The Devious Seduction 0f A Wayward Duke (Steamy Historical Romance)

by Olivia Bennet

  “I can understand that, and I appreciate it, but I think I am perfectly capable of discerning that for myself.”

  “I couldn’t agree more. We will have to see how the two of them get on, and for God’s sake, Dowding…say a bit of a prayer.”

  * * *

  Priscilla was dressed for dinner and staring at herself in the mirror. She was quite proud of what she had done with her hair, and she was wearing her finest gown. Would it be enough?

  She was no lady, and she wouldn’t pretend to be one. She felt that this was the best way to face this evening. Priscilla had heard rumblings from members of the staff that Lady Darnerton was a bit cold and unforgiving about certain things, and she assumed that meant that she wouldn’t be readily accepted by her. Add that to the fact that she and Oliver’s late wife were so close…well, Priscilla knew that she would have to work hard to find acceptance.

  As for the Earl of Darnerton, Priscilla didn’t know him, either, but from what she had gathered from others, including Jamie and Oliver, he was quite pleasant to be around. She hoped that with Oliver and the Earl on her side, she would be able to handle anything that Lady Darnerton threw at her. She just had to remember to smile and be polite.

  Wright was supposed to come to her room to escort her down to the sitting room where she would meet the Earl and Lady Darnerton. Priscilla glanced at the clock and knew that he would arrive in only a couple of minutes. She took another deep breath to try to control her trembling hands.

  As expected, the moment the clock hand moved, there was a knock at the door.

  Priscilla opened it, saw Wright, and smiled. “Thank you for escorting me downstairs, Wright.”

  “It is my pleasure, Miss Ainsley,” he said, as they began to walk. “You look lovely this evening.”

  “Thank you. I was not sure what to wear.”

  “I think you are perfectly dressed. His Grace is sure to agree.”

  “I’m not so worried about him as I am…”

  “She’s all bark and no bite,” Wright whispered with a smile and a wink. “You’ll be fine.”

  Hearing Wright say that brought a bit of relief to Priscilla, and she could feel herself starting to feel less nervous. However, as they approached the door to the drawing room, her throat went dry and the trembling in her hands began again.

  * * *

  “Your Grace, Miss Ainsley has arrived.”

  “Please send her in, Wright.”

  Oliver, who was sitting with Darnerton and Margaret, stood to face the door. He couldn’t wait to see Priscilla.

  She walked into the doorway, and his heart skipped a beat. She looked absolutely stunning, and the way the gown hugged her body made his member begin to ache. If he could get through the night without ripping that gown off of her, it would be a miracle.

  Oliver walked over to Priscilla and stood next to her.

  “Darnerton, Margaret, I would like to introduce you to Miss Priscilla Ainsley.”

  “It is a pleasure to meet you,” Darnerton said as he stood to greet Priscilla.

  “The pleasure is mine, My Lord.”

  “Hello, Miss Ainsley. I am Margaret Buxton, Lady Darnerton.”

  “It is a pleasure to meet you, My Lady.”

  “Please, Priscilla…join us. I’m sure Darnerton and Margaret can’t wait to meet you.”

  Oliver motioned to an empty chair. “Sit here.”

  Priscilla sat down and a footman brought her a glass of wine. Oliver sat right next to her.

  “Miss Ainsley, Dowding here tells us that you have made a great impression on Jamie.”

  “I hope so, My Lord. He is a delightful young gentleman, and he is very eager to both learn and please.”

  “Have you always been a governess?”

  Oliver watched as Margaret asked the question, then turned to Priscilla to see her response.

  “No, My Lady. This was my first job as a governess. I was born and raised in an orphanage, though, and it was part of my chores to teach the younger children. So, one could say that I have been teaching for many years. I am comfortable with children and I am constantly learning, myself, so it all seems to work out well.”

  “I see. Who taught you in the orphanage? I can’t imagine that most of those places have the best teachers.”

  “You are correct, My Lady. Fortunately, for me, there was a friendly vicar who spent a lot of time with us. He taught me a lot, including French and math. I am an avid reader, and much of the rest of it came from reading books.”

  Margaret turned to face Oliver.

  “And you are fine with the fact that your governess doesn’t have a formal education?”

  “I assure you, Margaret, that Priscilla is just as educated, perhaps more so, than any lady I have ever known.”

  Margaret scrunched up her nose and took a sip of wine.

  “Please, Miss Ainsley,” Darnerton said. “Your childhood certainly wasn’t as privileged as ours here, but I think you should be proud of the fact that you have accomplished what you have thus far. I would imagine that most women in your position, or even most people, for that matter, wouldn’t have made it so far.”

  “That is right, My Lord. Most of the people I knew from the orphanage haven’t amounted to much. There are, as far as I know, a couple of us who have improved our standing in society.”

  “You seem to be aiming even higher,” Margaret said. “Your intentions, of course, are to marry him?”

