Chapter 3

'Stupid,stupid, stupid!' Duke Archer thought as he stood, suddenly uncomfortable beside the chaperone. She must think him dishonourable and mannerless and selfish to put her reputation at risk. What was he thinking? Oh, right. He wasn't thinking, his brain had rather gone debating if one's eyes could truly be that colour. 

He should probably turn and apologise, the last thing he wanted was for her to think him as one of the others.

He waited a few moments gathering his words and filtering carefully through them to ensure none will knowingly or not, offend her. 

■■■■

'Why, why, did she sound like that? He must think her a rude and unmannered Lady.

She has sounded cheeky and condescending, she should turn and apologise. 

She took a deep breath and whirled around — just the same time he did.

Kate let out an unguarded laughter, he smiled.

"I am" she started, "I apologise " he began.

They smiled stupidly at each other.

"Ladies first," the Duke rumbled,"Go on. Please"

"I did not mean to sound condescending, forgive me"

"And I apologise for trying to breach your personal space"

She grinned, "All good now are we?"

He nodded solemnly, "I believe "

Cassy breezed beside Kate. 

"Most delightful! Can we take a walk outside? Please? The Earl of Manchester asked me. Your Grace?"

"I will have to come with you" Kate said carefully  knowing that as much as she wanted to spend time with this Duke, she would not forgive herself if harm came to her cousin.

"Spiffin!"

"Cassy!" Kate exclaimed, horrified. That was an improper language!

The culprit grinned at her with sparkling jade eyes that made her join her grin.

"Your Grace? I may go with the Earl right?"

"Well," Archer thought. 

"If you think it too much of improper, you may come with us! Keep Kate company while you are at it"

"Cassy!" Her cheeks bloomed red.

"Certainly " Archer answered too quickly to be proper. Lady Cassandra raised her brow.

"Er— I mean, that is the best way to go about it "

"Spiffin! I'll go fetch the Earl "

■■■■|

As they trailed behind the duo who seemed very immersed in their conversation, Archer thought of how to break ground to lead in conversation.

A sprinkle of a smile dusted on Kate's face as she watched her cousin throw her head back in wild abandon and laugh.

The Earl must either have a thick skin or one extremely good ccomedian.Men rarely felt comfortable enough to make an error free conversation with Cassy, talk less of telling a joke. 

Again,she wondered how and why the Duke had stuck.

"Did you live in London? Before your parents, er, died?"

She glanced at her companion in surprise. Cassy had told her, he rarely spoke nor started a conversation — with her at least, so Kate had prepared herself for the silence that was promised. 

Hence her surprise at his words. 

He mistook her surprise. 

Damn. 

"Is that a hurtful question? I ap—"

"No. No it's not it, it's just...Oh my, I have formed the habit of cutting you in the middle of your sentence. "

Kate was not prepared for what came next. 

He— he grinned. 

It was an astonishing flash of sunny bright teeth that struck a distant harmony with his eyes that made him look very...Aristocrat. And handsome. 

"Do not fret" his voice slid smoothly, "I take no offense, Lady Katherine. May I call you Katherine rather than Kate? The other is more befitting of you"

She closed her mouth quickly and found her voice. 

"Katherine it is "

"Lovely. Shall we?"

He curved his elbow, Kate, still astonished, slid her hand in.

■■■■

Archer smiled quietly.  

His grin always had that effect on people. For a man who didn't smile often, when he did, it often left people in shock for two things.

One. Because they were shocked that he could actually perform the action. 

Two. Bevan they couldn't believe how — jr quotes — brilliant his smile was, yet he hid it from the world.

So when he saw the effect on Lady Katherine, he had gotten her to do what he was assured she wouldn't do if she were thinking rationally.

Walk arm-in-arm with him.

■■■■|

Kate realized her predicament too late and there was no backing out— except the Earl annoyed Cassy and she wanted to leave. 

She spied at the Duke who was moving with ease without a worry in mind.

"You never answered my question, Katherine "

"Kate" she corrected automatically. 

"You permitted me to call you Katherine "

She did? When?

"Just a while ago if you are wondering. "

She had? Kate wanted to smack herself with a book. She never let anyone who wasn't Father call her Katherine.

"What question is that, Your Grace?"

