A Duke in Time (The Widow Rules #1) - Janna MacGregor Page 0,5
be ruined.” She took a step closer. “I hate to be crass, but you’re the duke, the head of the family, which makes it your mess. You need to clean it up.”
Without hesitating, he took one step back for safety. He groaned dramatically. “Lady Meriwether, lucky for you, I employ people to clean up messes. This office for instance. They’re the best legal minds in London.”
She laughed softly, but her eyes sparkled with a renewed aggravation. “Your brother retained the same people too.” She lifted one perfect eyebrow. “The best legal minds in London apparently don’t have a clue how to proceed.”
Her gaze pinned him in place.
He narrowed his eyes. “You wear sarcasm well, Lady Meriwether.”
“I take that as a compliment,” she purred, then tilted her head in challenge. “What are you afraid of?” she asked softly. “Me? The others?”
“Madame…” He lowered his voice. “I’ve faced Napoleon’s finest infantry in conditions that would curl your toes. I’ve seen fires and horrors on the battlefields that make hell look like a well-groomed park.” He allowed his gaze to rake over her form again. “Trust me. I highly doubt you or this dilemma can scare me.”
Instead of being offended, she smiled slightly. “We shall see, Your Grace.”
“Oh, the rapture. I can hardly wait,” he answered sardonically. It was bad form on his part, but Meri’s antics always brought out the worst in him. “Now, I must beg your leave.”
As he headed down the hallway, she called from behind. “Your Grace? When can I expect my dowry to be returned?”
He turned around sharply. “As you’ve probably surmised, Meri seems to have either spent it or misplaced it. My money is that he gambled it away.”
Katherine let out a tremulous breath, but her eyes never blinked. A subtle tightness formed around her perfect lips. He’d always been susceptible to red lips—not the painted ones of courtesans and actresses, but real ones like hers. Today, such a weakness caused his chest to squeeze. “How much is it?” he asked in the most even voice he could muster.
“Two hundred pounds,” she said.
He didn’t blink. “Was there anything else?”
She shook her head gently.
“Are you serious?” he asked.
His half brother had married this woman for two hundred pounds? Meri’s habit was to spend three times that amount on his horses and racing every month. Christian should know. He’d been the one to pay his bills over the last three years.
She lifted her chin in an act of defiance. “Rest assured, I never joke about money.”
Her golden-green eyes suddenly dulled, losing their earlier luster.
Christian inwardly winced. After being in London for only a week, he’d insulted the first woman he’d had a real conversation with outside of his staff.
She straightened her shoulders as if ready to bear any verbal blow he’d bestow. “It may not be a great amount to you, but it means the world to me. It represents everything,” she said quietly. This time, she was the one to turn from him.
“Lady Meriwether?”
She stopped but didn’t face him.
“I beg you to accept my humble apology. Though it’s no excuse, I’ve not been in polite company for a while. My manners are rusty,” he said gently. “Truly, it’s not a joke to me either. I’m sincere when I say I’m finished with my half brother’s mischief in more ways than one. However, I’ll discuss your money with Mr. Hanes. That’s all I can promise.”
“It’s not enough.” Without any other acknowledgment, she walked straight toward Mr. Hanes’s office.
Bloody hell. Leave it to Meri to part this world with a monumental scandal in his wake. Christian had half a mind to dig up the hoodlum and give him a blistering lecture. Perhaps then he’d find out what Meri had been thinking, marrying three women and spending their dowries.
When Christian walked out the door, an attending footman opened the carriage door. Without breaking his stride, Christian entered the coach, then settled in the forward-facing seat. He stopped his hand midair before knocking on the roof.
Indeed, those women faced real ruin. For a moment, the urge to return and offer assistance grew fierce. He had a true talent for maneuvering people out of dangerous situations.
But not this time.
For his own sanity, he had to cut all ties to his brother.
Half brother.
Without second guessing his decision, Christian rapped twice with his knuckles, sending the carriage lurching into the London traffic. As the coach picked up speed, his gut tightened in revolt. He couldn’t leave those women, particularly Lady Meriwether like that.