“Oh!” escaped Lena’s lips.
The lady tripped forwards, grasped her hands and shook them as if she were a long-lost friend.
“I am so delighted to see you again!” She beamed at her.
Heaven help her, it was the mad Englishwoman.
Aware that she had bits of potato dough stuck under her fingernails, Lena pulled her hands away and hid them behind her back.
“When we met earlier, you said your name was Helena Arenheim?” the lady said.
“Yes, that is correct.”
“It is clear you do not remember any of us. A shame. I am Lady Evangeline Stafford-Hill.” She looked at her expectantly. “Does the name sound familiar?”
Lena shook her head. She was acutely aware of her own simple, washed-out blue cotton dress, and the jam stains on the sleeve. Her hair probably resembled a bird’s nest. She rubbed the tip of her nose self-consciously, not realising that in doing so, she left a smudge of flour on it.
The English lady’s mouth broke into a delightedgrin. “I would like to introduce you to someone.” She took a deep breath and said, “This is my brother, Julius, the Duke of Aldingbourne.” She gestured to the arrogant-looking gentleman.
A Duke? He was an English Duke?
She had no idea how to behave when one was presented to a Duke, English or otherwise. What was one supposed to do? Hold out one’s hand to be kissed? Bow? Curtsy? And if so, which one, and how deep?
Lena ended up performing a mixture of both, a crooked curtsy-bow. “How do you do?” she murmured, hoping that she had done the right thing.
He opened his pale lips once, twice, but no sound emerged.
“And this is his secretary, Mr Emil Mortimer,” the lady continued, pointing at the younger man in brown.
“Good heavens.” The younger man stared at her with eyes so wide they looked like they would pop out of his face any minute. “How can it be? How is this possible?”
Lena did not know what to make of his reaction. She clasped her hands behind her back and wished them all to Jericho.
But the expression on the Duke’s face was becoming increasingly worrying. He looked distinctly ill. Perhaps he needed some fresh air. Lena was about to suggest he sit down when he finally spoke.
“Catherine,” finally broke from his pale lips.
Oh, no, no, no, no. Not again.
Lena backed away as the man dropped his stick and gloves and proceeded to descend down on her withunnerving determination. She backed away. “This is a mistake,” she stammered as she bumped into the armchair.
As she turned to flee, his hand shot out, grabbing her arm with a steely grip and pulling her towards him. Abruptly, she found herself pressed against his chest—solid as marble, yet radiating heat. Dazed, she blinked, trying to process the sudden proximity.
“By all the saints,” he breathed.
Lena looked up at him, bewildered, as he gently cradled her face between his hands, studying it intently. His finger traced the mole on her right cheek so delicately that goosebumps erupted across her skin. Her heart fluttered uncontrollably.
A waft of his cologne entered her nose. A masculine smell of cedar and musk, earthy and wooden, warm and…familiar. She paused, catching her breath, her chest tightening. A wave of emotion washed over her, an ache, a sadness she didn’t understand. Glimmers of something flickered at the edge of her consciousness, yet out of reach.
She gasped. “Who are you?”
“The question is, who are you?” the Duke replied, his voice rough with emotion. “Are you an actress? An impostor chasing title and fortune?” His grasp tightened on her chin, the other still cupping her cheek. “Are you real?”
Lena’s mouth dropped open. “I—What?”
“Julius.” Lady Evangeline groaned. She covered her face with her hands and shook her head. “She can hardlybe an impostor chasing after your title and fortune when it was us, specifically me, who chased her to begin with.” Turning to Lena she said, “I apologise. What must you think of us. It is the shock of seeing you again after all this time. Julius!” she hissed. “Apologise.”
The Duke opened and closed his mouth several times, then said with a hoarse voice, “You’re right. That comment was unnecessary and uncalled for. I apologise.”
