“True. But this one isn’t stupid, either. He’s made a fortune shipping fur and lumber from Canada.”
Daisy raised her brows. “Sounds promising.”
Ellie sent her a wicked, teasing look. “Not only that, but he’s also tall, dark, and devastatingly handsome.”
Tess frowned as her brain unhelpfully provided an image of her mysterious stranger. Memories of their interlude had haunted her ever since Careby’s party ten days ago. Against all logic, she’d found herself searching for him at every event she’d attended since, her heart skipping a beat whenever she glimpsed a tall, dark male across a room.
Heat rushed to her cheeks and she fanned herself surreptitiously withThe Times.She had to stop thinking of him.
Daisy let out a derisive snort. “How do you know what he looks like?”
“Because I met him,” Ellie said triumphantly. “Two years ago.”
“When?” Tess demanded.
“Do you remember Lady Petworth’s ball? The one to celebrate Bonaparte’s first exile?”
Tess wrinkled her nose. “I didn’t go. That was the week before my wedding. Father was keeping me under house arrest.”
“Oh, hell, I’d forgotten about that. I hope he’s rotting in his grave,” Ellie muttered vehemently.
Daisy nodded in agreement, and Tess felt a flash of gratitude for their unwavering support.
“Well, anyway,” Ellie continued, “hewas there. Half the girls fell in love with him, even with absolutely no encouragement.”
“Probablybecausehe gave them no encouragement,” Daisy drawled. “There’s something so appealing about a challenge.”
Tess laughed.
“As I was saying…” Ellie gave the paper she held a theatrical flourish that would have been perfect for a case-winning courtroom revelation. “His name is Justin Thornton, and he’s just returned from the wilds of Canada. He’s in London right now, to answer his writ of summons.”
“How do you know all this?” Daisy demanded.
“Because I happened to overhear a conversation between my father and Josiah Turnbull at dinner the other night. And when I say ‘happened to overhear,’ I mean ‘shamelessly eavesdropped the minute I heard the name Wansford.’” Ellie grinned.
“I appreciate the spying on my behalf,” Tess said. “What else did you hear?”
“Turnbull said there’s no doubt he’s found the right man, but that Thornton was waiting for it to be made official before he called on you. Itisquite a delicate situation, after all. It’s not often the new duke needs introducing to the old duchess.”
“Who are you calling old?” Tess gasped in mock outrage. “I’m twenty-one.”
“Currentduchess,” Ellie amended with a laugh. “I should have said current. Or Dowager.”
“Dowager duchess is even worse. It makes me sound like a ninety-year-old hag.”
“Do you think he knows how old you are?” Daisy mused. “If not, he’ll be in for quite the shock.”
“Oh, I’m sure Josiah’s filled him in,” Ellie said. “Which means Thornton’s being discreet.”
“A mark in his favor, I suppose,” Daisy sniffed. “Atleast he hasn’t barged into Wansford House and ordered you to start packing.”
Tess bit her lip. “If he reallyisthe new duke, I’ll have to move out of the Hall and into the dower house. And find somewhere else to live here in London.”
“You ownthisbuilding,” Daisy reminded her. “You can stay here if you have to. It’s not Portman Square, I grant you, but it’s still a lovely part of town.”
Tess considered that suggestion. The great collector Sir John Soane lived just down the street, at Nos. 12 and 13, and although much of the fashionable world had moved west, to Mayfair, the neighborhood was still filled with wealthy lawyers and respectable barristers, who enjoyed the proximity to the Inns of Court.
“It may come to that,” Tess said. “And honestly, living here would be quite nice.”
