“W-When do you—”
“Oh, do not be so eager, Hawthorne,” he sneered. “I will claim my prize in due time. And if you dare to sell your sister behind my back, I will make sure that your debts will be the least of your problems.”
“U-understood, sir.”
Your Grace, Cassian wanted to correct him. Instead, he merely smiled ominously at the sniveling creature.
He had no intention of revealing himself to any of these buffoons. It was infinitely more satisfying to let them writhe in apprehension, forever wondering just who the hell he was.
Chapter 5
Juliana had not slept a moment.
The house had been quiet when she returned in the early hours, the corridors dim, the air faintly chilled, and yet she had felt as though she carried a fever within her. Even now, seated at the breakfast table with pale morning light spilling through the windows, that fever had not entirely abated.
Every time she closed her eyes, she saw masks.
And him. A stranger who was no stranger at all.
The memory returned with humiliating clarity: the assured warmth of his hands as they circled her arms, guiding rather than compelling; the slow ascent of his touch from her thighs almost to the aching spot between her legs; the bold familiarity with which he traced the curve of her side, as though such liberties were his by right.
No man had ever touched her so.
Juliana clamped her thighs tightly together in a desperate effort to wrest her thoughts away from the Duke of Stonevale. Therewere more important matters at hand, and she had seen more than enough at the nondescript mansion to know that whatever Kit was doing certainly involved underhanded means—and a heavy dose of scandal, at the very least.
At the very worst, it just might beillegal.
Juliana shuddered inwardly at the very thought.
“Oh, do try to look a little less glum, my dear!” Her grandmother sighed from across the table. “A melancholy nature does little to captivate suitors.”
Juliana managed a feeble smile as she sipped at her tea. There was even less tea today, and not much milk. If this carried on, would Grandmama also have to pretend that a cup of warm water was tea?
She did not have much time to dwell on that thought, for her brother came strolling into the breakfast room with a grand smile on his face. As if that was not astounding enough, he was also impeccably dressed and groomed. He had evenshaved.
“Good morning, family!” he announced cheerfully as he took his place at the head of the table. The one footman they had left, Wiggins, immediately scurried to assist him. He turned toward Juliana and their grandmother. “What do we have for breakfast today, ladies?”
Wonder of all wonders, he evenappearedas if he was truly looking forward to the meal—that is, of course, until he took stock of the meager spread before him.
“The usual, brother.” Juliana managed an unaffected shrug. “Toast and eggs, with some butter, if we can manage it.”
“Nonsense!” Kit shook his head. “Such fare is a travesty in this household. Wiggins!”
The footman appeared at his summons. “Yes, my lord?”
“Tell Cook to head off to the market to purchase more food. This is hardly enough for a grown man.”
“But we do not have a—”
Before Juliana could finish, though, Wiggins simply bowed to Kit. “Right away, my lord,” he said politely. Wherever he was going to find a cook, Juliana had not a clue.
As the footman disappeared, Juliana regarded her brother. He did not look as if he was still under the influence of… well, whatever concoction gentlemen liked to drink at such parties as the one she had witnessed the prior evening.
His eyes were clear, his smile bright. For someone who saw him as often as she did, it was hard to believe that just last night he had been so panicked that he had flown out of the house with an improperly tied cravat and hair in dreadful need of a good comb.
“Now,” he turned toward their grandmother. “What were you two ladies up to when I so impolitely disturbed your conversation?”
The adoring gaze that Grandmama turned upon him was enough to nearly make Juliana quit her breakfast. “Why, we were just discussing the coming Season, my precious boy! Dear Juliana is yet to find a good match, so we must put a bit of effort into her wardrobe.”
