“It looks like everything is going, and his family’s not even there right beside him,” a lady remarked disdainfully, fanning herself aggressively.
“Oh, dear Grandpapa,” Madeline lamented, her face red with mortification.
“Madeline,” the baroness said, her voice urgent but calm. “Go to your Grandpapa. Now. Tell him that it is almost time for fireworks by the terrace. Do anything to get him to leave that marble statue and those gentlemen alone.”
“Yes, Grandmama,” Madeline replied hastily.
Just like all the other Quinten girls, Madeline was quick to move. The girls had spent years acting as their grandfather’s ears. Theyhad also been known to run after their father.
“You all do make a charming family,” Anne said sarcastically, letting out a tinkling laugh.
How could someone so vicious have a laugh that sounded like music?
“I shall leave you all then to your... duties,” she continued. “Do remember, though, that your new title cannot hide what your blood shows. Once His Grace realizes that, he will move on to the next woman. Perhaps he already has a mistress in mind.”
She then gave them a mocking curtsy before gliding away. Cathy closed her mouth. She would not be watching that woman with her mouth open.
“Pay no mind to her,” her grandmother whispered, steering her to a slightly private alcove. “Miss Longrove may be pretty, but she is a viper. I know her kind. She may seem proper, but she is rotten to the core. At the moment, she is bitter about losing her prize. She wants to see you fumble.”
Cathy might be much taller than her grandmother, but she let herself be steered. She did not really want to stay where they were. People were watching too closely. They might no longer be laughing, but their eyes were. The orchestra had resumed playing, as if the musicians were too aware that the drama had ended.
Her gaze darted left and right, frantically scanning the crowd for a familiar, tall, and broad-shouldered man.
Where is he?
Tristan was no longer standing where he was before. She wondered whether he had heard the insults and seen howeveryone reacted, but he was nowhere to be seen.
‘The Duke will tire of you.’
Anne’s words continued to ring in her ears. A cold lump of dread settled within her. Perhaps, he had heard about how everyone seemed to think that she had set a calculated trap to raise herself above her current situation. Was he already looking to replace her with a mistress?
“She is right, though, Grandmama,” Cathy whispered, as she tried to stop her voice from cracking. “Our family is in shambles and would never be accepted in society. For the Duke, I am nothing more than a novelty. Someone to save from a scandal.”
“Utter nonsense,” her Grandmama said, smoothing her bodice. It was her clue that the older woman was nervous. The actions were unnecessary. For once, Cathy could hope to be somewhat beautiful. Her dress, hair, and jewels were impeccable, and not just old things being brought back to life. “You are the Duchess of Baxter. That cannot be changed.”
“That is what I am afraid of.”
“You have the protection of the Duke and your own title. His purse commands attention, too, mind you. All will be well now. He will take care of you and your sisters. While he was most certainly too familiar with women, that is over now. He is a man of his word.”
“A man of his word,” Cathy muttered. “Look what that did to him.”
“I believe he is also a practical man, Cathy,” Lady Marlow said, looking Cathy in the eye. “If you are good to him and present to him a pleasant disposition while helping to manage his homeand give him an heir, he has no reason to look elsewhere. Men can be simple creatures like that.”
“A pleasant disposition?” Cathy echoed incredulously. “We barely coexist in the same room, Grandmama. We are two lines that do not cross, except perhaps during the silent meals when I have more interaction with the butler and the footmen.”
The baroness stiffened. Her hand immediately dropped from what she was doing, as she backed away to assess her granddaughter.
“What do you mean you barely coexist, Cathy?” she asked, sounding aghast. “Surely, you do not mean… even in the bedchamber?”
“Grandmama!” Cathy’s cheeks burned. “He... he has not set foot in my bedchambers. I mean... I told him to respect my solitude, and he did. Now, he spends his days chopping wood, locking himself in his study, or managing his estates.”
“You have forbidden your own husband from entering your chambers?” The old woman was shocked. “What will people say?”
“What can people say? Do they need to know what is happening behind closed doors? We are strangers, Grandmama, who just happen to be married.”
The baroness looked even paler, then, as if she could not fathom how her granddaughter would think that way. She fanned herself to slightly disguise the strangled whisper that could not help but escape her throat.
“Kathleen Quinten! Are you telling me that your marriage to the Duke has, so far, been unconsummated?”