Addicted to the Duke (Imperfect Lords #1)(16)
Fredrick put his hand on Alex’s chest as he made to move past him. “I’ll be upping my trade. Just think what doors will open for an earl. You might not wish to trade with the Turks, but I have no qualms.”
Alex looked at Fredrick’s hand and his enemy had the sense to remove it. “You might now have a title, but you’ll never be a gentleman.”
“Ironic, isn’t it, that I can remember a time years ago when no one would have recognized you as the son of a duke. I also know what depravity you succumbed to. What would our little Hestia think of her white knight if she knew you’d—”
“Say another word and I’ll end you,” Alex said, cutting in. “Say anything to Lady Hestia and I’ll make sure they are the last words you ever speak.”
“Now who’s the gentleman?” With that, Fredrick turned and, laughing, walked into the card room.
Alex was shaking. Anger burned in his gut along with the accompanying fear. Fear that Hestia would suddenly see him for who he really was—a man so deeply flawed it was a wonder he functioned at all. Sometimes he thought the laudanum prescribed by Mr. Foxhall, the ship’s surgeon, was the only thing that kept him sane.
He followed Stephen upstairs and hoped Fredrick didn’t stay too long. He didn’t want to get caught up in Stephen’s love play. He had too much to do at home.
If Fredrick believed Hestia had not dashed to London for help, and that Alex was not suspicious about Jonathan’s death, then they might find it easier to slip away.
What was worrying Alex was that Fredrick would not have proclaimed Hestia’s father dead if he had not already started looking, or even found, her father. Time was not their friend, and while it would be wise to put off leaving London for a few days, he could not afford the luxury.
No sooner had he followed the ladies and Stephen into the room than Stephen shut the door and said in a low voice, “What’s this all about? I know you’re not here for my pleasure or your own.”
“True, I prefer my pleasures male free.” He leaned close to whisper, “I need your help.”
“With Fredrick Cary? You don’t need me to deal with the likes of him.”
“With the new Earl of Pembroke?”
Stephen’s eyes widened. “Fredrick has inherited?”
“Are you gentlemen going to talk all night?” the redhead asked Stephen with a perfect pout on her lips.
“His Grace and I are going to watch. Why don’t you and Edith entertain us for a while.”
She shrugged and turned to Edith, who simply smiled and slipped her transparent robe from her shoulders before clambering onto the bed.
As the men settled in to watch the sensual play, Stephen asked, “I’m not sure why you’ve come to me?”
“The Earl of Pembroke’s death is not all that it seems. I’m worried what Fredrick will do next.”
“Is Lady Hestia not coping? She’s not too distressed?” Stephen asked. “She’s young to be left on her own without a male to guide her.”
“She has her aunt, Pembroke’s sister. Considering the circumstances, she’s coping remarkably well.”
“I suspect she’s a strong miss. She seems to have bounced back from her ordeal at the hands of your nemesis Murad rather well. I’ve always found it difficult to understand why some man hasn’t proposed.” He was silent for a moment before continuing. “I suspect the Welsh heritage and the scandal of her capture put some men off, but she is a beauty. And I’ve heard she has a large dowry too. We men are strange creatures.”
For some reason he wanted to rush and defend Hestia from his friend’s crass comments, but deep down he knew them to be true. Society was unforgiving.
“I believe Lady Hestia has had several proposals but has declined every one. Unfortunately, as it turns out.”
Stephen gave him a wide smile. “She’d make you a fine duchess, if you ask me. I wager she’d not decline your suit.”
“That’s hardly a compliment. Not many women would turn down a proposal from a duke.”
Stephen laughed. “She’s not interested in the title—or the money.”
He had no reply to that statement because he knew it to be correct. “Why don’t you offer for her? You always said you’d marry for your convenience.”
“She would not have me. She only has eyes for you. Everyone knows it, including you.” Stephen studied him. “I don’t need my wife to be madly in love with me, but I object to her being madly in love with someone else.”
Why did her adoration unsettle him? Alex knew why. He didn’t deserve it. Perfection was an unattainable dream, especially for him. Time to change the topic of conversation.
“Let’s leave the delectable Lady Hestia out of this. My problem is her father. I don’t think the earl is really dead. I believe Fredrick Cary brought a body home but it is not the earl.”
Stephen’s eyes widened and he leaned close, keeping his voice low. “A ruse to get his hands on the title and estates?”
His friend also understood Fredrick’s driving need to be accepted, to rise above his station. Fredrick lived on the edges of society and longed to enter the realm of the privileged and wealthy. Becoming the earl opened doors that currently were closed to him because some in society knew how he made his money. Alex wasn’t sure the title would be enough to overlook Fredrick’s trade in opium.