No.
It was the fact that Thomas was an insufficient lover, and she was sure that Montague would be as well.Perhaps Florentia didn’t need a lover at all, especially if they were so disappointing.
“Your Grace, forgive my impertinence.”Anderson bowed as the duke walked to the small table piled high with food.
Florentia stared, horrified, as he began making his own plate, Thomas gaping from the duke to Anderson.
Dear God, he was a disaster.
“Nothing to forgive, mate.”He snapped his fingers loudly, as if he were trying to recall the butler’s name.
Florentia rolled her eyes, wondering if perhaps her late husband was right about the O’Brien family being unsuitable for the dukedom.
“Anderson, Your Grace,” the butler said, his eyes shifting slightly, lips in a straight line.
The duke—Summerset continued to pile his plate with food, as Helen, one of the maids, entered carrying a tea service.The girl’s cheeks turned bright red as she stared wide-eyed at the tall viral man making his own plate.
Deciding to ignore the new duke and his lack of manners, Florentia returned to the invitations.
“How very odd.”Florentia held up one of the invitations, still not believing that she was invited at all.“The Duke and Duchess of Karrington are throwing a ball in your honor in a fortnight.”
The new duke sat down across from her.“What’s odd about that?”he asked, cracking his egg.“He and my da are friends—were friends,” he said softly, correcting himself.
For a moment, she did not know how to react to his sudden change in behavior.His father had died a year ago, shortly after her husband.Tavish had been off fighting.Understandably, the death was still fresh to him.
Facing the butler, she cleared her throat.“Anderson, please begin interviewing valets for the duke.”She took a sip of her chocolate, trying to ignore how the new duke affected both her and the maid.Not that she cared, how Helen reacted to the brute.
“I don’t need a valet.I’ve been dressing myself for years,” he said, taking the seat across from Florentia.“Where’s the coffee?”
Those hypnotic eyes landed on her, and suddenly she didn’t think giving in to the sensations he caused in her would be such a terrible idea.She had a feeling that Tavish O’Brien was not a mediocre lover at all.
But she was not in need of another lover, not even one with mesmerizing blue eyes.
“There’s no coffee,” Thomas said, with a bit of bite in his voice.
The new duke, turned to the footman, examining him closely, menacingly, before he spoke in a cool voice.“Then get some.”
A command shouldn’t really stir lust in her, but that was exactly what happened, as she sat there watching the new duke put the footman in his place.
“Thomas, inform Cook to send someone to buy coffee beans for His Grace’s for his breakfast in the mornings,” Florentia said, finding it best to intervene before the new duke harmed the footman.
“Right away, Your Grace.”Thomas gave Florentia one last longing look before he rushed out of the breakfast room.
“Anderson, begin interviewing valets, please,” she instructed again, ignoring the duke’s look of annoyance.“Also, please arrange for the grooms to ready another carriage and send word to the best tailor on Bond Street that His Grace will require a new wardrobe,” Florentia prattled on, her gaze raking over the new duke.
He looked absolutely atrocious—still devilishly handsome—but atrocious, nonetheless.There was no way he could go out in society looking like that.
“My clothes are fine, and I won’t be needing a carriage.I can walk wherever I need to go or take a hackney.”He placed his elbows on the table, revealing muscled forearms with prominent veins.
“You’re now one of the richest dukes in the ton; you can’t walk everywhere.”She shook her head, then opened another invitation, this one to a charity musicale.“Anderson, also arrange a meeting with the household staff, after lunch.”
“I don’t need to meet with the staff.”Tavish pointed his fork at her.
She took a deep breath, trying to find the strength to deal with him.“Leave us,” she said simply, waiting for Anderson and the maid to leave.
The maid, Helen, was a terrible gossip, something Florentia really didn’t care about, but it wouldn’t help for her and the new duke to quarrel in front of the servants.
“You fecked the footman?”he asked, before taking a bite of his toast.“Ended it to from the sad looks he’s giving you,” he said with a mouthful of bread.
