The Widowed Duke’s Reluctant Heart (Preview)

Chapter One

Chapter 1 

 

The excitement within the carriage was palpable as Lady Arabella Kingsley, her mother, and sister were carried forth to Vauxhall Gardens for the largest event of the Season. 

Having spent most of the last two weeks trying to convince her mother that it would be a good idea for them to be in attendance, Arabella couldn’t quite believe it was actually happening.

For the past two years, her mother’s grip upon them had been tighter than ever. Since her husband’s death, Lady Eleanor Kingsley, the Countess of Knightsbridge, had not been the same. 

She no longer delighted in the social Season, fretting that nothing would be the same with Arabella’s father gone, that all manner of ill will might befall them without his guidance. 

But Arabella was determined to prove her mother wrong. Determined because on his deathbed, her father had made her promise one thing: that she would find happiness. 

And as a young woman in London, there was only one sure way to do that. For the sake of herself, her sister, and even her mother, she must find security. 

Always, she had dreamed of the day she would be married, though as a little girl, she had always seen her father at her side. 

Still, she was determined. And it appeared that her sister, Olivia, was just as excited as she, for she could not seem to stop chattering.

“How many do you think will be in attendance?”

“Many, I’m certain,” their mother responded. 

Too many, Arabella thought. Though she looked forward to it, after so long away from the social world, she was nervous. 

“I can’t wait to see how grandly they have decorated the gardens! Do you think they will be talking about—” Olivia prattled on, and Arabella distantly heard her mother warn her to quiet down, though she was too lost in her own thoughts of what the evening might hold.

Arabella couldn’t quite blame her. After a year of mourning and another in half-mourning, they had both begun to feel as if they were living in a gilded cage. 

Still, Arabella couldn’t quite breathe deeply, knowing that Vauxhall might just be the place where her entire life began. 

It was a silly thought, and yet, it was there. 

One chance encounter might be all it would take to turn things around for her family. The opportunity to celebrate something good for a change might be just what her mother needed to get out of this slump she found herself in. 

And Arabella was determined for her mother to be happy. 

She had seen far too much of the grief her father’s death had caused her mother. Having had a rare true love match, her mother was a mere shell of the woman she had been when her husband was alive. 

As the carriage drew closer to Vauxhall, the sounds of music and merriment started to sweep through the open windows of the carriage, and Olivia leaned forward in her seat to peer out. 

Looking past her sister’s golden head, artfully assembled in a mass of curls, and following her crystalline blue gaze, Arabella saw what made her sister gasp. 

Vauxhall was even more impressive than she had imagined. 

The lane up to the manor was illuminated by tall lamplights, standing at intervals like sentries to guide in the huge number of guests who had turned out for the evening’s festivities. 

The grand facade of the manor was illuminated, the upper stories disappearing into the darkness of the evening. Just the sounds coming through the open carriage window told Arabella that Lord and Lady Seaton had gone above and beyond this year. 

The air was abuzz with noise, and others were already hurrying from their carriages, guided through the huge oak doors of the manor, through the house, directly to the gardens that were to be the center stage for the evening. 

Arabella could already imagine it, having heard talk of circus performers, a menagerie of exotic animals, fine food and drink, and the most extensive guest list she had ever heard her sister going over and over; concentrating profusely on the most eligible bachelors as if she, too, knew the true reason their mother had finally given in to their asking to attend. 

When it was finally their turn for their carriage to pull up at the bottom of the manor steps, Arabella leaned forward to perch on the edge of her seat. 

The carriage stopped, and the door opened, but before she or her sister could escape to lose themselves in all of the fun, their mother pinned them with a stern stare and said, “Now girls, you must remember, you are ladies, and without your father here to fix any ill that may befall us, we must be extra careful not to draw any unwanted attention.” 

Arabella cringed. What her mother imagined might befall them, she did not know. She seemed to see danger in every shadow and corner of late, always fearful that some disgrace or scandal might befall them if she allowed her daughters even an inch of wiggle room to enjoy themselves. 

