quite nicely.”
“And will you join us, Lady Guildford?” Smiling like a well-fed cat, Eleanor looked in Victoria’s direction. His wife’s loathing of horses was a fairly well-known fact among the Set, and Eleanor’s question caught the attention of everyone at the table. Silence filled the air until Nicholas smiled and lifted his wine glass in a mocking toast to his wife.
“Victoria is not an avid rider, are you my dear.” A streak of devilish satisfaction flashed through him as he met Victoria’s gaze over the rim of his glass. “However, should my wife decide to join us, I’ll have one of the older , more reliable, horses saddled for her.”
Victoria narrowed her eyes as she studied him for a moment. She might have managed to act her way through that ride on Zeus, but anything beyond that wasn’t possible. Deep in the back of his head, he heard mocking laughter and forced himself to ignore it. Victoria’s gaze never left his, and he waited patiently to see how she’d extricate herself from the morning ride so that he’d be able to expose her charade.
“The answer to your question, Eleanor, is yes. I’ll be riding tomorrow.” Victoria’s quiet response made Nicholas stiffen as he slowly set his glass back on the table. What the devil did the woman think she was doing?
“I was under the impression that you do not ride, Lady Guildford,” Eleanor said with a disagreeable frown.
“Then you’ve been misinformed.” Victoria smiled defiantly.
Silence reigned for several awkward seconds before the conversation resumed. When they’d finished dinner, they returned to the salon. For Nicholas, the evening dragged on interminably with Eleanor continuing with her attempts to provoke Victoria. To his continuous amazement, Victoria seemed oblivious to the duchess’ barbs as she quietly listened to Anna and Catherine’s conversation.
Victoria was the first to excuse herself for the evening, which he found extraordinary. His wife never retired early, particularly if there was another woman in the room whom she viewed as competition. Nicholas frowned as he caught a glimpse of the weariness she was hiding from the others. She had the look of someone exhausted from shock. Perhaps he’d been harder on her today than he should have been. He stopped her as she headed toward the door. She winced as she met his gaze.
“Is your head still bothering you?” he murmured.
“A little, but I’ll manage.” The weak smile touching her lips aroused his protective instincts. It was a strange sensation to have where his wife was concerned, and he wasn’t sure he liked the feeling.
“Do you wish me to escort you upstairs?”
“No,” she said with a soft laugh. “I’m not the helpless female, your duchess is.”
“She’s not my duchess.” He eyed her coldly, and she blinked at him in obvious surprise at his brusque response.
“Well, you’d better tell her that,” Victoria said without malice or sarcasm as she chuckled. “The woman is definitely on the prowl, and whether you like it or not, you’re her next meal.”
With a mischievous smile, she walked around him and left the room. As he stared after her, he heard Eleanor’s plaintive call for him to join her at the card table. Slowly he turned and rejoined his friends with Victoria’s words ringing in his ears. She seemed completely unconcerned that he might be engaged in a liaison with Eleanor. The realization confused him. And he didn’t like being confused about anything.
Chapter 8
O ne by one, his guests retired for the night until he and Eleanor were the only ones left in the salon. Their card game was almost finished, and he was eager to be done with her company. She laid a card down in the middle of the table, and Nicholas took the winning trick with a careless gesture. He didn’t bother to gather the cards to shuffle them, and Eleanor rose gracefully from her chair to stand at his side.
“You look so troubled, mon cher , tell me
“And will you join us, Lady Guildford?” Smiling like a well-fed cat, Eleanor looked in Victoria’s direction. His wife’s loathing of horses was a fairly well-known fact among the Set, and Eleanor’s question caught the attention of everyone at the table. Silence filled the air until Nicholas smiled and lifted his wine glass in a mocking toast to his wife.
“Victoria is not an avid rider, are you my dear.” A streak of devilish satisfaction flashed through him as he met Victoria’s gaze over the rim of his glass. “However, should my wife decide to join us, I’ll have one of the older , more reliable, horses saddled for her.”
Victoria narrowed her eyes as she studied him for a moment. She might have managed to act her way through that ride on Zeus, but anything beyond that wasn’t possible. Deep in the back of his head, he heard mocking laughter and forced himself to ignore it. Victoria’s gaze never left his, and he waited patiently to see how she’d extricate herself from the morning ride so that he’d be able to expose her charade.
“The answer to your question, Eleanor, is yes. I’ll be riding tomorrow.” Victoria’s quiet response made Nicholas stiffen as he slowly set his glass back on the table. What the devil did the woman think she was doing?
“I was under the impression that you do not ride, Lady Guildford,” Eleanor said with a disagreeable frown.
“Then you’ve been misinformed.” Victoria smiled defiantly.
Silence reigned for several awkward seconds before the conversation resumed. When they’d finished dinner, they returned to the salon. For Nicholas, the evening dragged on interminably with Eleanor continuing with her attempts to provoke Victoria. To his continuous amazement, Victoria seemed oblivious to the duchess’ barbs as she quietly listened to Anna and Catherine’s conversation.
Victoria was the first to excuse herself for the evening, which he found extraordinary. His wife never retired early, particularly if there was another woman in the room whom she viewed as competition. Nicholas frowned as he caught a glimpse of the weariness she was hiding from the others. She had the look of someone exhausted from shock. Perhaps he’d been harder on her today than he should have been. He stopped her as she headed toward the door. She winced as she met his gaze.
“Is your head still bothering you?” he murmured.
“A little, but I’ll manage.” The weak smile touching her lips aroused his protective instincts. It was a strange sensation to have where his wife was concerned, and he wasn’t sure he liked the feeling.
“Do you wish me to escort you upstairs?”
“No,” she said with a soft laugh. “I’m not the helpless female, your duchess is.”
“She’s not my duchess.” He eyed her coldly, and she blinked at him in obvious surprise at his brusque response.
“Well, you’d better tell her that,” Victoria said without malice or sarcasm as she chuckled. “The woman is definitely on the prowl, and whether you like it or not, you’re her next meal.”
With a mischievous smile, she walked around him and left the room. As he stared after her, he heard Eleanor’s plaintive call for him to join her at the card table. Slowly he turned and rejoined his friends with Victoria’s words ringing in his ears. She seemed completely unconcerned that he might be engaged in a liaison with Eleanor. The realization confused him. And he didn’t like being confused about anything.
Chapter 8
O ne by one, his guests retired for the night until he and Eleanor were the only ones left in the salon. Their card game was almost finished, and he was eager to be done with her company. She laid a card down in the middle of the table, and Nicholas took the winning trick with a careless gesture. He didn’t bother to gather the cards to shuffle them, and Eleanor rose gracefully from her chair to stand at his side.
“You look so troubled, mon cher , tell me
Similar Books
