“Pray, why are you here, engaging in what can only be described as an unbecoming altercation with my daughter?” the Earl asked as he crossed his arms over his chest and tapped his foot the same way Joanna had done earlier.
Joanna sneered as she realized once again that in some ways, she and her father were alike.
Kenneth, his face flushed with frustration, spoke, “I did not seek an altercation with your daughter, that I can assure you of. I am here because I need to speak to you at once.We need to discuss the matter of Our Lady of Mount Carmel’s Orphanage and the funds for the new schoolhouse. This is long overdue. I haveattempted to speak to you more than once about this matter, yet you continue to avoid me.”
Joanna’s brow furrowed in confusion. Our Lady of Mount Carmel’s Orphanage? Funds for the new schoolhouse?
Was the Duke one of the men involved in funding the orphanage? She’d heard a new schoolhouse was to be built, replacing the old one, which had burned down to the ground more than a year ago. She looked at her father, her eyebrows raised now, but he ignored her. In fact, she noticed that her father’s expression tightened, a shadow passing over his features.
“This is not the place. I suggest we discuss this matter in my study.”
The Duke tilted his head left and right, and then nodded. “Very well. This mattermustbe addressed, and I assure you, I will not leave until I have the answers I seek,” he replied. Then, as he left the hall with her father, he shot her one last intense look.
There was a seriousness in his eyes, a passion that gave Joanna pause. The emotion in his voice when he spoke of her beloved orphanage had caused a shift within her.
Had she been wrong to judge him harshly? Was there more to him than the rude outburst she’d witnessed? She couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to the Duke than met the eye, and her father’s involvement left her with a gnawing suspicion.
The door to the study closed behind them, leaving her in a momentary void. She turned on her heels and marched back to the drawing room, where Sally and Rosy remained, both staring at her open-mouthed.
“What in the world were you thinking? You cannot talk to a duke in such a manner!” Sally chided and shook her head.
“Duke or not, nobody has a right to talk to anyone like this. Besides, do you know who he is?” Joanna asked, her voice tinged with curiosity.
“He’s the Duke of Wells. I’ve heard Father mention him before. He is one of the men involved with the charity. His father passed away last year, and he’s taken on his duties. I hear he became a member of the House of Lords just recently,” Sally explained.
Joanna frowned, pondering the significance of the Duke’s involvement in the charity. “But why would he be so furious about Our Lady of Mount Carmel’s Orphanage and the funds for the schoolhouse?”
Before Sally could respond, their mother entered the room. She looked from one girl to the next before settling her gaze on Joanna. “Girls, this is a matter for the men to handle. Your father will take care of it. It’s not something you need to worry about.”
Joanna, feeling a spark of resentment, couldn’t help but wonder if her mother would have as much confidence in her father if she knew the truth about him. Indeed, she had half a mind totell her mother all she knew about her father, but something in her mother’s demeanor told her this was not the time. And truthfully, Joanna knew this as well. She harbored rage and disdain for her father both for his actions in the past and those in the present, but she could not take them out on her mother, who was but a pawn in his games. Still, she could not quite stop herself entirely.
“Mother, why is it that every time something important happens, we’re told it’s none of our business? Why does Father get to make all the decisions?”
The Countess sighed, her gaze distant. “Joanna, there are affairs that are best left to the men. Your father will handle it. Trust in that.”
“How is he handling my future?” Joanna retorted, and her mother took a step back before shaking her head and turning away.
As her mother left the room, Joanna’s mind raced with unanswered questions. Her father’s betrayal, the Duke of Wells’ anger, and her mother’s dismissal left her feeling like an outsider in her own home. As though she were entirely out of control when it came to her own destiny.
This morning, she’d awoken to just another regular day, but as the sun set in the sky, she had to understand that life had now changed and would never be the same.
CHAPTER 2
An hour after bursting into Carlisle Manor, Kenneth exited. As he did, he spotted the indignant young girl in the drawing room. He paused for a split second and looked at her. He had half a mind to confront her, to tell her that her behavior was unbecoming of a lady, but he had to admit that the burning rage he’d felt earlier had dissipated somewhat.
Instead, he simply squared his shoulders, turned away, and marched out of the manor. As he did so, he felt the young woman’s eyes on him, and when he glanced over his shoulder, he saw her standing at the window, still looking at him. His left eye twitched as it often did when irritation spread through his body.
Who was this woman to speak to him as she had? Clearly, the Earl of Carlisle had not raised his daughters properly. Or at least this one. Joanna.
Kenneth shook his head as he made his way to the carriage. What a spitfire, that much he had to admit. Rarely had he met a young woman with as much confidence. And he could not denythat she was rather handsome with her pert chin and blue eyes that reminded him of the ocean in Italy, where he’d spent the summer before he inherited the dukedom.
“Well, well, Kenny, I was beginning to think I’d need to entertain myself at the tavern while you conducted your business with the Earl,” the jesting voice of his friend Leonard Harding, the Duke of Chester, came. Leonard threw open the carriage door and winked at him, a twinkle in his eyes.
Kenneth chuckled and climbed into the carriage. The vehicle swayed slightly beneath his weight. He sat beside his friend, who had been entertaining himself with a book that he now tucked under his armpit.
“I told you to come along with me,” Kenneth replied.
“I have no vested interest in the orphanage as of yet, and I am still waiting to see if you think I ought to make such an investment or not. Pray, what did the Earl have to say when confronted with your accusations?” Leonard asked and rested his feet on the bench opposite them while Kenneth rapped on the roof to let the coachman know they were ready.