“We shall be on our best behavior,” Arabella assured her mother before she looked to her sister and added, “won’t we?” 

Olivia’s pale blue eyes grew wide and innocent. She fluttered her lashes as she said, “Of course, we will.” 

Arabella had to bite the inside of her lip to stop from laughing as she saw the scowl that spread across their mother’s face. 

“If this goes badly, do not expect that I shall be so keen to bring you out again,” she warned them, and Arabella’s stomach twisted. 

It had taken them so long to convince her to attend this event that she couldn’t imagine how it could possibly be any more difficult. 

But then again, she knew her mother well enough to know just how stubborn she could be. 

“You must be sure to stay where I can keep my eye on you,” her mother added, looking between the two of them as if she wasn’t sure which might be the more trouble. 

“We will take care, Mama, I promise,” Arabella said, taking hold of her mother’s hand momentarily to give it a squeeze. 

But almost the moment they stepped out of the carriage, up the steps, and into the manor, Arabella realized that she might well have her work cut out for her. 

There were so many people, so much going on, that at first she wasn’t entirely sure which way to look. 

The ladies in their fine gowns, embroidered in silver and gold thread, milled about it small groups. Bejeweled in all manner of exquisite gemstones, they were a parade in themselves, sweeping through the large hall and out into the gardens on the arms of finely dressed gentlemen. But the decor of Vauxhall was enough to take Arabella’s breath away. 

Everywhere that she looked there were flowers, candelabras, chandeliers, painted vases, glass ornaments, and so many paintings. 

“Oh goodness!” Olivia gasped as they walked out onto the terrace, arm-in-arm, and Arabella’s own mouth dropped open. 

The gardens were awash with light and color as far as the eye could see. Lanterns illuminated hedges and trees and walkways. At the very center, a platformed dance floor had been erected and was decorated with lantern-lit archways. 

A peacock’s hooting sounded over the orchestra at the south end of the garden, and Arabella thought she could just make out the sound of neighing, too. 

All about the place there were dancers, performers, and magicians, entertaining small groups or larger crowds. 

Arabella and her sister didn’t have long to admire as more guests started to funnel through the doors behind them, sweeping them up in their own awe and excitement. 

Though she thought she had prepared for such a turnout, Arabella quickly began to feel as if she were in way over her head. 

The crush of the crowd all around her made her chest tighten, the noises all around making her ears ache and her head buzz. 

“Look over here!” Olivia insisted as Arabella glanced back over her shoulder to be sure that their mother was still close by. 

It turned out that she wasn’t, and Arabella’s throat constricted. 

They had only entered a few minutes earlier, and already they had broken one of their mama’s rules. 

If she could not see her mother, then her mother could not see her, and she was likely frantic already. 

“Olivia, wait!” Arabella insisted, pulling back on her sister’s grip. “I can’t see Mama anywhere!” 

Glancing around, she tried desperately to spot the familiar blue feathers her mother had chosen to wear in her hair that evening, but although she saw plenty of feathers, there were no blue ones. 

Where is she? Arabella thought, wondering if this was how her mother felt when she couldn’t find them. 

Ordinarily, she might not have been so worried, but her mother hadn’t attended any large social gathering in such a long time, and it had taken so long to convince her to do so. She didn’t like the thought of what might happen to her mother’s confidence, or her willingness to let either of them out of the house, if things went badly tonight. 

“Olivia, wait!” she called over the shoulders of two guests who suddenly became entangled between them in the crowd as she felt her sister’s grip slipping from her hand. 

Then, just like that, her sister’s fingers were gone, and she found herself being swept away toward the center of the gardens. 

“Excuse me, please,” she said. “Excuse me.” 

Over and over, she repeated herself, trying to fight her way through the crowd to the edge of the walkway where she might be able to find a vantage point to look for both her mother and her sister. 

Olivia! She thought angrily, biting the inside of her lip to stop from screaming her sister’s name aloud. 

