CHAPTER 1
“You can’t expect a man to leave a woman like you all alone and not cause trouble, Your Grace.” Lord Bradford stood too close. His breath carried the sweet stench of port.
Iris kept her smile steady even as her stomach churned. The corner of Felix’s drawing room suddenly felt like a trap.
“You’ve mistaken me for someone interesting, My Lord.” She tried to step sideways, but Bradford braced his hand on the wall, right beside her head.
“Oh, I think not.” He leaned in close. His eyes roamed over her face with an appreciation that made her skin crawl. “The elusive Duchess of Carridan, finally gracing us with her presence. Your husband must be very…busyto leave such a treasure unguarded.”
The word ‘busy’ dripped with suggestion.
Iris felt heat rise in her cheeks, but she kept her voice cool. “The Duke’s affairs are his own concern.”
“Affairs, yes.” Bradford’s smile widened. “One wonders what keeps a man in London when his wife waits in the country. All these wolves circling, and no protector in sight.”
Each word struck like a small knife.
A year.
The Duke had left her alone for an entire year, abandoning her on their wedding night without an explanation.
Still, she’d die before she let this leering fool see how deeply that cut.
“I require no protection if the gentlemen in this room still understand propriety.” She lifted her chin. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I believe I see Lady Whitmore beckoning.”
She ducked under his arm before he could respond, and her heart hammered against her ribs. The lie about Lady Whitmore didn’t matter. She just needed to put distance between herself and Bradford’s wandering eyes.
But escape proved short-lived.
Three women materialized in her path like vultures descending on carrion. Lady Grossmont led the pack. Her thin lips were already curling into a false smile.
“Your Grace! How wonderful to finally see you in Society.” The emphasis on ‘finally’ rang clear as a bell. “We were thinking you’d taken holy orders.”
“Or perhaps you’ve been busy with other matters?” Lady Ashford suggested, her gaze dropping meaningfully to Iris’s waist. “Though one would expect happy news by now, after a full year of marriage.”
The third woman, Lady Downfield, tittered behind her fan. “How modern of the Duke, maintaining separate households. They say he’s terribly devoted to his… business interests in London.”
Iris’s smile felt like glass, ready to shatter at the slightest pressure. “How kind of you all to take such interest in my life. I’m sure your own families benefit from such devoted attention.”
Lady Grossmont’s eyes narrowed. “One simply worries when a new bride is so often alone. People talk.”
“About the Duke’s absence?” Lady Ashford asked. “Or about what might be keeping him away?”
They circled her like hungry cats. Each word was calculated to wound.
Iris had attended enough gatherings to recognize the game. They wanted tears. They wanted her to crumble, to admit that her husband had abandoned her and that her marriage was a sham.
She would give them nothing.
“Ah, Your Grace! There you are.” Felix’s voice cut through their interrogation like sunshine through storm clouds. “I’ve been searching all evening for someone better than me to stand next to.”
The ladies immediately softened. They fluttered their fans and simpered at the Marquess of Halston.
Felix cut a dashing figure in his midnight blue coat. His dark hair was artfully tousled. More importantly, he was unmarried, titled, and owner of a grand fortune.
“Lord Halston,” Lady Grossmont purred. “How delightful. We were just getting reacquainted with Her Grace.”
“Reacquainted? How fascinating.” Felix’s smile was charming, but Iris caught the sharp edge beneath his tone. “Though I can’t imagine what you’d need to reacquaint yourselves with. Surely nothing’s changed since this morning when you were gossiping about her at the milliner’s shop?”
