Page 85 of Dukes for Dessert
The goddess was there, trailing them at a discreet distance. Not entirely alone, then, but she was giving them space.
They reached the door that led to the covered walkway between the house and the orangery. He opened it for Lady Marina, who preceded him outside into the temperate autumn afternoon.
It was a short walk to the orangery, where he again held the door for Lady Marina. Inside, the temperature jumped several degrees. All around them sprouted vegetation, and the air was thick with the smell of dirt and life. He loved the scent of the outdoors, but this was different, perhaps because it was an artificial space. Things were brought here to grow in a controlled environment instead of allowed to flourish—or not—on their own.
Lady Marina was already making her way to the orange trees, which had been brought inside in their large pots. They sat at the opposite end of the building. He couldn’t see any oranges from here and wondered if this would be a fruitless effort.
Fruitless.
“Are you smiling?”
He pivoted to see Juno standing just inside the door staring at him as if he possessed a second head. His pulse picked up speed, and his stomach knotted. The sensation was reminiscent of the time Cook had caught him pilfering a biscuit from the kitchen when he was six.
“No.”
“Yes, you were.” She narrowed her eyes at him. “Why wouldn’t you want me to see you smiling?”
“I can’t see any oranges.” He started walking toward the trees, hoping she would drop the matter of whether he’d smiled or not. Yes, he’d bloody smiled.
She hurried beside him. “You are the strangest man.”
He kept silent until they reached the other end of the building. “Find any?”
Lady Marina was on the other side of the grouping of trees. She poked her head around one. “Not yet. Oh, wait, there’s one.” She moved behind another tree, then reappeared with an orange in her palm. “What do I do with it?”
Juno held out a basket. “Just drop it in here.”
Lady Marina rolled the orange into the basket. “Now to the library.” She turned and strode purposefully toward the door.
Dare frowned after her. “Is she in a hurry to reach the library or to get away from me?”
“Did something happen?” the goddess asked sharply.
“No. I just don’t have the sense that she likes me.”
“She doesn’t know you.”
“I am trying to engage her. There is just no…” He’d been about to say attraction, but decided that wouldn’t be appropriate.
“No what?”
“No connection.”
She flinched. “You need time for that to develop. Instant…connection is very rare.”
“Are you speaking from experience, Mrs. Langton? Was there a Mr. Langton?”
“Yes, there was. However, my experience doesn’t signify,” she said imperiously, and damn if he didn’t almost smile again. He liked provoking her, apparently. That was nearly as surprising as him smiling.
“Just give it some time,” she repeated. “It’s only been a few days.”
“I don’t think time is going to change this situation.” There was no connection, no attraction, no anything drawing him to Lady Marina—or she to him—save the push of those who sought to match them together. The goddess in front of him, on the other hand, provoked an extreme attraction. But he couldn’t say that.
Why couldn’t he? Since when did he censor himself?
“The situation doesn’t need to change,” she said icily. “You do.”
“Me?”