It was just like her sister to entirely forget what they had promised their mother the moment she exited the carriage. 

And as the eldest, Arabella knew it would be she who received the scolding when they got home, she who would be reminded of it every time she asked to be able to attend another event such as this. 

Where are you? She thought, glancing this way and that, struggling to tiptoe in order to look over the crowd in search of those ridiculous blue feathers or her sister’s lusciously blonde hair that was tied up in a pink silken ribbon. 

Growing nervous, she wrapped a curl of her own auburn hair around and around her index finger, chewing on the inside of her lip now in anticipation. 

If her mother were to find her first, before she found her sister, they would be doomed. 

Why couldn’t Olivia simply have just stayed with her instead of getting distracted by whatever it was that had caught her eye?

It was too late to change it now, and finding herself on the outskirts of the crowd, Arabella sucked in a deep breath. 

Perhaps it might be best to find a quiet place to hide until the crowd started to settle a little. At least, that way, she wouldn’t find herself in any kind of trouble. 

With everyone making their way to the center of the gardens, to the dance floor, the refreshments, and the main stages for the entertainment, Arabella turned in the opposite direction. 

Having been to Vauxhall a handful of times, she knew the gardens well enough to know that there were several smaller walkways that were likely less busy. 

As the noise of the main event faded behind her, Arabella breathed a sigh of relief. 

The quieter areas of the gardens had always been her favorite, the walkways where one could lose themselves among the flower-decorated archways, the ponds with their marble fountains, the statues that stood watch over the gardens in silent peace. 

This was where Arabella was happiest, alone. 

And she couldn’t help but wonder whether she might be able to find such peace were she to marry as her father had wished. 

She was thinking on it when the walkways grew darker, when she drew further and further from the rest of the party, when the moon became her only guide. 

And just when she thought she was entirely alone, her head raised to look at the stars, she found herself crashing into something solid, something large…something that made an astounded noise as she was flung backward. 

A hand gripped her wrist, holding her only until she steadied on her feet, and then it was gone again. 

“You really ought to look where you are going, miss,” a low, gravelly voice told her, and Arabella’s cheeks grew hot with embarrassment. 

Immediately upon seeing the man standing before her, she knew without doubt that he was a nobleman. 

 His ice blue eyes were striking compared to his jet black hair. The boots he wore were as dark as his locks, polished so that Arabella thought she might be able to see her reflection. From the silken material of his waistcoat and shirt, to the gold embroidery upon his green jacket, the air with which he held himself practically screamed nobility, and a lump formed in Arabella’s throat. 

She had never been confronted by someone so handsome. 

With high cheekbones, a strong brow, and eyes that burrowed deep into her soul, he took her breath away. 

“Forgive me, my lord,” she said, dipping her gaze to the ground even as she curtsied. 

Remember your manners, her mother’s voice echoed in her head. Mind your tongue. 

Though she did not look up, she felt his eyes upon her, scrutinizing. 

“You are a long way from the festivities, miss.” 

Arabella’s heart skipped a beat.

He was right. 

Her mother would have her head if she learned how far she had strayed. 

“I…I became separated from the rest of my party,” she explained, clasping her hands behind her back to hide how they were trembling. 

“You ought to be more careful of that, too,” he said, and out of the corner of her eye, she watched him raise his hand to sweep his fingers through his jet-black hair. 

She couldn’t stop from raising her eyes, from watching the way the moonlight shone on the glossy sheen of his hair, how the late evening shadow of his facial hair darkened his features. 

“Are you alone out here?” he asked, a dark brow raised as he glanced about. 

For just a second, Arabella wished her sister might come to rescue her. 

The depth of those blue eyes unsettled her. Not because they frightened her, but because they did something to her insides that she had never experienced before. 

“As I said, I lost the rest of my party, sir,” Arabella explained, her knees growing weak with the way he continued to meet her gaze. “P-perhaps you might do me the courtesy of helping me to find them?” 

The man’s gaze darkened. His expression became considering, indecisive. 

