Hard Knight: Dark Mafia Romance

by Faye Pierce

  The look on the servant’s face was enough to tell her what she already knew he would say.

  “This invitation is for one young lady, a Miss Nancy Egerton,” the man said, regarding her suspiciously now. “You are obviously not she, and I am not permitted to allow anyone in without an invitation. My apologies, miss.”

  Alice felt her face burn with shame. Was it that obvious that she was not supposed to be here?

  Nancy looked on sadly when a fair-haired man brushed by her through the front door.

  “What’s all this?” he asked. “Trouble?”

  “No trouble, my lord,” said the man. “Just a young miss without an invite. I told her to be on her way, and she was just leaving.”

  The fair-haired man smiled kindly at Alice. “Whyever should she leave? The young lady has come all this way; surely it would be rude to turn her away at the door. Come, come. The more company, the merrier.”

  Relief flooded through Alice. She wasn’t sure what she would do if she had to leave Nancy alone in that vast manor.

  The man gestured at the footman to step aside, and he did as he was bid, not without giving Alice one last look of suspicion. The two girls followed the fair-haired man up the walk and ascended the last few steps to the manor.

  “I thought I spied Rodrick turning away someone through the window,” he said good-naturedly. “Thought I would come to see what the matter was.”

  Who was this man? Was he the duke?

  Surely not. Nancy had said that the duke had dark hair and eyes; this man looked nothing like that.

  He held the door open for them, and the two girls stepped inside.

  Alice gasped at the decor. There were candles enough for a grand ball, though she could see only a handful of girls, nearly twenty at the most. Deep, red rose petals were strewn about the floor and there were enough stunning floral creations to impress even the queen.

  It was a ridiculous display that Alice didn’t like one bit.

  The young women dotting the grand hall were all as gorgeous as the flowers themselves. Each one was in her finest silk dress; pastel pinks and blues and greens clung to the lithe form of each hopeful young debutante.

  Alice touched her face. She fervently wished that she had at least bothered to put on some rouge. She stuck out here more than she ever had at any ball; now that there were so few young ladies in the room, it was crystal clear exactly how plain she was.

  Not only that, but she was the oldest one here as well. This man might have allowed her inside, but this man was not the duke himself. She felt a horrible fear creep into her nerves, and suddenly, she just wanted to take her sister’s hand and run.

  What if the duke didn’t want her here?

  How shameful would it be to be escorted out of the manor for being so obviously plain?

  Chapter Three

  Alice felt all the blood drain completely from her already pale face. The young ladies in the room were beginning to take note of her. Each stunning debutante had turned her face to Alice, looked her up and down, and found her looks wanting. She clutched her sister’s arm tighter. Nancy simply smiled back radiantly, for she hadn’t noticed a thing; she was too taken by the soft glow of the candlelight and the sweet scent of roses.

  A gaggle of young women standing together stopped speaking as she and Nancy passed by. Alice hastily hurried her sister to a corner, a pillar, any place that Alice could use to go unnoticed. She dared to turn back; each one of the girls had their eyes still pinned to her. One young lady, clad in bright pink, leaned toward the girl on her right and said something in a low voice to her.

  The group of them laughed.

  Alice felt heat creep into her cheeks. Her pale coloration turned bright red with embarrassment, and the now severe blush of her cheeks only served to humiliate her further. She'd thought that she'd seen one of the prospective young brides point at her but couldn't be sure.

  Nancy was waving hello to her friend Mary when Alice steered her into the corner.

  "Sister, I don't understand your desire to be here," Alice said, wiping her brow of the droplets of sweat she felt beading there. "But we've come and seen the place, so might we leave now?"

  But her sister would not be so easily appeased.

  "I won't be satisfied until I've seen the duke," Nancy whispered back, craning her neck to see if she could spy him anywhere. "The well-dressed lady in her later years must be Lady Harrelson, I would assume... Oh, Alice, Alice, look! I think that's him!"

  Nancy crept back out into the throng of young women, Alice's hand in her own, while Alice twisted her head this way and that to see the man whom Nancy had spied.

  "Alice, if I weren't so bent on keeping my countenance calm, I would utterly swoon," Nancy said over her shoulder. "Is he not the most handsome man you've had the joy to set your eyes on?"

  Alice was just about to reply that they could leave now that Nancy had seen the duke when she nearly stopped dead on the floor.

  The Duke of Bedford stood on the stairwell, conversing with two gorgeous young ladies, his gloved hands tucked behind his back. He was smiling politely, his dark eyes reflecting the light while each of the young ladies did her best to outdo the other.

  Alice had heard that his looks were nearly unparalleled, but she hadn't counted on him being truly the most attractive man she'd ever seen. His thick black hair shone in the candlelight, his smile straight and white and gleaming. The two young ladies giggled and simpered in front of him, but of course, what else could they do?

  Alice could hardly blame them.

