Their dance came to an end. Neither of them bowed or curtsied. They simply stood there a moment longer, staring at each other .
“After you,” he said to her, leading her out of the dance floor.
It was then that he realized that their little squabble had an audience, for the guests were eyeing them. He should have known better than to have a conversation so heated in public, for this sort of reception was to be expected. Thetonloved a good show and spared no moment in gathering as an audience.
“Been at the altar twice before, can you believe it? I would drown myself from the embarrassment alone.”
“It is hard to believe, really. Why would a Duke give her a second glance?”
“I heard it’s out of pity. That, or madness.”
The voices were hushed, but not enough. Alexander heard them clearly. Penelope stiffened beside him.
“We should go,” she muttered to him, flushed. Alexander could tell that she wanted nothing more than to be away from all the whispers.
Alexander, however, had stopped walking.
He turned toward the overdressed ladies whose whispers had gone suddenly silent.
“Is there something that you would like to share, ladies?” Alexander said, confronting them directly. It was the best way to stop their chatter, from his experience, and he was not one to shy away from confrontation when needed.
The women were immediately surprised.
“N-no, Your Grace. Of course not.”
“Ah,” he stepped forward just a fraction, enough to make the group shrink back instinctively. “I imagine you’ve heard whispers about me as well. You should believe most of them.”
A gasp escaped one of the ladies’ lips, while another quickly began to fan herself.Cowards,he thought to himself.
“And you should remember it, too,” he continued. “Because when someone insults what belongs to me, I do not take it lightly. And I am really not one to forgive.”
The ladies looked terrified, and he cast one last satisfied glance in their direction before he turned back to Penelope.
“Let us go, Penelope,” he said finally. “It is no use to linger here a moment longer.”
Penelope could only obey, slipping her hand around his extended arm. But as they walked away, she could not resist stealing a glance back at the crowd of ladies that they had left behind, who now seemed to be talking furiously amongst themselves. Penelope waited until they were not in hearing distance to speak again.
“Your Grace, you did not need to step in like that,” she said, “they are now going to talk even more.”
“Once again, you and I see things differently,” he replied calmly. “I saw it as an opportunity to teach them a much-needed lesson. They will now be thinking twice before running their mouth so freely.”
Penelope rubbed the side of her face, still reeling from what had happened.
“Yes, but I can never imagine going up to a group that is talking against you like this. In fact, I think it is better to let them talk. You learn to ignore it after a while.”
“That’s not a skill you should have to develop.”
“It won’t stop them,” There was a tired resignation in her voice.
“Then teach them that there’s a price,” Alexander replied, holding her gaze. “People like that only stop when they’re reminded of who they’re speaking about.”
Penelope took in his words, and then his expression. Which was fierce. There was not even a hint of fear on his face. In fact, it was quite the opposite. He looked intimidating.
“I am not sure I will ever get used to you being so intimidating,” she commented. “It can be rather scary, you know.”
“It does not apply to you. I do not wish for you to be scared of me.”
“But everyone else?”
