“I suppose we shall find out if he actually proposes,” Lexie noted dryly. Feeling that her aunt was going to leave her out to dry wondering about the duke’s qualifications for a bride, she held out a hand. “Might I see what he is daring to require regarding a future duchess?”
Her aunt tossed the print at her with a snort. Rising from the table, she smoothed her dress, as if the duke’s ridiculous suggestions had actually rumpled her clothes. “I will be out most of the morning. I have some calls to make.”
Lexie lifted a brow, knowing that meant her aunt was likely rushing over to see her friend Margaret, where they would slay the duke in the convenience of the lady’s drawing room over tea and cucumber sandwiches.
“I’m afraid you will have to amuse yourself while I’m away.”
“I shall manage,” Lexie noted. “I had a mind to wander over to the British Museum.” Knowing that her aunt despised history, believing that the present day was where people should keep themselves occupied, Lexie held her breath awaiting a reaction.
Her aunt gave a mock shudder. “Enjoy yourself, my dear. I will see you later this afternoon for the Sorrington musicale.”
As Aunt Bonnie breezed from the room, Lexie gave up all pretense of eating, her eagerness to read what had been printed overriding all else.
Scanning the black and white print until she found what she was looking for, she read the rest of the article aloud in an intriguing murmur. “The duke has requested his future bride be kind of character, possessing of a devoted spirit, and forgiving nature. Every other attribute might be overlooked if one is capable of these three qualities.” Lexie kept reading but it moved on to another article. “That’s it?”
Sitting back in her chair, she stared curiously at the paper, wondering what her aunt might have been so upset about. It seemed a sensible enough list to her. But then, perhaps forgiveness was a bit too much to ask if his past was littered with as many misdeeds as her aunt claimed. It would take a devoted spirit and kind nature in order to overlook the fact they were marrying a villain.
However, Lexie found the duke was even more mysterious after reading this. Not only was she surprised that he seemed willing to put aside his wayward ways to settle down, but the fact he was asking so little—no wealth, beauty, or any of the other qualifications that most men of society put upon women to be considered “accomplished.” He wasn’t asking for material interests, qualities that would impress upon society that he had gained a diamond, a paragon among women. No, instead he was just asking for someone who could look beyond the black image he’d painted of himself and discover the true man beyond all the rumor.
Rather than being critical, Lexie discovered that she was quite fascinated by his choices. Not only that, but should she find herself in the market for a husband, she would like to be consideredas a candidate for the position of his duchess. She believed that she held those three demands with ease. The only issue is that she was a bit disappointed. She admired the duke for asking for so little, but she thought she’d caught a glimpse of the rogue beneath that smooth veneer the night before on the terrace. She wanted to find a man who would sweep her into his arms and kiss her utterly senseless. Until she had spied the towering, impressive figure of the Duke of Cuthbert, she couldn’t imagine anyone of her acquaintance capable of any sort of passion other than for their cigars and brandy after dinner. How terribly boring!
Lexie had lived all of her life in the country near a small hamlet. She wanted to experience so much more than the same. She didn’t want to continue rusticating for fear her spirit would start to break and fall apart. She wanted tolive. When the opportunity to come to London had presented itself, she had been pleased beyond measure. Unfortunately, it had yet to prove any different than the life she’d left behind.
Shaking her head, Lexie gathered her bonnet, gloves, and pelisse, and with her maid at her side, headed out for the day. It was a crisp, autumn day, but the sun was shining and she lifted her face to the warm rays beaming down upon her. If her aunt were there, she would surely scold her for daring to impugn her complexion with even one freckle, but Lexie had never overly cared for outward appearances. She knew beauty was something that must be retained in youth, but several women in the village back home had married without the benefit of aided cosmetics or maids eager to wind their hair into an elegant chignon. She had learned that simplicity was sometimes the best choice.
As the carriage deposited her in front of the museum, Lexie decided to put all thoughts of the duke aside as she headed up the front steps. She had long wanted to see the infamous and somewhat controversial Elgin marbles that the earl had pilfered fromthe Greeks. He had claimed they would have been destroyed had he not intervened to save them and bring them to England, but there had been some speculation about that theory.
By whatever means they had found their way there, Lexie was grateful for the chance to behold such a sight. They were as remarkable as she had hoped they would be. All of the tomes she had read had not prepared her for the magnificence of the sculptor and his detail to preserving such heritage for all time.
Walking among the scenes of battle, her footsteps echoing on the cold marble floor surrounded by heavy scenes depicted in the same stone, Lexie could not ignore the irony that one of the most powerful nations on the entire earth had found a way to showcase such a legacy, as well as lay claim to the find.
Moving about the rest of the museum, her meandering finally brought her abreast of the Rosetta stone. It had been discovered during the Napoleonic wars and was named after the city in which it was found. The face boasted three different languages, including that of ancient hieroglyphics during the time of the Ptolemaic dynasty which ended with the most famous ruler of all Egypt, Cleopatra VII.
She had long wondered about the “Queen of the Nile,” which Cleopatra had been dubbed, and her affairs with two of the most powerful men of her time—Julius Caesar and his general, Marc Antony. Lexie had fantasized what it might be like to be so consumed with passion as to earn the affection for not just one, buttwolovers. She had yet to turn the head of one gentleman, but she had always been consumed with the prospect of such a turbulent love.
“Have you studied ancient hieroglyphs?”
A deep voice rumbled in Lexie’s ear and she gasped as she spun toward the speaker. As if her imaginings had brought him forth, she looked up into the inquiring gaze of the Duke of Cuthbert. She was so stunned to see him that she blurted the first thing that came to mind, “What are you doing here?”
His lips quirked upward and, she found she liked the gesture. “Admiring the beauty of the museum,” he noted softly, his gaze traveling up and down her length. “The same as you are.”
“Indeed,” she breathed, and then blinked to gain some focus. She turned her attention back to the stone which was starting to draw more of a crowd. She stepped aside to allow others to appreciate the view. The duke joined her, and it took her a moment to remember what he had initially asked her. They started walking, and she added, “I studied it for a time. My father was not against me broadening my mind when it came to history as he championed most any cause as well.”
He smiled gently. “It seems that you have a good rapport.”
She laughed. “Not particularly. At least not when I was a child. He was scarcely present, but as he has gotten on in years, he has seemed to become more engaging. When it involves a subject that interests him, he can be quite conversational.”
“So you’ve learned to inquire about certain things,” the duke guessed. Quite accurately. She was impressed by his astute nature.
“You could say that. Although I would not speak of subjects that didn’t intrigue me as well.”
“Naturally,” he noted. “What else interests you at the museum, Miss Givenwald?”
She glanced at him curiously. “Ah. I see you have discovered my identity. Who solved the mystery for you?”
His dark eyes glimmered. “It was not so difficult as you might imagine. My hostess the previous evening was forthcoming with the information after a bit of persuasion on my part.”
“Ah. It seems your villainous ways precede you, Your Grace. My aunt has warned me quite clearly to steer clear of you.”
