuckled. “Well, not completely. Given Georgina’s tantrum, you were the picture of patience.”
“Well, that’s progress, I suppose.
He slung his arm around my shoulders and shepherded me down to the gate, from which we could call an Uber home.
“You almost had it, you know.”
Both Xavier and I froze at the bottom of the steps, collars still in our hands as we were putting on our coats. In concert, we both turned to see Georgina standing at the Parkvale entrance, clad only in the dark gray cocktail dress she’d worn to play hostess, bitterness dripping off her fine features like an over-applied glaze.
“Does she have a death wish?” I muttered to Xavier.
One corner of his mouth twitched upward—the only sign he had heard me.
“You won’t win after tonight,” she told us. “Not after making that scene in front of Bernard. You think he won’t skip straight back to the committee and tell them everything he knows about you now?”
I really couldn’t believe this woman. She sounded legitimately happy about the idea. Like she had been waiting for Xavier to bluster in tonight, specifically for this reason.
“It’s true, there was a faction who enjoyed the idea of someone likeyouin the Lords,” she admitted as she took a few steps down. “But the moment you stepped into this house, I knew I’d won. This time next week, we’ll receive a call from Lord Lonsbury. And itwillbe good news. Frederick will become the rightful Duke of Kendal, andyouwill be just another dirty-blooded upstart bastard married to an equally gutter-born wench.”
“Shutup!”
Before I could stop myself, I had flown back up the steps and slapped Her Grace Georgina, the Dowager Duchess of Kendal, hard across the cheek.
I knew it wasn’t right. I knew it was the exact same thing I had wanted Xavier tostopdoing months ago. Just like I also knew I was playing into her hands, acting exactly like the social cretin she had just accused me of being.
But I wasn’t just anyone anymore.
I was a duchess now.
And more importantly, I was Xavier’s woman. And no one could talk about my man like that.
Georgina reeled backward, clutching her cheek and gasping with shock. “Why, you little—”