  A strange feeling snuck inside the recesses of her heart. It was something near grief with a healthy dose of shame, something she had not felt since her first season.

  It was longing.

  These young women had no idea what it was like to feel such tugs towards romance with no one tugging back. Even though only one young lady would come out on top tonight, the rest of them would go off home to their families. They would see their season through, and by the end of it, each one would surely have a handsome husband that they could easily fall for, and that would be the end of it.

  Alice felt the emotion swell inside her chest with each shaking breath she took. The prospective debutantes had all shifted their gaze from her to the duke at his appearance. Some were trying to win the favor of Lady Harrelson, chatting up the older woman as though they'd known her for years and years.

  Every head turned as a melodic sound filled the grand ballroom, lifting the mood while the chattering of voices rose in the evening air.

  A young lady had sat down at the piano in the grand front room and begun to play, her fingers flowing across the keys like water. Before long, each young lady had her turn at the piano or the harp or had a violin brought out to her from her carriage. Some even sang in high soprano, accompanying the music as best as they could.

  "Each of these young women has been gifted with such talent!" Nancy said, blue eyes wide in awe. "I wonder how I shall ever stand out?"

  "It's obvious that they just want to impress him," Alice said. "Perhaps you would stand out more by simply not trying so very hard."

  "Do you quite think so, Alice?" Nancy asked. "I do hope that he doesn't think me a bore. It's so difficult trying to see inside such an enigmatic mind!"

  "Enigmatic isn't the word I would use," Alice said. "Perhaps eccentric is more of a proper way to describe this duke."

  The pair watched as yet another young lady sat herself down at the piano, scooting the bench forward. The sound of the bench across the marble was jarring, startling several of the debutantes around her.

  "Either way," Nancy said. "He has a face that looks as though a master artist sculpted him from stone. And not only that, Alice, see how polite he seems when he speaks! Can you not imagine such a man as a husband?"

  Alice didn't see why his civility would come into play; inviting so many unchaperoned young ladies to his home was roguish behavior. She knew that the duke knew it and that Nancy did too.
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  "He may be handsome, sister, but do not be deceived by perfect looks," Alice said. "Did you not forget the circumstances in which he desires to choose his bride? Surely you can't agree with this...this...whatever this may be." She gestured broadly at the room and the chattering young ladies, at the piano that now was in constant use at the sight of the duke.

  "If the duke is eccentric, then perhaps our years together will be full of happy surprises," said Nancy. "Please, sister, support me in this. We're already here; why not allow me to use my time well?"

  Alice couldn't argue with that. Perhaps it would be better if they didn't come all the way here for nothing.

  But the duke was turning now, facing the twenty or so debutantes that had arrived at his home unchaperoned. His eyes roamed about the room appraisingly, and he looked satisfied—proud, even—and then his gaze stopped on Alice.

  Even at this distance, she could see his dark brows turn up slightly in confusion, his eyes roving over her and resting on her plain face. She felt the redness creeping into her cheeks once more, averting her eyes. Alice turned away, trying to listen to Nancy and Mary's conversation as the pair eyed the duke, waiting for a chance to speak to him.

  If the duke already realized that she was an outsider, surely she was in danger of being tossed out in front of all these other young women. Alice shifted in her silk dress; she wished she had chosen to wear a color other than burgundy. All the other girls, Nancy included, were in pastel blues, greens, and lovely pinks that complimented their pale limbs and angelic faces.

  Alice felt more like a stern, gray-haired chaperone than a young lady on the marriage market.

  The duke was moving across the room, his eyes still locked on Alice. His pace was one of a man searching.

  Alice squirmed uncomfortably and ducked behind a group of loud, chattering debutantes. She silently prayed that the gaggle's laughter and gossip would be enough to hide the sound of her thumping heart.

  She was going to have to avoid him all night, or until he'd forgotten that an intruder was parading about amongst his invited guests. She had no idea how long she could keep this up, but the duke was onto her.

  Of that, she was sure.

  "Are you going to skulk about all night, Henry, or are you going to choose a bride?" his aunt groaned. She had a glass of red wine in her silken gloved hand, her other hand haughtily resting on her hip. She'd gone through nearly every pretty face she'd deemed worthy of her nephew, but Henry hadn't seemed interested.

  Instead, he'd meandered about from corner to corner of the room, looking confused and bothered.

  "I appreciate your efforts, aunt," Henry said. "Truly, you must realize. I'm simply trying to discover the identity of my future bride, the best of the best. That is no light matter."

  "Must you literally discover her?" Lady Harrelson asked. "You act as though you're on some jungle expedition, not a member of the ton hosting a dinner in his own home."

  He didn't want to tell her about the girl, the extra one who clearly didn't belong here. She was plain of face, yes, but it was her actions that made her stand out more than anything.

