The moment they reached the end of the corridor to turn to the ballroom, Lady Coventon turned with a sly look on her face. Lady Coventon was Cecilia’s best friend and right hand at everything. The moment she saw them, her smile dropped. Gerald threw the woman a cold, warning smile.
“Your Graces.” She stuttered.
“Lady Coventon,” Gerald said, and the temperature in the room dropped.
“It seems that you cannot let the Duchess one moment alone, Your Grace,” she said sarcastically.
Gerald blinked slowly in an open threat.
“You never know what threats lurk in the shadows,” he said, his voice cold, and pulled Arabella away.
She must have read his body language correctly, seeing the way his hand was gripping her tightly, sensing the coldness in his voice, and feeling how tense his body was.
“Something is the matter,” Arabella said.
“We are leaving,” is all Gerald said.
“You must tell me.”
“I just did,” he said, fully on edge. “We are leaving.”
Gerald knew that if he stayed one more moment, what he would cause would not be just a scene; it would be a crime. Thankfully, Arabella decided to simply follow him without arguing.
He didn’t even pretend to practice good manners and greet his family before he left. He even made it a point not to look forthem in the ballroom as they crossed it to the exit. One smug grin from Joseph, and the ton would have experienced exactly how cruel he could be.
He helped Arabella into her pelisse. His hand never left her waist as he ushered her outside to their carriage. She entered the carriage without complaining, though her face was fully frowning now.
He sat across from her and looked outside the window. His thoughts were torturing him. The amount of planning that his family had put into this was appalling, a hired man lurking in the shadows, and the lady who would happen to pass by at the right moment and expose Arabella in a compromising position.
And it was all his fault. This was his family targeting him, and Arabella was caught in the middle. He should have known better than to let her venture alone in that viper’s nest. He dropped his guard, and she almost paid the price.
But then again, how could he not be distracted? With her witty remarks and dancing with others, and then their own dance and light flirting, he almost forgot himself. And this was the result.
“Your Grace,” Arabella finally broke the silence, “I thought we had agreed that we were a team in this. Will you tell me what happened?”
“It is all being dealt with.”
“Judging by the look on your face, you are still dealing with it. Would you care to share the burden?”
“The burden is mine to carry. That is all.”
“You practically dragged me away from the party, you behaved coldly to everyone, and now, in the safety of our privacy, you are still behaving strangely.”
Gerald turned and pinned her with his most cruel look.
“You were alone in that corridor!”
“I wasn’t aware I had to be chaperoned into a corridor after I used the powder room.”
“You don’t even know how close you were to-”
“To what?”
He looked out the window again.
“I will not be ignored!”
“What do you want me to say?”
