The ride back to Clifford Manor was quiet. It had been an eventful day, and Joanna was beginning to feel her energy lag, so she rested her head against the side of the carriage and looked at the passing scenery outside the window.
She felt content and secure in Evan’s presence. She could not remember the last time someone had looked after her the way he had today.
Sure, her parents tried their best in their own ways. But they could not protect her from the whispers and the insults as they fell into disgrace. They could not protect her when she went to bed hungry or when she had to endure blisters from a pair of old shoes, simply because she could not buy new ones.
Evan was different. He bought her lavish items as if it was nothing. He tried to protect her from that seamstress who turned her nose up at her last name. And for some reason, he didn’t seem to think she owed him anything at all.
If she wasn’t careful, she would get used to this kind of treatment. It would make it all the more unbearable when she had to return to reality.
Joanna didn’t realize it at first, but Evan was watching her intently. His expression grew more and more concerned until his ice-blue eyes—blue like those diamonds he had so graciously gifted her—were boring into her. She met his gaze and smiled, even as a shiver went down her spine at the intensity of his look.
“I do not want you to be concerned about the end of the Season, Miss Thorne,” he said softly. “I know… I know this will end. But I will help you find another suitor. I will ensure you find someone who can take care of you and let you live happily until the end of your days.” He spoke these words solemnly, as if he were swearing a sacred oath.
She felt her cheeks warm as she looked down at her lap. “You know, for a hawk, you do not seem to like preying on helpless animals.”
“Perhaps I’m a hawk that wants to show mercy now and then. Isn’t that what your mother hoped I would show you that day I came to call on you?”
It took Joanna a moment to place the memory, and then she remembered. When she told her mother of the deception in the tea shop, she said Joanna needed to beg for forgiveness and pray that he was merciful. She cringed. “I wasn’t aware that you had heard that.”
“The viscountess is very talented at projecting her voice so it is heard,” he said. “This Season has been very illuminating for me about how most people perceive me.”
“Then I suppose I’m not the only one who thinks you’re a hawk,” she said. “But I don’t think you’re as heartless as you want the ton to think you are.”
He frowned slightly. “You think I want to terrify everyone?”
She giggled. “Yes, I do. It gives you your power and keeps unwanted conversation away. But I’m beginning to think that you merely play at being a hawk.”
“Or perhaps I just favor a little mouse like you,” he said.
She looked down, feeling herself blush. “I’m nothing special, Your Grace.”
“On the contrary, I think you’re magnificent. You’re one of the few people in London who doesn’t bore me to tears.”
“Who are the others?” she asked, curious. She knew very little about the man, after all.
“My family,” he said softly. “My grandmother and brother.”
“I wasn’t aware you had a brother!” She had never heard anyone mention a brother before. Surely a duke’s younger brother would gather a lot of notice based off familial connections alone.
“He doesn’t attend many society events. As the adopted second born, he has the luxury of doing what he wants when he’s not working. He’s my steward.”
She smiled. “That must be nice to have him so close all the time. I miss my sister dearly.”
“Are you close with her?”
She nodded. “I write to her every chance I get. She’s attending her last year of finishing school now. I only see her for three weeks during the summer, during her breaks. I’m looking forward to seeing her more once she’s finished with school.” She smiled. “However, she is certainly causing mischief. She is becoming quite the bluestocking and getting caught reading books the headmistress would rather her not read.”
“Like Mary Wollestonecraft?”
Joanna smiled and nodded. “Yes, exactly. I wasn’t lying when I said that I enjoyed her books.”
He grinned—actually grinned! “I’m glad to hear it. I also wasn’t lying when I said I read her work.”
Joanna’s breath caught at the sight of his grin. Sure, he occasionally smirked or threw her the occasional small smile, but this was the first sincere grin on his face that she had seen. The sight made her feel warm inside, and she could not help but giggle as if she were a silly schoolgirl.Careful, Joanna. It’s best to keep your feelings in check. You know, there is no future with the Duke of Ice.
CHAPTER 17
On the night of the ball, Evan glared at his reflection in his bedchamber’s mirror as his valet buttoned up the duke’s evening coat. It would not be long before he saw Joanna again. He hadn’t seen her since he took her shopping, and he was impatient to see her again. The sight of her smiling and laughing as she tried on dresses and accessories was burned into his brain. For reasons he couldn’t explain, he wanted to provide for her and protect her, even going above and beyond what their original agreement would require. The feeling unsettled him but it made him look forward to nothing but seeing her again. He dismissed his valet as soon as the coat was buttoned up. He wanted to leave as quickly as possible.
