Page 42 of Seducing the Marquess (Lords and Ladies in Love 1)

“Is Lady Devon in her sitting room?” Devon handed his hat and gloves to Bellows.

“No, my lord. Lady Devon and Sally went for a walk in the park this afternoon.”

He frowned. Strange, that. He’d never known Eugenia to walk in the park. Like all members of the Quality, she took a ride during the fashionable hour now and then, but to walk?

“How long ago did she leave?”

Bellows considered for a moment. “Perhaps two hours.”

Devon snatched the hat and gloves out of the butler’s hands, turned on his heel, and headed back outside. He would have a much better chance of finding her if he rode, so back he went to the mews to get a fresh horse.

The fashionable hour was in full swing in Hyde Park. Carriages and horses clogged the lane wandering the Serpentine. The warm spring air had brought out a great deal of riders and walkers. None of them seemed to notice the beautiful flowers so well-tended by gardeners, or the pale sun so seldom seen in London. As usual, they were there to see and be seen.

Visitors called to one another, the fresh-faced young ladies casting both shy and flirty glances at the gentlemen, the marriage-minded mamas sizing up each man as to title and wealth. Devon quickly scanned the area, then rode slowly with the traffic, stopping to chat occasionally, but mostly studying the crowd, looking among the strollers for his wife.

Who, after an hour of searching, was not to be found in the park.

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He returned home, assuming—nay, hoping—she had returned and he had merely missed her.

“No, my lord. Lady Devon has not yet arrived.” Bellows answered Devon’s query as he once again handed over his hat and gloves.

“Very well. I will be in the library. Please ask her ladyship to join me when she returns.”

He poured a brandy and paced. Where was she? With her lover, no doubt. His stomach muscles tightened, and he took a large swallow of the liquor.

He should confront her. No. Even though he believed the only explanation for her behavior was the one that had his gut tensing, that theory still went against everything he knew and believed of his wife. If he was wrong in his assumption, she would probably swoon at his accusations, and quite possibly never recover.

He paced. Checked his timepiece. Swallowed more brandy. Paced again.

The sound of Eugenia’s voice drew him from his musings. He quickly moved behind the desk, pulled out a ledger, and picked up a pen.

“You wished to see me, my lord?” Eugenia entered the room.

Devon attempted to appear casual as he took in every inch of her appearance. Nothing seemed amiss. Her hair was not disheveled, her dress not wrinkled. But something on her face, in her crystal blue eyes, put him on alert.

She’s hiding something.

“Yes, my dear. How was your walk in the park?”

She cast her eyes down. She flushed—fidgeted. “Fine. It is a lovely day.”

“Indeed.” He waved toward the chair in front of his desk. “Tell me about your walk.” He leaned back in his chair, viewing her over his steepled fingers. “Whom did you see?”

Eugenia sat and fiddled with her gown. Very unlike his wife. She took a deep breath and smiled. “Oh, you know. All the usual people.” She flushed even redder.

The poor woman is a terrible liar.

His heart dropped to his feet. Then anger coursed through him. Who was this wastrel who had seduced his wife? His innocent, very proper wife. For surely it would never be in Eugenia’s character to take a lover without a great deal of coercion.

He would find this scoundrel and beat him to a pulp. Dogs, he needed dogs.

…

Eugenia chewed her lip. She’d never been good at lying, even as a young girl when caught with a biscuit clutched behind her back before dinner. It almost seemed as though Devon knew she was lying, too. He was supposed to have been out of the house for the entire day.

All she wanted to do right now was remove herself from his piercing scrutiny. “If that is all, my lord, I would like to rest a bit before dinner and the ball.”