Then, he asked, “How is it you come to find yourself so close to the dark walk?” 

He tipped his head backward, back the way he had come. 

And Arabella’s heart skipped another beat. 

The dark walk! A nickname given to the largest maze in the gardens, a place where scandal and impropriety were greatly rumored to overflow. 

Panic threatened like a trapped bird in her ribcage. 

How foolish could she be? 

“I…it was unintentional, my lord,” she said, taking a hesitant step backward. She half-turned to leave. 

“It is dangerous for a woman alone out here,” he pointed out, his tone so low that it was almost threatening. 

What might happen out here? What might come between a man and woman in such a dark and secluded area? 

Arabella pushed the thoughts away quickly. 

He was handsome, yes, but he seemed to be growing decidedly more rude with each passing moment. 

Already, he had practically accused her of something scandalous, suggesting she was of low morals and ill character in simply finding herself lost in the gardens. 

“Did you come here to meet with someone?” he asked her then, and Arabella blinked in surprise. 

The hair on the back of her neck rising, she blurted, “I would never!” 

She thought she saw a hint of amusement twitch at the corner of the man’s lips, but just as quickly, it was gone again. 

“Then, miss, you have no reason for being here, and I would suggest that you turn and go back the way you came,” he said, tipping his head now the way she had come. “Make haste before someone else witnesses your being here and gets the wrong idea.”

Arabella took another half-step before she blurted, “And what of you, sir?” 

She watched his jaw clench. 

“What of me?” 

“You find yourself out here alone, also,” she pointed out, feeling more than a little awkward at questioning him on the matter but too curious not to. “What might be said of that?” 

The man stiffened, his blue eyes so dark they grew stormy. 

“My business is my own, miss,” he declared, chin high and entirely above reproach. 

“Well, as I have shared mine with you, perhaps you might be so kind as to escort me back to the rest of the party and aid me in my search?” 

Again, he looked indecisive, troubled even. 

Then, he dipped his head and stated, “I suspect I shall only hinder your search. Therefore, I shall have to decline. A good evening to you, miss.” 

He bowed low. 

Arabella opened her mouth to protest, but before she could, the gentleman turned on his heels and swiftly disappeared back the way he had come. 

Arabella, dumbfounded, watched him go. 

She blinked several times, quite unable to believe what had just happened. 

Meeting a man alone in the gardens was not what surprised her. What surprised her was how ungentlemanly he had been. 

Never in her life had any man refused to aid her in such a simple request as to escort her to find her family.

In fact, most gentlemen she knew of would have jumped at the chance to rescue her if only for the bragging rights afterward. 

But here she stood, alone and flustered, thanks to the one gentleman in Vauxhall Gardens who was entirely without chivalry. 

A part of Arabella wished to follow the gentleman, to demand to know what about her made him so unwilling to offer his aid. But the other half of Arabella couldn’t quite understand why it should matter. 

With a deep huff, she turned on her heels and began to storm back in the other direction. 

It was only as she began to calm herself with deep breaths that she came to realize something. 

Hers were not the only footsteps that she was able to hear upon the cobblestone path. 

Upon realizing it, she paused, holding her breath. 

“Hello?” she called, glancing over her shoulder.

Perhaps the gentleman had realized his error and had come to offer his help after all. 

Yet, nobody answered. 

“Is someone there?” 

Feeling nervous, Arabella rubbed the palms of her hands on the bodice of her gown. 

The embroidery scratched her skin, giving her something to think about other than the panic rising in her chest. 

The nobleman’s warnings about being a woman alone out here rang in her ears, and bile rose in her throat. 

Her eyes strained as she thought she picked up movement in the shadows further down the walkway. 

“Is someone there?” she called again, but there was still no answer. 

Turning, she walked hurriedly down the walkway, the light of the lanterns suddenly seeming as if it were miles away. 

Why had she left the center of the gardens? Why had she let nervousness around people get the best of her? Why did she think it was a good idea to wander off on her own? 

“Ouch!” 

