Page 99 of The Duke's Rules Of Engagement
Matthew shifted on his feet, combating the impulse to run away. Run straight out of this house and never come back. But he wasn’t a child any longer. He could face this man.
“Yes, Uncle. Really.”
“Why is that?”
He forced his face to impassivity. “I discovered something about the lady that rendered her ineligible.”
George nodded. “Ah. That is too bad, my boy. I am sorry.”
“Better to discover it now than after the vows are made, I suppose.”
“Yes, it is,” his uncle said. “Yes, indeed.” It looked like the man was fighting a smile.
Matthew needed his uncle. He needed to have a relationship with him. He needed him to retain some hope of preserving his title, of passing on his responsibilities to someone who would find them as precious and important as he did.
He took a deep breath. “I am called away from London, Uncle. I shall be leaving shortly. Please stay here for as long as you wish. I don’t know if I’ll return before the end of the Season, but I will keep you apprised of my plans.”
“Very well, my boy. Very wellindeed.”
…
After Matthew left, Jo curled up in a ball on the floor, knees pressed to her chest, tears streaming from her eyes. She heard the door open.
“I’m sorry, I know you don’t like to be interrupted at work, but there was a man—” Then there was a breathy “Oh, dear,” before Mrs. Ferguson called into the house. “Bess! Miss Lilly! Come quick!”
Another few seconds, and three women were kneeling at her side. Through her haze of tears, she could only see their shapes, not the concern on their faces, though she felt it radiating off all three of them.
“What’s wrong?” Lilly gripped Jo’s hand. “Jo, dear, what is it? What has happened?”
What could she say to that? How could she answer?
The man I love loved me, too, until he learned of my deception. And now he despises me.
But that would just confuse them. Lilly didn’t know that she was in love with Matthew. No one did. There wasn’t a soul who knew—except Matthew himself, and he certainly believed she’d been lying.
She couldn’t blame him. She wouldn’t have believed her, either.
She couldn’t tell them all that. She could hardly breathe. Her breaths were coming out in short, painful gasps, her chest heaving with sobs.
The three women weren’t going to allow her to stay curled up on the floor weeping. Within a few moments, they had her up, Bess and Lilly supporting her on either side, and were walking her up the stairs. Her mother appeared at the top. “Oh, Jo, my darling. What is the matter?”
Seeing her mother standing on the landing, Jo straightened. She dashed the tears from her face and stopped halfway up the stairs. “I cannot. I need to…” A sob welled but she beat it back down. “I need to go back to my office. I have a meeting with Mr. Pellegrini.”
“I’ll let him know that you cannot be there today,” Lilly said. “I’ll say you’ve come down with a cold.”
Jo opened her mouth to agree, then closed it again. She thought of Mr. Pellegrini and how she’d failed him the first time. If she didn’t meet with him, something terrible might happen.
Mr. Pellegrini was a lovely man who would make Mrs. Fineman very happy. They both deserved happiness. She wouldn’t throw that away like she’d—inadvertently but thoroughly—thrown away Matthew’s.
“I must speak with him. It is important.”
Mama gave a sharp nod. “There’s clean water in my basin,” she said. “Wash your face, then, and go back downstairs.”
Jo walked the rest of the way upstairs, washed her face, then gazed at herself in her mother’s looking glass. Her eyes were red and glassy, but there was nothing to be done about it.
Mama set a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Go, my strong, dear child.”
Within seconds of her return to her office, Mr. Pellegrini knocked on the door, and Jo ushered him inside. She was glad she did. His plan had been to—in very dramatic Italian fashion—play the mandolin and sing a love song outside Mrs. Fineman’s drawing room window at night. When she opened her window, he’d fall to his knees, proclaim his love, and offer marriage.