"Archer. Please. I asked if you have always lived in London "

"Oh. No. Not the least. I am a country girl, " a ghost of a smile settling on her lips, 

"My father was Earl, Earl of Middleton and was a country man. He raised me in the countryside. 

I only recently came to town to stay with the Pembrokes"

"Recently? I have courted Cassy for months but never seen you"

"But I had heard of you" she laughed lightly before becoming serious.

"You might not. I was in great grief and deep mourning. I rarely left my room until recently " her voice was sombre and her sorrow present, that Archer wished he could lift it off her.

But unfortunately, of all the powers a Duke possessed, necromancy was not one of them.

"I am so sorry for your loss"

She glanced at him quickly, not before he noticed she had a tear in her eye although her voice was stable. 

"Thank you. May we move from dreary topics to much brighter ones?"

"Yes" he agreed,somehow assuming the position of a questionnaire.

"Do you have a beau?" The question that had been burning at his tongue emerged before he could second guess it.

Curse him! Why did he ask that?

■■■■|

Kate was quite taken aback with the question. 

That question was reserved only if the man asking had plans of courting her. 

Surely he should know that?

But for some reason, she decided to answer. 

"No. I do not. Otherwise I wouldn't be here, would I?"

"That was rude of me, I sincerely—"

Jokingly, she swatted his arm lightly. 

"Gracious, Archer! You apologise too much! With this attitude, do you even get in a brawl?"

He did that astonishing flash of a grin again. 

" I do. Quite a number that would shock you. Besides, I do not apologise this much, I was giving an ear ringing memo on how to be a proper gentleman in the London society in other not to offend a Lady "

"That training made you too terse and inflexible " she laughed,  "don't worry, you don't have to bother with offending me. I've lived with sheep all my life, nothing, well could annoy me more than the boredom I felt"

They laughed, their eyes meeting and the sound of Cassy's exclaim breezed past their ears.

She straightened,he stiffened, both remembered their places.

He was her cousin's beau.

She was his Lady's cousin.

The air between them shifted from comfortable and warm to terse and charged with awareness. 

Kate noticed that she touched a part of his ribs and a faint rhythm of his heart, she felt.

Archer saw that her cheeks had been flushed pink by the breeze.

"You sound like you haven't always been in England "

"No. I was on a sojourn for a time. I visited Africa And their culture is quite different from ours"

"Africa!" Kate sighed. "I have never left the shores of England. It must be delightful to visit somewhere you do not know "

The air was warming. 

"Sometimes. The rest of the times you are being used as food by vicious looking insects"

She laughed. "I shall still like to visit there someday, nevermind the bloodsucking insects"

"It is a beautiful place." He agreed.

"I— have you seen your cousin? I can't spot mine"

"Kate!" She heard a voice shout from far. Cassy.

She quickly slid her hand out of the Duke's, her cheek burning with embarrassment as she turned to face the approaching figure.

"I looked behind and you were gone. I and Sir Mandeville searched all over" she informed her cousin.

"I, we,—"

"We were a bit slow with our walk" the Duke supplied smoothly. 

She shot him a glare of appreciation. 

"Alright. " Cassy said, immediately dismissing it. Her cousin's easy trust in her made her shame burn deeper.

"So, why were you searching for me?"

"It's late. The guests are leaving. Surely you noticed that"

Already? Kate thought,mournful to end the night already. 

"Yes it is. " she turned to the Duke, not meeting his eye. "Your Grace?"

"Ah,yes. Lead the way"

■■■■|

Cassy had chosen to sit at a far end, leaving Kate to occupy the middle, between the Duke her cousin.

The ride home, Kate spent it praying for its end. The masculine fragrance of the Duke interrupted her nostrils and filled her with a mad urge to move closer. 

Painfully, the carriage clobbered to a halt, she all but jumped out. 

He walked them to the door before saying his goodnights.

"Lady Cassy" he kissed her hand briefly, Cassy promptly disappeared through the door.

"Lady Katherine " his voice a mass of quiet promise on her voice. 

He took her hand. "It was a pleasure to be in your company Lady Katherine. Good night "

She barely nodded, before disappearing inside and leaning against the door, her heart racing.

This was wrong. He was for Cassy, not her.

But why was her heart racing with anticipation rather than dread?