It was not like Samuel to act coy.
Sensing something was wrong, Nicholas held an arm out to stop his brother from moving into the dining hall. The din of cutlery, the sound of serving dishes being laid out, were obscured as Nicholas closed the door before them.
“Somethinghashappened,” Nicholas concluded. “You will tell me at once what it is, Samuel.”
“Well, if the Duke of Avon orders it…” His brother gulped, then looked nervously toward the closed dining room door. “It is a blessing your wife is unwell. I did not know how I would countenance facing you both, knowing what I know… I have heard something out of London.”
The wordLondonfell upon Nicholas like a pail of cold water. His body tensed, and he thought of Amelia, sleeping peacefully upstairs.
“Whatever it is, I do not want to know,” he said categorically.
“But you must,” Samuel protested, grabbing his brother by the shoulder as he tried to enter the dining room. “Nicholas, Sir Richard is leaving England.”
Nicholas started. “How do you know that name?”
“You know me well enough to know I needed to discover the truth of your exile for myself. It did not take long. Word has already spread to the clubs in Oxford about what occurred between you and Summer Harrow—”
“Do not say her name here,” he commanded through gritted teeth.
“Youmustbe told. Or would you rather I keep you in the dark and allow Amelia to discover by her own means what truly transpired between you?”
He clenched his fists at his sides, his stomach coiling in anger. Samuel did not need to know that he had already told Amelia about the affair. He needed no encouragement.
“What I said is true, whether or not it pleases you,” Samuel continued. “Sir Richard has been shamed, and with your refusal to duel him, he feels his only recourse is to leave polite society for good. He is an old, foolish man who will not be satisfied to live in peace. But once he leaves London, brother, you are free to return. This should be a joyous day…”
“Should it?” he riposted, his tone clipped. “If you truly believed that, you would not have come to me in fear. You have heard something more. I know it.”
“Only that Lady Harrow seeks to reunite with you.” Samuel took him by the shoulder, turned him, forcing him to look at him. “You must not go to her, Nicholas.”
“Are you mad?” Nicholas laughed miserably. “As if I woulddare.”
He had made up his mind about Summer long ago.
Their affair had been fleeting, a mistake. Her brown eyes and dark hair appeared unbidden in his mind. The authority in her voice. The way she had assured him, time and time again, that shealways got what she wanted in the end.
Before leaving London, he had made his intentions clear. He and Summer would not reunite under any circumstances.
But though Nicholas was done with Summer, Summer was not done withhim.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Two days later, Amelia narrowed her eyes at Nicholas across the breakfast table at the Spencer country house. He had been seated with Beatrice on one side and Mary-Ann on the other. But there was something wrong in the way he smiled at her aunt, though Amelia could not put her finger on precisely what.
“Your Grace,” said Lady Nuffield, placing a light, creped hand on Amelia’s elbow. “You seem most distracted. Is everything alright?”
Amelia swallowed, returning her attention to her breakfast plate. “Of course, of course,” she assured the elderly woman, her aunt’s godmother. “Pray, tell me again about yourpalazzooutside Florence. I was only distracted a moment.”
The lady looked at her skeptically, likely thinking that everything they said about the new duchess and her madness was true. Amelia was not concerned. Soon enough, her marriage to Nicholas would be annulled, even though her heart panged atthe thought of leaving him. Their presence at her uncle’s house party was an act of charity on his behalf.
The guests counted thirty in all. As breakfast ended, the bulk of them rose from the seats excitedly, departing to prepare for the hunting that afternoon. The gentlemen filed out of the room in a pack led by her uncle. Nicholas, following them, separated from the herd a moment and approached her.
“I hope Beatrice did not wear you out already,” Amelia joked half-heartedly. “I saw what I thought were silent pleas for help as she spoke to you.”
Nicholas smiled, and the expression was almost genuine. “Not at all. Your aunt is a gracious woman, and I should not have a bad word to say against her. There is talk of a hunt in Bagley Woods. I have agreed to join the men.”
“As you should,” she said emphatically. “Do not let me stop you. I shall be perfectly fine here on my own.”
She glanced around the breakfast room—a repurposed solar with tall glass windows and plants in every corner. Her aunt had disappeared, but Mary-Ann remained speaking to the pretty young woman beside her, sending interested glances at Amelia and Nicholas.