She bit back the squeal as the heel of her shoe caught in an overlarge gap between the cobblestones, twisting her ankle. 

Reaching for the nearest pillar of the walkway, she steadied herself and took a moment to twist her foot this way and that. Her ankle was sore, but it wasn’t too bad. 

Again, she felt as though footsteps stopped somewhere close behind her. 

Glancing back, she tried to spot whoever it was. 

She thought she saw a silhouette, a large, dark, and imposing one, but if she did, it disappeared as quickly as she had seen it. 

“Sir, if this is your way of frightening me into never finding myself alone in the dark again, then it has worked,” Arabella called, her heart pounding so hard that she almost couldn’t hear her own voice over the pulsing in her ears. “You may come out now!” 

The only response was the fluttering of small wings as her calling roused several birds from their roosting in some nearby trees. 

The sound startled her, and she clutched her chest tightly, sucking in a breath. 

“I have to get back,” she thought aloud, her voice barely a whisper as she pushed herself off the pillar and continued on. Being out here alone was even more dangerous than she had imagined.

 

Chapter Two

His Grace, Edward Ashford, the Duke of Ashford, was not usually impulsive. In fact, he worked hard to be quite the opposite, but at Vauxhall Gardens that evening, he had been.

As he walked the gardens, searching for his friend, he couldn’t help but think of how he had spoken to the young lady he had run into near the dark walk. 

He ought to have forgotten the encounter entirely; best not to admit it had happened at all. The thought of what people might say had they been alerted to the fact he found himself alone with a young lady—which he was sure she had been—made him tense up. 

If she had been a nobleman’s daughter, he would have been trapped. The ton would expect him to make reparations. He would be forced to marry the girl. 

Perhaps that was why he had been so impulsive, why he had been without pity, why he had refused to aid her in finding her family. 

Still, guilt gnawed at his insides as he thought of the look upon her face when he had done so. 

In the moonlight, her green eyes had shone with surprise, a gentle breeze ruffling her auburn hair as she had taken a half-step back, clearly affronted. 

I should never have agreed to come in the first place, Edward thought, sticking to the shadows to avoid any unwanted attention. 

It was perhaps best to find Theo and make his excuses to leave before anything else should happen. 

Why he had agreed to help his friend chaperone his three younger sisters to such a frivolous event, he wasn’t sure. And now that he was here, he was even more certain that he shouldn’t have come. 

The lights, the music, the color, all of it was too much on the senses, not least of all because of all the people crowding in among the sections of the gardens. All were dressed in their finest attire, decorated in silver and gold, feathers and lace, frills and jewels. 

It was all pompous and downright ridiculous to Edward. 

All the smiles, all the laughter, all the parading. All for nothing. 

He ought to have remained home to tuck his son into bed and then gone to his study as he did most nights. 

“Edward! There you are!” 

For a second, Edward cringed. Then, realizing that it was Theodore, he breathed a sigh of relief. 

“I have been looking for you everywhere,” he grumbled to his friend, gripping Theo’s sleeve to drag him into the shadow of a nearby pillar as he caught sight of an eager mama on the prowl. Lady Hartfield had tried to throw her daughters at the both of them more than once already this Season. 

“What is the matter?” Theo asked, pulling his arm free, adjusting his jacket as he eyed Edward with a furrowed brow. 

“One awkward encounter is enough for the evening,” Edward muttered under his breath. 

“Encounter?” Theo questioned. 

Edward gritted his teeth. 

The discomfort of this evening was growing stronger and stronger by the minute. 

“I ran into a young lady close to the dark walk,” he admitted, and Theo’s brown eyes widened. 

“What were you doing there?” Theo asked. His brows wiggled suggestively. 

Edward scowled back at his friend, shaking his head. 

“Nothing untoward,” he assured him. “I was simply looking for a little peace from all of this.” 

He gestured over his shoulder at the party that was in full swing behind them. All the dancing, all the performers, all the guests, it was too much.

