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She haunted his dreams still, seeing her stand before him without her scar, a magnificent smile on her face. In his dreams, he reached for her wishing to draw her near, only to wake up and find himself alone. Also, their breakfast, an event he’d looked forward to so much was postponed. Their fathers were already committed to an early morning hunt with Lord Havers. As such, he’d not laid eyes on Lady Ruth all morning and it was now early afternoon.

Meanwhile, Lady Sophia entered his mind rarely, if at all. And yet, it was she he was meant to marry.

“I have no interest in marrying anyone my heart does not desire,” he said to his cousin who still waited for an answer.

“And your heart desires the Lady of… Lady Ruth.” It was a statement, not a question. Kenneth rose to his full height opposite his cousin.

“And you concluded this from my allowing her to ride atop my horse through the mud?”

Lawrence smirked. “I conclude it from the way you glanced at her all throughout dinner yesterday and again when we were assembled in the drawing room.”

Kenneth could not deny it. Lady Ruth filled him with a feeling of warmth whenever she was near. Her mere presence elated him and gave him cause to smile.

“I wish you kept your observations to yourself, Lawrence for they are wrong and could cause great distress to…” He stopped for in that moment, someone walked into the library. He turned and found himself disappointed when the person the tender footsteps belonged to turned out to be Lady Sophia, accompanied by Molly.

She curtsied to him before beaming at him. “Lord Rotham. I am pleased to find you here. I hoped you might like to play a game of backgammon. I was so very pleased when Her Grace told me you had a backgammon table in your library and that you are an eager player.”

Kenneth frowned. They did own a very elegant games table, crafted by the best cabinetmaker in Portsmouth, but he could not recall when or why the topic surfaced between them. The young woman’s smile faded for just a moment before his cousin spoke up.

“Ah, Kenneth, you cannot possibly have forgotten already. You agreed yesterday at dinner to play a game of backgammon with Lady Ruth… Oh, I meant Lady Sophia. I apologize, my lady. I confused your names as we were just speaking of your sister.”

The smile on Lady Sophia’s face dropped entirely now.

“You were? I see.” She stopped speaking and uncomfortably shuffled her feet. Recovering herself, her smile reappeared. “In any case. If you are not available now, then perhaps later.”

Kenneth cleared his throat. “I am rather occupied with my reading, I’m afraid.” He was, of course, not at all occupied with his reading. He’d been sitting in front of the fire, thinking of what to do about these strange, growing feelings he had for Lady Ruth, instead.

Lady Sophia sighed with disappointment. She was a sweet young woman, but he found himself somewhat alarmed at a change in her personality he’d noticed. Whereas her desire for his attention was previously displayed in an eager, yet understated fashion, it was now very forceful and, in his opinion, too overt.

He suspected his mother was behind this change, eager as she was for a match between himself and Lady Sophia. Yet, he could not bring himself to agree to any such proposition.

“I will gladly play a game if my cousin cannot be moved to.”

She looked at his cousin with wide eyes. “Lord Cragshade, that is very kind of you to offer but I did not mean to make a nuisance of myself and suggest that…”

Lawrence waved a hand and pushed himself up on his crutch, making quite a show of it.

“Nonsense. I would very much care to play. Besides, we have a chaperone at the ready.” He nodded at Molly, who’d been brought along for just such an occasion.

“I suppose, yes.” She made her way toward the table and slid into the seat as Lawrence sat across from her and set up the game.

Kenneth turned back to his book but couldn’t help to overhear, the flood of compliments his cousin bestowed upon the young lady, who politely thanked him for each but did not otherwise engage him at all.

What is Lawrence up to? It is not like him to be so overt with his attentions toward a young woman. And one he knows I am to marry if my mother gets her way.

Before he had a chance to think on the matter further, he was interrupted by his mother. The Duchess made her entrance into the library and stopped in the door.

It was evident the very moment she’d scanned the room that she was greatly displeased with what presented itself before her. Kenneth swallowed, bracing himself.

“Good afternoon, Mother.”

She glared at him and made her way across the room, her half-boots creating a clanging sound on the smooth wood floor.

“Kenneth.” She lowered her voice. “Why is it your cousin engaging Lady Sophia in a game of backgammon instead of you?”

He leaned forward. “It seems they both rather enjoy it, while I do not.”

“What piffel, you adore backgammon.”