Robert mopped his brow with a towel, giving a shrug. “It is freeing. I cannot exactly explain it, for it does hurt.” With this, he gave a small smile.
“Well, you have my admiration.”
The hand holding his towel stilled. “That’s a start.”
Drat. The man was relentless. If she wasn’t so determined to attend the matches of his illicit boxing ring, she would be able to keep her distance from him better. “Well, how many more matches do you believe there will be?”
Robert began dabbing his sweat-slicked skin again. Louisa’s eyes traced the muscles of Robert’s torso before she caught herself and forced her gaze to his face. “If I win the next match, there will be two more.”
She cleared her throat, turning slightly away to stare at an empty chair. “And what is your prize if you win all the matches?” Louisa heard a rustle as Robert tossed his towel into the basket with the other soiled rags.
“Pride.”
“Goodness.” She turned back toward him, relieved he had donned a clean shirt. “That hardly seems worth it.”
“I told you. It’s more for the sport itself, not notoriety or money. I already have both of those.”
Louisa’s scoff came out as more of a laugh. “Well, aren’t you quite full of yourself?”
He raised a brow as he grinned. “I am a duke, Louisa. While I do not love it, all I have to do is walk into a room and watch the heads turn to know my place.”
“And this is your little jab to society, is it?” She crossed her arms over her chest as she gave him a cheeky grin.
“Yes. It is.”
The men departed one by one until Robert and Louisa were left alone.
“Well, I suppose we should get home,” Louisa thought aloud, watching as Norman held Robert’s jacket out for him and he slid his arms inside. Which version of himself would he be now that he had donned his dukely clothes?
Robert adjusted the collar of his jacket. “Norman, would you go fetch the carriage and have Gulliver pull it around?”
The young man nodded, then left to complete his task.
“Aren’t you afraid of being found out?” Louisa asked as Robert continued adjusting his attire, making sure his cufflink was secure.
“In some ways, yes. But even if we were found out, I’m not sure much would come of it. There might be a scandal and rumors for a while, but then I guess it would fade into oblivion.”
“I don’t know,” she said, sitting and tucking her chin into her hand. “I would find it quite scandalizing. Men stripped down to their shirtsleeves, pummeling each other? It is against the law to hit a peer.”
“Yes, but we are all peers. It is different.”
“And you are a duke, so you can get away with anything.”
He turned a frown in her direction, but upon seeing her teasing smile, it flipped into a grin. “Exactly.”
Louisa answered with a grin of her own, liking when he showed his confident side. Finally, she turned to glance over her shoulder at the door. “Shouldn’t Norman be back by now?”
Robert looked over at the entrance. “Yes. I’m surprised he hasn’t come in.”
“Should we go and see? Perhaps he is waiting outside with Gulliver.”
He nodded, his brow puckering as he held his arm out to her. But when they let the door close behind them, the carriage was nowhere to be seen.
“Where are they?” Robert’s voice held an edge of worry as he glanced up and down the street. “It never takes them this long to get here.”
“Perhaps a wheel broke? It was hardly a piece of fine craftsmanship.”
Robert shook his head, eyes wary. “I don’t like it. Let us get back inside.”