  “Margaret!” Darnerton said. “I have had almost enough of this.”

  “Nash, I am simply asking the girl a question. She is free to answer…or not.”

  “I will answer,” Priscilla said, her voice wavering. “I don’t care about titles nor do I care about the benefits of being his wife. All I care for is that Oliver and Jamie are happy. If they choose me to join in their family, yes, I would love to. If not, I fully understand.”

  Oliver and Darnerton looked at each other in silence. Darnerton’s mouth was slightly open, and he looked a bit shocked that Priscilla would speak up so much.

  “So, you haven’t taken this job as a governess to get closer to him? To become a duchess?”

  “No, My Lady. I took this job based on my love of education and educating our next generation. Anything else that comes with it is an additional bonus in my opinion, including the opportunity to get to know Oliver and Jamie.”

  Margaret took another sip of wine. Her face was getting red. “Miss Ainsley, I hope you understand that we have to watch out for him. My husband is his closest friend and I was very close with his late wife.”

  “I do understand, and I would do the same thing if I were in your position. In fact, I certainly expected this. I hope that, given time, you can see that I am not after anything but a chance for lifelong happiness with a gentleman whom I care greatly for.”

  Oliver stood. He didn’t want this to get out of control, and this felt like a good time to step into the conversation and switch topics. “Now that we have all been formally introduced, I would like to propose a toast.” He raised his glass. “To new friends, and old, and to many years of happiness for all of us. Cheers.”

  * * *

  “My Lord, of all the days where your curls were simply untamable, it was today.”

  Jamie almost had to laugh at Miss Slade’s struggles. Since his hair was so curly, it was difficult to make it lay flat against his head as he often liked it. Today, however, it seemed as if that wasn’t going to happen.

  “It’s fine, Miss Slade, if you can’t do it. I can wear it in a more natural state tonight.”

  “Yes, you can, but I always want to do what you want, especially when it comes to your hair and clothing.”

  “Really, it’s fine. I look great, I think.”

  Miss Slade chuckled. “You always know how to make me happy, My Lord. Are you ready for dinner tonight?”

  “Yes, I’m quite looking forward to it. I want to meet Lady Darnerton, and I think it will be perfect to have Miss Ainsley at di
nner, too.”

  “Well, if you are ready, we can head down and wait for Wright to announce that it is ready. I presume that your father and the other adults are in the drawing room, so we can go to the sitting room.”

  “Yes, Miss Slade.”

  The pair of them walked down to the sitting room, but Wright came out of the dining room before they were able to walk in. “Oh, Miss Slade, My Lord. Dinner is ready, and I was just heading to inform His Grace.”

  “Great,” Jamie said. “I am hungry.”

  Both Wright and Miss Slade laughed. “Wait here, My Lord, and I will collect your father.”

  Jamie watched as Wright walked down the hallway, and only a moment later, Jamie saw his father followed by the Earl, a lady Jamie didn’t know, and Miss Ainsley.

  “Ah, here he is,” Jamie’s father said as he approached. “You look great, Son.”

  His father then turned to Miss Slade, “Thank you, as always. We will send him up to you after dessert.”

  “Thank you, Your Grace,” Miss Slade replied with a slight bow.

  “Come here, Jamie,” his father said. “I want to introduce you to Lady Darnerton. She was a great friend to your mother.”

  His father and the Earl stepped aside, and the strange lady approached him. She gasped as she looked down at him. She turned towards his father and said, “He is the spitting image of Leah.”

  “Yes, he is. He doesn’t have much of me there, does he?”

  “It’s really astounding,” she said, and then turned to Jamie. “You look so much like your mother. Just as I remember her. She would be so proud of the young gentleman that you have grown up to be.”

  “Thank you, My Lady.”

  Jamie thought that he saw her wipe a tear from her eye. He looked up and Miss Ainsley smiled and nodded at him. His father and the Earl walked into the dining room, and the rest of them followed close behind.

  Chapter 23

  Priscilla walked into the dining room after everyone else. She was a bit overwhelmed with the thought of eating with these people, as they were all used to very formal, classy meals, where she had only had these experiences on rare occasions. There was something fascinating about how peers did everything, including eating a meal, with such pomp.

  She sat in the last open seat, next to Jamie and across from Lady Darnerton, who was staring at her with a bit of disdain. Priscilla immediately noted that there was a bowl of soup in front of her, and a footman placed a spoon next to the bowl.

  The dining table was beautifully decorated with golden candelabras and a stark white tablecloth. The soup was served when Oliver gave the word, and Priscilla slowly stirred it with a spoon, sneakily watching the other guests, before she took a sip herself.

  “This soup is delightful, Dowding.”

  “I very much agree, Oliver,” Lady Darnerton remarked, agreeing with her husband. She then turned to Priscilla. “What do you think of it, Miss Ainsley?”

