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That way, he could choose his bride, and once he was married, then if he needed to have his mother forcibly dragged from the house, it would not affect his standing in the marriage mart. He’d already be married, and his wife would be as stuck with the situation as he was. Which certainly meant he could not marry any young lady his mother pushed toward him.

After he went to visit his sister, he would seek out Miss Hu again and convey to her the urgency of his situation. He’d already wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible, but his mother’s presence rather added to the consequences of not doing so.

Getting to his feet, he grimaced at the sound of trunks and other luggage being moved down the hall and into the duchess’ rooms. The rooms his duchess would one day live in, but he could not rightly move his mother out of them until he actually had a duchess to install within them. So, there were several urgent reasons to find a bride even more quickly than he’d previously planned.

Before he left, Sebastian gave instruction to Riggs to send someone to look in on Harleen at the Grange and care for her as necessary. That done, he hurried out of the house, which no longer felt as comfortable as it had a few hours ago. He’d never thought twice about his mother’s presence there, but now it was like an itch he could not scratch.

Out on the streets of Mayfair, even knowing he was going to have to tell his sister that their mother had returned and that he was not immediately sending her away, Sebastian already felt a little lighter. His mother had never had that effect on him before, but she did now. As though she’d brought turmoil with her, by her mere presence, even though she had technically not yet done anything, and she’d agreed to all his demands.

Finally, coming to Clarence House, Sebastian let out a long, slow breath and squared his shoulders. Reluctantly, he forced himself to walk up the stairs. He was not looking forward to this. Better now than after they find out on their own. Still, he felt his stomach turn over again when he knocked on the door.

It swung open after only a moment, Paulson standing on the other side.

“Your Grace,” the butler said, stepping back and bowing deeply as he allowed Sebastian admittance.

“Good morning, Paulson. Are Gregory or my sister in?” Sebastian asked as he walked inside, pulling off his gloves. Straightening, Paulson held out his hands to take Sebastian’s hat and gloves as he answered.

“Her Grace is in the back sitting room. His Grace had an appointment with his tailor this morning, but I expect he shall return before long.”

In some ways, that was a relief. He could explain himself to Tiffany, then do the same with Gregory when he returned. Hopefully, if Tiffany reacted poorly, he would have the chance to calm her down before he had to speak with Gregory. If Gregory saw her upset, he would not be as willing to hear Sebastian out as if Tiffany was calmer.

“I’ll see my sister then. No, no, I know the way.” Sebastian waved his hand at Paulson, who hesitated, then acquiesced. He was hardly able to argue with a duke, after all.

Striding down the hall, Sebastian was bolstering his courage when he realized he heard more than one feminine voice coming from the sitting room. There was an entire conversation happening. Blast. He should have asked Paulson if Tiffany had company. It was a sign of how discombobulated he was that he had not even thought of it.

Well, he would just have to ask them to leave.

But as soon as he reached the doorway and cast his gaze around the room, he knew that was unlikely. Of all Tiffany’s friends within the ton, it just had to be Lady Astrid who was seated beside her. And worse, the third lady in the room turned in her chair to see who had drawn the other two’s attention, and he realized Miss Hu had beaten him over here.

Bloody hell.

Maybe he should have just stayed home and hidden away.

4

Sebastian

“Sebastian!” Tiffany jumped up from where she was seated on the couch and came running up to him, hands outstretched. Perhaps she’d meant for him to take them, but Sebastian opened his arms wider and pulled her into a hug. Just in case it was his last chance to receive one from her. She clung to him, which made him feel a bit better, and her voice was muffled against his jacket. “Is it true? Mei says she saw Mother arrive at Bolton House this morning while she was out for a walk. Is Mother here in London?”

One of the knots in his shoulders released, some of the tension in his gut relaxing. The matchmaker had not betrayed her word to him about keeping their meeting confidential. In fact, she’d proven herself rather a good friend to his sister and a good employee to him in one fell swoop.

“Yes, Miss Hu is correct.” Their gazes met for a brief moment over his sister’s head before Tiffany pulled back, and he looked down at her. “Mother arrived this morning.”

“You are not letting her stay, surely,” Lady Astrid said sharply. Of all his sister’s friends to be here… he would have rather faced Gregory’s displeasure than Lady Astrid’s.

“Under certain conditions,” he said, and quickly continued when Tiffany sucked in a breath. “To start, she must apologize to you. And I was very clear that if I heard one ill word, one rumor about you and Gregory, I would assume she was the source, and it would be right back to the country with her.”

Tiffany’s lips tightened, and she nodded her understanding, but Lady Astrid was not so easily appeased. What Miss Hu thought, he could not tell, as she was as calmly serene as ever.

“Why not send her packing immediately?” Lady Astrid scowled. “Do you truly think she’s learned her lesson in such a short amount of time?”

“It is possible,” Tiffany said, turning toward her friends and looping her arm through Sebastian’s. He appreciated her defense of him. “Mother always hated the Grange. A few weeks of rustication must have felt like an eternity.”

“I also do not have much choice,” he admitted, letting Tiffany lead him to the chair beside Miss Hu’s. Even though he was looking at his sister as she settled back into her seat, he could feel Miss Hu’s presence. He had an unexpected awareness of her, like a prickle along his skin, though there was at least a foot of distance between them. “I am uncertain I could oust her from Bolton House without creating an excessively unpleasant scene, which would not reflect well on me to certain families of the ton. Currently, there is not a single debutante who would refuse me. That might not remain the situation if there was a large enough scene upon her removal.”

“There are plenty of noble families who would hold their nose and marry their daughter off to you even if you were embroiled in a far worse scandal,” Lady Astrid pointed out.

“Yes, but who says I want to be connected to them? I want to be able to make my choice freely. And I certainly do not want Mother meddling.” He shuddered. “That is another rule I set down for her. She originally announced that she was here to help me find a bride.”