  She was troubled, fretting about the other young lady locked in her arm. Her brown hair lay limply on her shoulders, moving only when she attempted to move out of his sight. She'd gone red-faced when she'd seen him. He was used to women becoming flustered at the sight of him, relished it, really, but she looked as though she thought he would escort her straight to the gallows.

  He had never, would never, harm a young lady. Henry knew that he was certainly not a saint, had more tendencies towards being a rake than anyone else he knew, but he was certainly no one to be frightened of.

  And so this young lady puzzled him. Try as he might, he could not put her face from his mind.

  "Don't trouble yourself, aunt," Henry told her. "I will have decided by the end of the evening, I assure you. And afterward, you'll have your Duchess of Bedford, and all will be well."

  "I hope you mean these words, Henry," she told him. "If I've had to go through all this trouble for nothing..."

  She gulped the last sip of her wine and placed it on the servant's tray, shooing the man away.

  "Again, please ease your mind, dear aunt," Henry said. "Take comfort in the fact that Robert has spoken to nearly every young lady several times over. Perhaps even your son will come out of this with a lovely bride on his arm."

  His aunt didn't look satisfied or as though she believed him, raising one thin eyebrow high. Thankfully, she moved on to converse with the debutantes further, and Henry was left to his thoughts on the mystery woman. She hadn't approached him at all, had done her best to avoid him at every cost. It didn't make sense; why come here if she wasn't interested in wedding him?

  He'd lost sight of her completely.

  "Excellent event, cousin," Robert said, appearing at his side. "You've truly invited the best debutantes of the ton. Quite a few lovely faces here."

  "Yes," Henry said, distracted. His eyes roved through the crowd of happily socializing young ladies.

  "Has any young lady caught your eye in particular?" Robert asked. "Surely, you must have found one or two young ladies who might fit the role of duchess and your wife quite well."

  "Oh, you know," Henry said. "One or two."

  Robert looked at him curiously. "Right," he said. "Well, I'm going to take a turn about the room once again. We'll speak more at the end of the night, cousin."

  With that, Robert was gone.

  Not wanting to seem as though he were searching for someone, Henry strolled through the crowd of young women, who all giggled or smiled or fluttered their lashes his way. He smiled back, ever polite, but he was on a mission to find the mystery girl who'd intrigued him so.

  Who was she, and what did she want with him?

  Chapter Four

  He had definitely taken note of her.

  Alice watched as the duke's head turned left and right, his dark eyes searching all the while.

  Searching for her.

  She knew it in her heart, the way that he'd locked gazes with her, his eyes crinkling in confusion. His expression was tell-tale; he was wondering why she had infiltrated his home and his event.

  Being escorted out in front of her sister and the rest of the debutantes would be too much humiliation for even Alice to bear.

  Alice felt panic rising in her breast, her heart fluttering madly. Her chest heaved with anxiety, but she swallowed it down, keeping her face neutral. She strode back out into the ballroom, taking hold of Nancy's hand, who turned to her with a smile.

  "Sister, I fear that I feel a little... overcome," Alice said. "The heat inside, it's too much for me at present. I simply need to refresh myself for but a moment; will you be fine if I step away?"

  She knew she certainly looked flushed enough for that to be a passable excuse. Nancy surveyed her, her perfectly winged brows turning down in concern. She placed a comforting hand on Alice's arm.

  "Of course," Nancy said. "I have Mary here as well. It's not as though I'm completely alone. Please, refresh yourself to your heart's content. The night is still young; perhaps the air on the terrace will do you some good?"

  It was the best idea her sister had all day.

  Alice gathered her skirts about her in trembling hands and swept up the stairs when she was sure that the duke had his back turned. He was caught up in conversation with several young women who looked as though they weren't about to let him get away.

  She breathed out a sigh of relief as she rounded the corner, just beyond the sight of the duke or anyone else in the grand ballroom below. The music and chatter from the party were dwindling away into nothing but background noise, and Alice felt her head clear at last.

  Alone. Finally.

  Her fingers worked nervously at her skirts while she walked softly down the hall. There was candlelight at every other window, and so it was much darker than the lovely, glowing ballroom. Alice felt a chill go up her spine, causing her to tremble slightly.
Surely there was a terrace that she could retreat to; if she were out of the duke's sight, then she would certainly be put out of his mind as well.

  She shivered, feeling a chill creep across her skin. Gooseflesh broke out across her arms and the back of her neck. A gentleman's home wasn't exactly her preferred choice of location to be alone in, but it wasn't as though she was truly alone.

  Nancy was just downstairs, after all.

  Down the hall, she could see a bright light. There was a door that was slightly ajar, as though someone had just left.

  Perhaps that was the way to the terrace.

  She picked up her pace, rehearsing what she'd tell a servant if she happened to come upon one, and pushed the door open. She squinted her eyes, hoping no one was there to question her, and when she heard nothing, Alice opened her eyes again.