Page 74 of The Duke's Rules Of Engagement
“I keep most of my weather instruments in the garden, and I’ve converted the shed to house some of my tools. I was back here working when it was time to go.” He gestured toward a fenced garden area. Jo could see beds filled with various plants, but from this angle, his tools for measuring weather weren’t visible.
“Come inside with me, and you can tell me more about Miss Appleby’s work,” he said.
She swallowed again. No luck. Her throat had as much moisture as a kettle that had been boiled dry. “Your Grace…I can’t. What would…what…?”
He shook his head. “What would people say? Nothing.” He looked up and down the mews, which were empty except for a few stable boys and coachmen milling about the stables. “Come.”
He took her hand and pulled her past the garden and through a door into a scullery where a maid was washing dishes. She glanced their way. “Good afternoon, Your—” While she might have been accustomed to seeing the duke in the scullery, the girl clearly was not used to seeing him with a woman. She recovered quickly. “—Grace. Ma’am.” Pulling her hands out of the dishwater, she bobbed a curtsy.
“Good afternoon, Mildred.” Matthew tugged Jo out of the scullery and into a vast, well-stocked kitchen that smelled of the herbs that hung drying in one corner. Two kitchen maids were standing at the center table, one adding what appeared to be flour into a large bowl and the other mixing.
“Your Grace,” they said in unison. Then, quicker to recover from the shock of seeing her, they added, “Ma’am,” as they dropped identical curtsies.
“Good Lord,” Jo muttered, “my reputation will be shredded to tatters.”
“Nonsense,” he said. “Your reputation will remain in one piece. Don’t be dramatic.”
“Servants talk,” she informed him archly. How naive was he?
“Not mine,” he said in a superior tone that made her roll her eyes. “Come.”
He took her pelisse and hung it in a closet, then led her through a grand dining room and up a lovely curving, dark-stained staircase.
“Where are we going?”
“Somewhere we can talk.”
At the top of the stairs, he turned down a wide corridor and opened a door at its end. Then he stepped into a library.
Not just a library. It was awonderfullibrary, so wonderful, it made water flood back into Jo’s mouth, as if each beautiful, elegant book were a rich delicacy waiting for her to sample it. Just think—all these books, pages filled with timeless words, knowledge, and stories. “Oh,” she breathed in awe. “It’s…lovely.”
Two walls of the large room were covered with volumes tucked into shelves that rose from the floor to the ceiling. On the far wall stood a desk, and behind it, a large-paned window that looked out over Hill Street. To her left was a fireplace with an assortment of chairs gathered round to provide a space for comfortable reading. Of course, the mantel boasted both a barometer and a thermometer.
Matthew stopped and studied the room as if seeing it for the first time. A slow smile curled his lips. “It is, isn’t it? It’s my favorite room in the house. I spend most of my time here when I’m not sleeping. Please sit down.”
She did as he asked, taking the armchair he gestured to—and itwasjust as comfortable as it looked, though nothing could compare to the cloud-soft green chair in her office.
Matthew knelt and got the banked fire going. Then he stood to his full, glorious height and looked down at her, a small smile giving a little curve to his lips. “Would you like some tea?”
“Oh, no. Thank you.” She clasped her hands tightly in her lap, feeling entirely uncomfortable while at the same time thrilled that she was inside the Duke of Crestmont’s home, sitting in his favorite room.And, at the same time, breathless as she always seemed to be when he was so close to her.
“As you wish.” He took the chair nearest to her and opened Lilly’s notebook. Gazing down at it, he slowly turned the pages, his brow furrowing.
“This is not my expertise,” he finally said. “I have some experience in design—of boats—but none of houses…or palaces. This looks quite brilliant, actually.”
“I think so, too,” Jo said.
“Her detail is amazing. And very imaginative and well planned.” He turned another page, then looked from the design notes up to her. “I know someone who might want to see this.”
Jo’s heart jumped straight into her throat. “Really? I wasn’t expecting… I mean—well, Lilly and I don’t know any architects.”
“I know you weren’t expecting anything. I’m certainly not one to say whether she has talent, but these are such original designs, I feel my friend would like to see them. May I keep this for a few days? I’ll return it once I show it to him.”
“Yes.” She grinned, clapping her hands together at her chest. “Lilly will be delighted.”
He nodded, then closed the book, set it aside, and leaned toward her, his gaze locking with hers. “Now. We’re alone. There are no potential prying eyes or listening ears. Tell me why you were outside my house.”
She gestured at the notebook. “Lilly—”
