God, not Catherine again. And why on earth would his father’s wife feel the need to broach her name, now? Unless…
“Never say Jonathan’s developed atendrefor Lady Catherine?” He could not imagine a more unlikely pair than his mild-mannered cousin and the elegant, hot-and-cold Lady Catherine.
The countess plucked at her silk skirts. “The two have spent a great deal of time together of late. I’m sure it’s of no consequence.”
Teddy, unable to curtail the impulse, laughed. Would he never be free of the stigma of entire world linking him with Lady Catherine?
Seeing the countess’s taken-aback expression, he sobered and waved one hand in a dismissive gesture. “Do not concern yourself on my behalf. Whatever was once between Catherine and me was of nolasting significance, I assure you.”
She slanted him a dubious look. “Your father seems convinced otherwise. He was pleased by your cousin’s friendship. Only since his illness did rumors concerning the changed nature of their acquaintance begin to circulate.”
He shrugged. “She broke things off with me the day before I departed for Spain.” Granted, it had taken a bit of coercion on his part to bring her to the realization the two of them would not suit, but eventually she arrived at the desired conclusion.
The countess seemed to take him at his word, reflecting, “There was some speculation that was the case, especially when…never mind. If you say it does not signify, then I am glad.”
“I do. The doctor?”
“Of course. I will see a message dispatched at once.” She rose and exited the office.
He thought he could guess what she’d started to say—that Catherine had another suitor after Teddy left for the war. Thinking back on it, he’d gotten the distinct impression she’d already been considering replacing him, but had refrained in order to hedge her bets, so-to-speak, in case the other suitor did not come up to scratch.
Clearly, whomever he was, he had not, as the one-time diamond of the first water remained unwed. He hadn’t wished that on her. He simply hadn’t wanted to find himself shackled to her, himself.
She might fit the mold of the perfect countess in his father eyes, but to Teddy, the idea of being bound to the woman for a lifetime, once he saw past her stunning exterior, had struck him as nothing short of a prison sentence in hell.
Catherine was all sharp edges, inside and out, with no softness about her to speak of. Every word, every deed, was motivated by self-interest—unlike Georgina, who poured herself out for those she loved without a thought for herself.
Or so he’d thought. She was every bit as canny and conniving asCatherine could ever hope to be. He’d fallen for her ruse, lured by her make-believe confessions of undying love and the sweet feel of her body yielding beneath his.
He slammed his fist onto the desk as a sharp pain lanced through him. Not because he needed her, of course, but because she’d made a fool of him.
Danvers’s words came back to him, surly and argumentative as if the man was here, now, taking Teddy to task.
So what, she lied. You’re a fool if you can’t see why. Some people go their whole lives and never have someone willing to risk their own necks for the sake of someone they love.
He’d said something else, too.
You’re well and truly married.
Clearly Georgina did not believe that to be the case. She believed herself engaged—to whom? Come to think of it, where had she been when he first arrived? And why hadn’t he bothered to ask these questions when he saw her?
Oh. Right. Because he’d been more interested in garnering an admission of guilt from her, and an explanation—seeking one in particular, which she had not offered—for why in hell she’d set out to trick him in the first place.
The countess bustled back in, a welcome distraction from his spinning thoughts.
“The courier has been dispatched to the doctor’s residence.”
He rose from behind the desk. He had things to see to before the good doctor called. Time enough to contemplate the conundrum that was Georgina Belfry later.
Teddy looked upfrom Georgina’s notebook, and the pages throughwhich he was combing for details about the maddening woman, as Jenkins entered the drawing room with the doctor in tow.
“Dr. Shine, my lord.”
Pasting a pleasant smile on his face, Teddy set the notebook aside and rose. He had the pleasure of seeing the man’s bland expression morph with shock before he managed to school his features. He hadn’t expected Teddy. Little wonder.
“Dr. Shine, good of you to come,” Teddy said.
“Lord Arlington, I hadn’t realized you’d…er…”