  Priscilla swallowed the hot soup, and uttered, “It is delicious,” though her throat was burning.

  “I wasn’t sure that you were used to food this rich, being born and raised an orphan.”

  “I quite adore this soup, My Lady. I appreciate you asking.”

  Priscilla was bound and determined to not lose her patience with Lady Darnerton. So she was going to use kindness towards her any time she could.

  The table went silent until the Earl said, “Jamie, how are your lessons getting on?”

  Priscilla could see Jamie out of the corner of her eye. “Very well, My Lord. I am excelling in French and history, but math…well, I don’t know how much I like it.”

  All of the adults laughed, including Priscilla.

  “Priscilla has made sure that even if he struggles, Jamie eventually gets the lessons he is supposed to learn.”

  “Oh, do tell me about that, Miss Ainsley,” the Earl said.

  “I try my best to make sure Jamie has a full curriculum every day. However, sometimes I have relied on unconventional means to ensure that he understands every lesson. For instance, when he was having trouble with French, I took him out onto the property to learn the French words for various flowers and plants.”

  “Don’t you mean the Duke’s property?” Lady Darnerton interjected. “You make it sound as if it were your property, too.”

  Priscilla looked at her square in the eyes and said, “Yes, of course, My Lady. The property does not belong to me.”

  She noticed the Earl giving Lady Darnerton a stern look, which brought a little bit of relief. However, every word she said was annoying Priscilla more and more. She took a sip of her wine, and then continued.

  “We also have gone to town so Jamie can learn more about economics and how monetary transactions work.”

  “That sounds wonderful, Jamie,” the Earl said, brightly. “Did you enjoy that? It sounds like a great way to learn. Very practical, at least.”

  “Yes, My Lord, I did enjoy it. I cannot wait to go back. Miss Ainsley said we can go back, and so did Father, of course.”

  Oliver chuckled. “Yes, I did say that. Though, I would like to go with you this time, I think. At least I can experience things with you this time, unlike the last time when I wasn’t able to make the trip due to work.”

  Jamie nodded, and then said, “Yes, though it was fun. The peddler was a little scary, but other than that, I had a great time!”

  “The peddler?” Lady Darnerton looked appalled. “Oliver, please tell me you are not allowing Jamie to interact with peddlers. Leah must be absolutely rolling in her grave!”

  “No, no, Margaret,” Oliver said. Priscilla couldn’t help but think that somehow this was going to turn back to her. “Jamie and Miss Ainsley simply came upon a peddler while walking through town, and he was upset with them because they didn’t want to buy anything. It could have happened to any of us.”

  “Humph. I still don’t think it’s a good idea to allow a young gentleman with a standing such as Jamie’s to be wandering about town supervised only by an orphan turned governess that you know nothing about.”

  “I sent a man with them. They were perfectly safe, and no harm was done, Margaret. I assure you that I would never put Jamie, nor Priscilla for that matter, into any type of dangerous situation.”

  “Well, I’m sure you wouldn’t Oliver, but there is no telling what could happen when your son is in the care of someone who doesn’t…understand our ways.”

  “Our ways of what, Margaret?”

  Priscilla could tell that Oliver was getting frustrated.

  “Well, child-rearing, for one. No lady that I know would ever allow her young child blindly to walk amongst the street, weaving through dirty old peddler carts. Perhaps those are her ways, but they are certainly not ours.”

  Priscilla could see a spark of anger in Oliver’s eyes, and when he took a breath and opened his mouth to speak, she didn’t know what to expect.

  “Margaret, you are correct. Priscilla doesn’t know. She was not born into our social circles, nor was she raised in the same manner that we were. As it is my intention to remain in this relationship with her, I must take responsibility and ensure that she learns these things. It was my hope, as the daughter of a Duke and the wife of an Earl, that you would step up and help her…show her what is proper to us, and what is not. Instead, you have belittled her at every opportunity. I was hoping for better from you, but I now see that it was a mistake to think that. Now, would anyone care for some roast mutton?”

  * * *

  “I cannot apologize enough for Margaret’s behavior tonight, Dowding.”

  “Think nothing of it, Darnerton,” Oliver replied. “She is a strong-willed lady. Always has been, and always will be, I daresay.”

  He took a sip of port and hoped that Priscilla and Margaret were at least being civil to each other. They had left only but a moment ago to sit and talk in the drawing room. He and Darnerton would join them in a bit.

  “I just don’t know what her problem is with Pr
iscilla. Honestly, she is a lovely woman, and I can see why you find her to be so charming.”

  “Really, Darnerton. It seems as if Margaret is testing her. I have expected that, and I know Priscilla was expecting it, too.”

  “Will you marry her?”

  “Yes, assuming things continue to go well. I never thought I would say that before, but I also never thought that I would meet someone as lovely as her. When Leah passed, the possibility of marrying again was such a foreign idea. Now, ten years on, I am ready again.”