“What is she like? Where did you meet her exactly, and when? What are her interests?” his mother inquired, her enthusiasm growing.
“She’s a lovely young lady, well-mannered, and accomplished,” Kenneth replied, attempting to paint a good picture of Joanna.
Leonard, unable to resist, interjected, “And fiery! She has quite a few opinions, or so I heard.”
Kenneth shot him a warning look. “Yes, well, she’s also quite intelligent and has a keen sense of humor,” he added, hoping to smooth over any rough edges.
His mother’s curiosity only increased, and she asked him more questions about Joanna’s family, her accomplishments, andeverything else that crossed her mind. The more questions she had, the more Kenneth squirmed, as he realized he didn’t know much about Joanna, beyond their brief interactions.
However, Leonard, his loyal friend, saw his predicament and stepped in to save the day. “But speaking of acquaintances, Madam, what should be of keen interest to you is exactly how Kenneth and Lady Joanna met. As he said, it was through Lady Joanna’s father, the Earl of Carlisle, who is with the chairman of Our Lady of Mount Carmel’s Orphanage.”
“Oh, yes. That is right. Lord Carlisle and your father knew one another well, and your brother…” Tears welled up in the Dowager Duchess’s eyes as she said her eldest son’s name. “He was so very fond of the orphanage and the little ones.”
Kenneth, feeling a pang of longing for his older brother, maintained his composure. “Yes, indeed. That is how we’re connected, Lord Carlisle and I. The orphanage. He is the chairman now.”
“Edward was to be chairman,” his mother said quietly, wringing the napkin between her gloved hands. “He would have been so happy to hear that you are not only involved in the orphanage, but you are also courting the chairman’s daughter. Edward would have been delighted.”
Edward.
As always, the mention of his brother’s name cast a shadow over him. And this time, it wasn’t just because he missed his olderbrother so much. It was because he worried about what Edward would think of this sham courtship. Would he understand? Or would he be disappointed?
All of his life, Kenneth had aimed to follow in his brother’s footsteps, to be the man Edward would have wanted him to be, but he’d failed so far. And this certainly was a step in the wrong direction, as far as his aim was concerned.
Alas, he had set things in motion, and as his mother clasped his hand, expressing her happiness, Kenneth couldn’t help but wonder how deep this ruse would take him and what consequences it might engender.
As the dinner drew to an end, the Dowager Duchess gracefully excused herself to go to the powder room before going to the drawing room, where Kenneth had instructed one of the maids to play the pianoforte for them.
The second she made her way down the hall, Leonard seized the opportunity to hold Kenneth back in the dimly lit dining room, his expression a mix of concern and reproach. “What in the world are you doing, Kenny?” he demanded, his tone hushed but stern. “You cannot expect me to believe you are courting Lady Joanna? When I raised the subject in jest days ago, I thought you might run me through, and now you’re on the way to matrimony? What next? Will you call for an invasion of the Canadas? Dethrone the Prince Regent?”
Leonard looked at him as though he had indeed lost his mind, and a part of Kenneth wondered if that wasn’t the case.
Kenneth sighed, running a hand through his hair. “It’s a ruse, Leonard. Lady Joanna was meant to marry the Marquess of Worcester, the widower. A man old enough to be her father. She was against it and needed a way out. I needed a lady to keep my mother off my back. This is all for appearances, so you need not be in such high dudgeon, old chum.”
Leonard’s disapproval was evident. “This is dishonest, Kenneth. Playing with someone’s feelings is not a game to be taken lightly.”
Kenneth nodded, acknowledging the severity of his actions. “I am not playing with Lady Joanna’s feelings. She knows this is not real. She needs time to find a husband she truly cares about or some other solution to her problem. I am merely providing her with a temporary solution. It is all arranged.”
“I do not mean her, Kenneth, but your mother. You saw how happy she is.” Leonard shook his head.
Kenneth felt the shame rise in his chest. He looked toward the hall, where his mother had disappeared. “I do not relish this lie, but I just need my mother to leave me alone. Besides, you said it yourself. Having a woman by my side will help me establish myself as a duke.”
Leonard looked at him quietly, a deep frown on his forehead.
“Please, do not tell my mother the truth. I did not want to hurt her, but I cannot bear another lecture from her or another trip to Almack’s, where every lady is setting her cap for me.”
Leonard huffed and shook his head. “What’s the plan, then? How do you intend to keep this ruse going? You already almost gave yourself away at dinner when you couldn’t answer your mother’s questions.”
Kenneth hesitated for a moment. “We haven’t planned anything yet. It all happened rather quickly. I gave Lady Joanna a letter to present to her father, telling him that I seek to court her. She is to contact me after so that we can plan.”
“You know that you will need to be seen with her, right? At balls, the opera, and so forth,” Leonard said, scratching his chin.
“I do. And that is what I intend to do,” Kenneth assured him.
“You do not like her, how do you plan to make it look convincing?”
Kenneth paused. It was true that he didn’t like Joanna when he first met her, but after talking to her in the park, something had changed. She wasn’t as harsh and rude as he’d first thought. There was another side to her. And it helped, of course, that she was beautiful.
“I think there is more to her than meets the eye. That is all. besides, it will not last forever. In a few weeks or months,she will have found someone else. Or at least the Marquess of Worcester will have found someone else.” He shrugged when a knock at the door interrupted his train of thought.
