He looked sufficiently humbled by this, which tempered her rage somewhat.
“It is true. I should not have been so forward. However, you presented yourself to me as somebody entirely independent and capable of finding a husband on her own. So how was I supposed to know that it would be such a disaster?”
She took a deep breath and was about to launch into a fierce defense of herself when he raised both hands.
“Be that as it may, you struggled. And I cannot help but wonder, is it to do with your father’s death? Do you hesitate to truly embrace courtship and the marriage mart, as Society likes to call it? Or is there another reason?”
Was he truly trying to understand her? Where had the compassion come from?
“I do not know what you mean. Surely it is understandable that I would not be courting and looking for a husband while in my mourning period. Indeed, it is quite early to be doing so now. We are barely out of?—”
“I understand, but we are at a time where it is acceptable for you to court again, yet I cannot help but wonder what about before your father’s death? It seems to me that you have not been in a courtship in more than three years. I cannot help but wonder how the failure of your last courtship impacted you, and your father’s death only compounded that? Are you perhaps hesitant about… living your life to the fullest?”
Judith spun around so quickly that the gravel crunched beneath her feet and glared at him. “What would you know of my life? I will have you know that I have purposely not courted because I was waiting for the right person.”
His blue eyes narrowed, and he tilted his head slightly to the side. The sky was a brilliant crimson with hints of purple as the sun set behind him, casting an otherworldly glow on him. He was so handsome, it was almost painful to look upon him.
Judith squeezed her eyes shut, chiding herself for having such thoughts again, and when she opened them, she redirected her focus on the oak tree just to his right rather than directly at his face.
“How will you find the right person if you do not court? Again, I wonder, why have you not tried more? Why have you not gone to the theater and everything else? It seems almost as if you have used your failed courtship and your desire for love as an excuse to not embrace life.”
How dare he judge her in such a manner?
“Embrace life? It is easy for you to talk about embracing life when you are a gentleman who can do whatever he wants. You can saunter off and board a ship to go anywhere in the world, as my brother did. You can charm as many ladies as you like, both here and abroad, and the worst you will get is the label of a rake, which does not hinder or harm your progress in society. I am a woman. My actions reflect on me more severely than yours.”
She watched his lips press together as he took her in, and then he tilted his head slightly. “That might be true, and I am not saying that society doesn’t stifle a lady, but there are things you can do. You can still dance. You can still live. I could have operated within these confines, but it seems that you have chosen to build a small world of your own away from society, living in the hope that somehow a gentleman will find you here in your home locked away rather than like in that new fairytale everyone is talking about. The one about the young lady who ate a poisoned apple and then slept.”
“I think you are mixing up your fairytales. Snow White ate the poisoned apple, Sleeping Beauty slept for one-hundred years.” She smiled.
“That might be right, but here we have it. A perfect example of what you ought not to do. You should refrain from correcting people you meet at a ball,” he remarked, shaking his head slightly.
Judith couldn’t help but snort. “But if someone is wrong, why should I not correct them?”
The Duke leaned in and said firmly, “You can, when you know them better, but no gentleman will want to be corrected by a woman he just met.”
Feeling a wave of irritation, Judith sighed and wondered if Rosy and Joanna had to watch what they said around their husbands. She doubted it.
“A gentleman should not mind being challenged. Or do you? Do you mind being challenged?”
The Duke let out a hearty laugh, which once again made her bristle. “What I do or do not like in a lady does not matter.”
Judith arched an eyebrow. “Then why won’t you answer? Is it because it would contradict your own advice, Your Grace?”
After a moment, he conceded. “I like a lady who can stand up for herself and challenge me, but I am not the one you need to charm.”
The garden was bathed in the soft, golden hues of the setting sun, casting a warm glow over the neatly trimmed hedges and blooming flowers. The air was filled with the fragrance of roses, and a gentle breeze rustled the leaves, creating a serene and picturesque scene.
Aaron and Judith stood near a marble bench, the tension between them palpable.
“Your Grace, I really don’t think I can do this,” Judith declared, her voice wavering slightly. “Sometimes the gentlemen only want to talk about hunting and fishing. How can I pretend to be interested in things I know nothing about?”
Aaron pursed his lips and examined her from head to toe, as if he were reconsidering his promise to her brother. Indeed, he appeared rather vexed.
“First, I think you ought to call me Aaron when we are alone—we might as well drop the formalities. For another, I will need you to gather your wits about you. You cannot give up now. Or are you not as independent and strong as you had me believe?”
This jolted her backward. How dare he imply she was weak?
“I am strong and independent, Your Gr—Aaron.”
