Page 35 of The Perfect Rose

The duke gently laid his book down on a chair and paced. “I thought you knew that I wouldn’t begin without you.”

“Did you not?” She looked back and forth between them for confirmation.

He laughed. “No. Lady Rose is quite capable of a level of patience only my mother possesses, it seems.”

Miriam’s face fell a bit. Rose’s heart went out to her. She understood what slight Miriam must have read in his words. However, just because the current dowager duchess had a large well of patience didn’t mean that Miriam herself must possess the same quality to become his duchess. She reached out to take Miriam’s hand. “I adore your energy and purpose, Miriam. It is not a bad thing.”

The duke’s eyes went wide, and he stepped closer to the settee. “I meant no slight. You are perfect just as you are, Miriam.”

Rose’s heart thudded in her chest. How she wished she’d heard that phrase even once in her life. To be perfect just being yourself would be like living a fairytale.

The duke and Miriam stared into each other’s eyes without speaking for so many drawn-out seconds that Rose sniffed just to break the silence. “Should I leave?” she asked with a laugh. “Or would you like to inform us of what you have heard, Your Grace?”

Miriam blushed. The duke smiled at Miriam and then turned his attention to Rose. “I like this side of you, Lady Rose.” He pulled his chair closer to the settee and sat with his elbows resting on his knees. “What I’ve heard comes from my mother, who, as you may know, has a little difficulty hearing, but not as much difficulty as she pretends. I don’t believe she would have told me if she wasn’t quite certain of what was happening.”

He steepled his fingers together and looked intently into Rose’s eyes. “She told me that your mother has arranged for you to accept Lord Hanby on the last night of the house party during the ball.”

“Lord Hanby? Are you certain?” Rose’s mind seemed as stuck as a carriage wheel in deep mud.

“As I said, my mother could have misheard.”

“No, it makes sense. I’ve seen them talking quite often with your mother nearby. But why would she want him to wait until the last possible day?”

Miriam jumped in. “I for one, am glad that he intends to wait. I have plans of my own for you.”

Rose glanced at her. “Mr. Redford? I thought you asked me not to accept him. It was a near thing last night. Your brother only just cut off the question.”

Miriam clapped her hands. “I knew it! No, my plans are not for Mr. Redford.” She leaned forward, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “They are for my brother. You are perfect for each other.” Rose looked at Miriam’s knowing smile in shock.

“I suspect that would be your best course of action as well, Lady Rose,” the duke added.

“Mr. Hastings? Your brother . . .” Rose turned to Miriam, “who believes I look like his dog and his horse; The man who has told me, quite decidedly, that he does not intend to marry? Or do you have another brother?”

Miriam laughed. “You must know that he thinks you are quite beautiful, and it scares him.”

“I don’t see how that improves the situation. I assume that is where my nickname of Dragon originated.”

Samuel coughed. “He’s called you Dragon?”

“On multiple occasions. I assure you. Mr. Hastings harbors no tender feelings for me. And even if he did. I do not want to force him into a marriage that he expressly doesn’t want.”

Miriam leaned toward the duke. “Don’t you see, if it’s not Rose, it won’t be anyone. No other woman could possibly change his mind. And since she doesn’t want to change his mind, doesn’t it prove that she is the perfect person to do it?”

“I could not have picked a better match for my best friend if I’d searched all of England. But, you are forgetting yourself, Miriam.” He turned to face Rose. “We do not know what the lady in question feels.”

Rose knew that she ought to have been able to follow their conversation, but she was failing miserably. “Are you asking me what I feel about tricking a man into marrying me?”

“No!” Miriam put a hand over her mouth. “I want to know what you feel for my brother.”

The library was much warmer than necessary, wasn’t it? Rose adjusted her dress. These two were trying to help her solve a problem, right? So why did it feel like she was missing a piece of the puzzle.

This was Mr. Hastings’s best friend and his sister. And she had only known them for a few days. Whose interests did they really have at heart? The pieces of the puzzle abruptly fell into place: the unexpected invitation, their friendship, their concerns about other gentlemen at the party . . . they were trying to convince her to marry Mr. Hastings. Her heart sank. She thought she had made friends, but it seemed as if she were trapped in a nightmare. Mr. Hastings, Miriam, and Samuel were working together to convince her that she needed to marry Mr. Hastings, in order to get her dowry.

The embroidery Rose held in her hands fell to her lap. She would answer honestly and put a stop to all this posturing. She refused to be a pawn moved about in every direction by those around her. She set her jaw and looked at the duke; it hurt too much to look at Miriam, whom she’d thought a true friend. “Mr. Hastings has told me he does not intend to marry. Yet, although we’d never spoken, I was invited to his house party. It was obvious to me then that he wanted my dowry. If you are trying to convince me to marry him, I must conclude that my original suspicions were correct. He could not possibly want to marry someone he despises as much as I unless his situation was dire indeed.” She stood and turned to leave. “If you would excuse me?”

The duke stood, all authority and pomp. He straightened his waistcoat. “No, I will not excuse you. You have laid before me a matter so dishonest, I refuse to allow you to leave until you have heard all.” He stepped forward to block her path to the door. “Please sit, Lady Rose.”

As numb as Rose felt, she knew that she ought not defy a duke in a request, especially one as simple as listening to what he had to say. That didn’t mean she had to trust him. She sat primly on the edge of the settee as far away from Miriam as she could.