Austin kept coming back up, though. Even though he was taking a beating, he was giving one as well. And that was exactly what he needed, something to punch over and over again until his frustrations surrounding Lavender was gone. Every time he took a blow though, he saw her face. He saw her horror. Her worry.
Perhaps this was not a good idea.
The realization came a little too late, he realized, as he blocked a blow with his forearm and felt the force of it rockthrough his body. He had to end this quickly before it got any further.
Austin took another blow to the chin to keep his opponent close. Then he caught his arm, swinging him around until he forced the man to his knees. Without giving him the chance to pull free, he rammed his fist into his jaw hard enough to knock him out cold.
Applause ran through the room but Austin ignored it. He didn’t bother to say goodbye to Sprout or anyone else. He simply stalked out of the room, feeling worse now than he had been before. Outside, he spat blood into the grass and climbed into his carriage, a little grateful he hadn’t sent his coachman away like he usually did.
His entire body ached. How could he have thought that would make him feel better? Now Lavender would only look at him like a monster when they went to the horse racing.
He shouldn’t care. He was only doing this to fulfill his side of the contract, after all. It mattered not what she thought of him.
Austin didn’t like how much it felt as if he was lying to himself.
As soon as he returned to the townhouse, he ordered his butler to fetch him his decanter and glass and bring it to his bedchamber. If fighting didn’t help then he would simply drink the rest of the day away.
“This came for you when you were away, my lord,” his butler told him, handing him a letter.
Austin was about to send him away, telling him he was in no mood to receive any correspondence, but then he noticed Lavender’s hasty handwriting.
Austin quickly unfolded the letter. His mood soured with every word he read. After all that happened, Lavender had decided to invite Colin Asher to attend the horse races with them? Hadn’t she added that to their events because of him? Why would she want to bring another gentleman in the middle of that?
There was no hope for his mood to improve today. That letter had only made things worse. Austin tossed it aside and turned to make his way out the door, heading to White’s instead. Maybe that would be enough to fix this.
***
The moment Austin walked into White’s, he spotted Colin Asher occupying one of the tables at the far back of the gentleman’s club. And as soon as he saw Colin, Austin’s frustration with the situation he found himself in culminated in a ripe, tasty need for revenge.
He stalked forward, hands curled into fists at his side. Men watched him go by and whispers followed in his wake. The look in his eye had everyone parting ways, not daring to stay in his path. He must have looked rather formidable but when he arrived at Colin’s table, the other man merely looked up at him with nothing but disdain.
“Get up,” Austin ordered. “We need to talk.”
Colin snorted derisively. “You do not order me about, lord,” he hissed. “And seeing the state you’re in, I would think that you had much better things to do than to frequent my watering hole.”
Austin gave him an ugly smile. Colin’s response was exactly how he wanted it to be. Tense and hostile enough for whatever was about to come to feel necessary.
He caught the lapels of the man sitting across from Colin and hauled him out of the armchair. The man did not so much as protest. Austin claimed the chair, fixing Colin with a glare.
“I thought you men had more respect than this,” he growled. “To think a mere bastard understood the gentlemanly rules of society far better than you do.”
Colin tilted his head to the side, narrowing his eyes. “I’m afraid I do not know what you are talking about.”
“I’m certain that you do,” Austin countered. “Lavender.”
Colin reached for his drink in an idle manner that increased Austin’s annoyance. As if he had no reason to be afraid of the bruised man before him itching for another fight. “Yes, Lavender. My closest and oldest friend. She has always been too nice for her own good. I figure that must be the reason why she’s taken pity on a man like yourself and has accepted your sad proposal.”
“And because of that, you think it proper to ask for her hand in marriage when you know she is meant for another.”
Murmurs rushed through the club as the onlookers reeled in surprise. Colin hardly flinched. “It was about time I made my move. I was waiting for the right time, but you took that from me.”
“Back down, Asher.”
“Or what?” Colin leaned forward, his stare icy. “Do not think I am unaware of the fact that you are only marrying Lavender for her wealth, Derby. Forgive me if I do not think she should be a pawn to save you from the mismanagement of your own.”
“You haven’t a clue what Lavender and I have,” Austin stated. He ignored the voice in the back of his head that said he didn’t know what they had either. “And it shouldn’t matter to you. If I find out you are still sniffing around her like the hound you are, then I will ensure that you regret it.”
“You do not frighten me. You may hold a title but at the end of it, you are still the son of a maid and nothing more.” He sneered, his handsome features twisting into something grotesque. “I may not have a title but I am of finer breeding stock than you could ever be. I am good for Lavender while you…you are nothing but a leech looking for something to suck on. I won’t allow it.”