“And here I was thinking you might finally have given in.” Theo sighed, rolling his eyes. “What happened?” 

“Nothing,” Edward said quickly, unsure as to why he suddenly felt so defensive. “I bumped into a young lady who requested I aid her in finding her family.” 

“And? Did you?” Theo asked, his expression inquisitive, almost excitable. 

“Of course not! It would not have been appropriate,” Edward exclaimed, horrified that his friend would even suggest such a thing. “Can you imagine the rumors that would spread if we had walked into this together?” 

Again, he gestured at the other guests. 

Theo chuckled. 

“You are much too worrisome,” Theo insisted. “I highly doubt that anybody would have noticed.” 

Edward cringed at that. Perhaps his friend was right. Perhaps he should have helped the young lady to find her family, after all. But it was too late now. 

And besides, it truly wasn’t worth the risk. 

Things hadn’t gone smoothly for him the first time, and now he felt as if he were always walking on eggshells when it came to the subject of courtships and marriage. 

“Why are you so concerned with what others might think?” Theo asked, nudging Edward with his elbow. “You’re a duke. You have been entirely above reproach for many years now. What harm could one little rumor do to the grand Duke of Ashford?” 

Edward shouldered his friend in return and sighed. “I think perhaps it is time I look to the future of my family.” 

Theo blinked in surprise. 

“Do you mean—” 

“Marriage, yes.” 

Edward watched the color drain from his friend’s face. 

“Who are you and what have you done with Eddie?” Theo gripped hold of Edward’s arms and gave him a good shake. “What are you thinking?” 

Edward shrugged him off and swept the wrinkles out of the shoulders of his jacket. 

“Charles needs a mother.”

Theo placed his hands in his pockets and looked at Edward sternly. 

“Is he your only concern?” 

Edward nodded firmly. 

“He is my chief concern,” he assured his friend. “He grows more wild by the day.” 

“He is a young boy,” Theo pointed out. “I am certain you remember how unruly we were at his age?” 

Edward flinched. 

“Do not remind me. I fear our governess will quit if he continues,” Edward said. Of late, Miss Harrow had looked more and more frayed around the edges, and Edward couldn’t entirely blame her. 

“What did he do this time?” Theo asked. 

Edward closed his eyes, all too easily recalling the screaming of Miss Harrow as she had found the slugs that Charles had put in her shoes. 

“He has started collecting bugs to tease the staff with,” Edward admitted. “Poor Miss Harrow almost had an apoplexy when she found the slugs in her boots yesterday morning.” 

Theo raised his hand to his mouth as if he were trying to cover his laughter, but it still escaped. 

“Forgive me, but I am certain we did far worse,” Theo said, shaking his head. “Boys will be boys.” 

“He is seven,” Edward pointed out. “He ought to know better by now, and I cannot seem to get through to him, no matter how I try to.” 

“So you think a mother figure is the only solution?” 

“We have tried everything else.” 

“And if it isn’t the solution?” 

A shiver ran down Edward’s spine. 

If completing his household did not help to fix his son’s problems, then he was at a loss as to what else he could possibly do. 

“I fear to think,” he admitted, his throat constricting. 

“So, that is why you agreed to help me this evening?” Theo asked suddenly, as if all the puzzle pieces had dropped right into place. 

Edward shrugged. “I suppose so.” 

“And here I was believing I had enlisted you for your help when truly you wish for mine.” Theo chuckled. “Who would have thought the great Edward Ashford should ever need the help of me and mine?” 

“This is not the first time I have asked for your help, Theo,” Edward pointed out, cringing at his friend’s teasing. 

“No, but it is the first time since—” 

Edward prepared himself, but Theo never finished the sentence, and he was glad of it. It still pained him to hear mention of his late wife. 

“Will you help me?” Edward asked, hoping to change the subject. 

“If you ask me nicely,” Theo said playfully, and Edward furrowed his brow, his jaw clenching hard. 

“Theodore, will you ask your sisters on my behalf for help to compile a list of suitable ladies, please?” he said through gritted teeth, and Theo blinked at him, almost recoiling with shock. 

