George got up from his desk and strode to Alice’s room and entered without knocking.
His sister had been speaking to her lady’s maid but broke off when George burst in.
“What the devil, Alice?”
She put her hand up toward George and turned back to the maid. “Clark, you may go. Do have one of the footmen get one of the medium-sized trunks out of the attic for my packing.”
The lady’s maid curtsied and left the room. As soon as the door closed behind Clark, Alice turned to him in a fury.
“What the devil? You have the audacity to say that to me, George? Do you know what I have been doing for the last eighteen hours? I have been holding a poor girl who cried all night. At this point, I don’t know why she cares a fig for your opinion of her. But she does. But the worst of it, the worst of it all is—” Suddenly, she stopped and uncharacteristically clamped her mouth shut. Her face was so red, her freckles had disappeared.
“What’s the worst of it, Alice?” He was in a rage. At himself. At Alice. At Thornwick. At Andrew. At the whole world. Even at Phoebe. Because how could he repair this if he couldn’t get to her? “What could be worse than having Phee cry all night?”
Alice took a deep breath. “I had everything perfectly arranged, George. Everything was ticking along nicely. Finally, finally, you were waking up. Slowly, but surely. And Phoebe had unexpectedly taken certain matters into her own hands which I did not expect, but brava to her because it had a marvelous effect on you. And, I thought, on her. Finally, our little bird was turning into the kestrel I always knew she was. But you had to go about everything in entirely the wrong way. And then to come out with some horrendous statement about how Thornwick must be lacking because he wants Phoebe. When the poor girl has only ever wanted one thing her whole life.”
“Yes, she wants to be a duchess!”
Alice’s stare burned holes into George’s skull. “No, you stupid idiot. She wants you.”
Wait.
Wait.
Phoebe wanted him?
“She-she’s told you that?
Alice tossed her head. “You’d have to be blind as a bat—no, as blind as you,not to see it. We’ve all been on tenterhooks for years, waiting for you to do something about it. Meanwhile, with you looming over her at every ball, what other man would dare to approach her? And then I saw Phoebe give up. Give up on you. Fine. I could let that happen. But she also gave up on herself. And I couldn’t let her do that. And I knew there was no talking to you, you fixed, stubborn, contrary imbecile. Telling you to marry Phoebe would only make you run the other way.”
George tried to break in here. He wasnotcontrary, he was just right.
But Alice ran roughshod over him, her heated words spilling out.
“There was only one thing for it. I was going to have to get someone else to come after her. Someone of high rank. So that damn George Danforth competitiveness would rise to the surface and overcome your stupidity and open your eyes and show you that Phoebe was everything and you would woo her yourself. And it just so happened a duke was available. Three dukes, if you count Middlewich, which I don’t because we all thought he was a drunk and he wasn’t going to any balls this Season since his father just died and now it turns out he was besotted with Lovelock’s widow anyway. And there was your friend Jack Pike, or rather, Dunmore. But first he went off to Scotland and when he came back and met Phee at a few balls, he clearly thought she was your property. But Thornwick. Thornwick, whatever else you can say about him, Thornwick is no fool. He saw what you couldn’t. And I was right. His interest woke you up, George.”
George sat down on the edge of Alice’s bed. Alice had done this. For him. For Phoebe. For a moment, he was grateful. His sister must love him to have made such an effort. And she must think he would make Phoebe happy. Andvice versa.
But the moment passed, and he was angry again. How dare Alice? How dare she manipulate him this way? And she was the one who had gotten Phoebe engaged to Thornwick? All of George’s pain was due to her. His fists closed in his lap. He opened his mouth but was cut off by his sister.
“Think first, George, before you shout and bluster at me uselessly about my hat and glove allowance. You have one ally right now. One ally who is close to Phoebe. Who has her ear.”
“You call yourself my ally? Isn’t this cataclysm all your fault?”
“If you had done what any right-thinking man who knew anything about Phoebe would have done, you would be fine. The engagement would be broken. You may not have had a promise from her, but you would be well on your way to it. Did you tell her your feelings?”
“M-my feelings?”
“That you love her, you numpty!”
“Phee knows I love her.”
“Did you tell her that? Did you tell her how utterly marvelous she is? How caring and thoughtful and giving? How brilliant? How deserving of love?”
“I told her she was a lovely girl.” He searched his mind. “I told her she was beautiful and magnificent last week.”
“Were you in your bedchamber with her when you said these things? Was your cock hard at the time?”
He paused. Alice clearly knew what had happened between him and Phoebe. “Yes.”