“You’re truly serious about this, aren’t you?” 

“I am,” Edward said, raising his head. He looked his friend in the eye, and was relieved when he saw the amusement fade from his face. 

“I’m sorry, Edward, I…I thought you were pulling my leg,” Theo admitted. He laid his hand on Edward’s shoulder then and assured him, “Of course, we will help you, brother.” 

Edward returned the gesture, holding Theo’s shoulder affectionately at arm’s length. “What would I do without you?” 

“Likely mess it all up.” Theo chuckled, and at that, Edward actually laughed. 

In their younger days, when it had come to women, Edward had had no trouble in attracting them, nor had he felt any concern for his own attraction in return. Things had been simpler back then. Every young man was allowed a certain leniency when it came to such things, so long as one was discreet. 

But when it came to courtship and marriage, he never quite seemed to get it right. 

In fact, sometimes, he was still surprised that he had ever been married at all. 

It was painful to think on it now, and Edward dropped his hand to his side as he said, “Forgive me, Theo, but I think I must retire. All of this talk has stirred things inside me which I should rather keep to myself.” 

“Of course, I understand,” Theo said. “Do not worry. My sisters seem to be on their best behavior this evening.” 

“Thank you,” Edward said, clapping his friend on the back. “Do give them my apologies.” 

“I’m sure they shall all remind you of it the next time they see you,” Theo assured him, and Edward half-smiled. 

“I shall look forward to my scolding,” he assured Theo. 

Though there was no blood between them, Theo was like a brother, and by extension, his sisters were Edward’s also. 

These last few years, they had been the only ones to stop him from losing himself entirely to grief. Sometimes, even Charles wasn’t enough to stop him from looking over the edge of the abyss. 

“I will walk with you to your carriage,” Theo offered, but Edward shook his head. 

“If I go while the current dance is on, I might make it there alone without getting caught by any marriage-hungry mamas,” he pointed out, hoping it was true.

Though he had just admitted his decision to look to courtship again, he wasn’t quite ready to begin such things this evening, especially not with the memory of his close encounter with the striking young lady near the dark walk. 

Perhaps one of Theo’s sisters might know who she is? he thought, but he just barely managed to stop from mentioning it as he said his final farewells and hurried for the shadows of the nearest walkway.

He made quick work of making it to the exit, using every alcove, corner, and statue to his advantage, pressing himself against bushes in order to avoid anyone who might crave his attention. 

The branches pricked his back, making him all the more eager to leave. 

And when he made it out onto the steps where the carriages awaited in the driveway of Vauxhall Gardens, the sky was suddenly lit aflame by the first of the fireworks. 

Having entirely forgotten about them, Edward almost jumped out of his skin. 

But it was not the entertainment that caused him to shiver as he lowered his gaze from the sparkling sky. It was the young woman at the bottom of the steps who was awaiting another, climbing into a carriage. 

As if she sensed his eyes upon her, she turned to look at him. 

Even at this distance, her beautiful green eyes seemed to shine with luminescence that far exceeded the fireworks above their heads. 

And as those fireworks lit up the sky all around them, Edward admired her. Auburn hair, porcelain skin, glowing green eyes. 

She was breathtaking. 

She was dangerous. 

A mother for my son, he reminded himself. That was what he hoped to find, nothing else. 

Forcing his gaze from hers with great difficulty, he started to charge down the steps, keeping a careful distance as he called to a footman, “You there, boy, fetch my carriage!” 

Though used to giving orders as a duke, even he thought his tone overly harsh. 

Yet, he was far too wound up, confused, and frustrated over the emotions that had been brought to a head this evening. 

He was relieved when he glanced around to find the young lady gone from view, her carriage door closed behind her. Yet, as the coachman set the horses’ hooves moving, he felt a wave of something else…disappointment. 

The likelihood of his ever finding out who she was had just halved. And though he knew that ought not to bother him, he realized with surprise, it did.