Read To Catch A Duke for Free Online

I cannot tell them because I do not
know.   So they will stare, disbelieve
the story we have clung to for so long, and make up stories on their own.   Ones that they prefer to the truth because
they are more salacious.   I cannot
change that.   But I can change how I
react to it.   I will not let them, or
those like Letitia and Henrietta, win.   I will not!"
    She had never spoken with such
passion about her plight, but tonight, for some reason, the desire to fight
back against the lot she'd been dealt in life burned bright and hot.   She was tired of being meek and mild, the
way she had been trained to be, tired of shying away from everyone for fear
that they might ridicule her.   They
would regardless of how she behaved, so why not face them?   Why not allow a little of the old Julia to
creep back in?
    "I'm sorry."   Nicholas also looked more than a little
ashamed.   "I did not know it was
thus."
    "And I did not tell you, so
the fault is mine as well."   Julia
knew how difficult it had been for Nicholas to say those words, but she was
grateful that he had.   "This is my
only season, Nicky," she sighed, using his childhood nickname for good
measure.   "When we leave here next
month, I am unlikely to return, despite what I just said.   If I do, it will not be as a debutante.   We both know that.   I do not want this time cut short, no matter how uncomfortable
some incidents might make me feel."
    With a sigh of his own, he nodded,
his mouth set in a grim line.   "I
had expected you might feel this way, though not with this amount of
passion.   However I did want to give you
the option to leave if you so chose."   He squeezed her hand again, and she was grateful that he seemed to
understand her desire to remain in town.   "In anticipation of precisely that, I inquired yesterday as to
whether Lady Berkshire might be willing to act as your chaperone for the
remainder of the season while Benjamin becomes your official escort."
    "What about Avaria?"   Julia could not imagine sending the woman
away, at least not when there was something obviously wrong with her
health.   Yes, she had been a bit
inattentive, but surely that was no reason to dismiss the woman.
    "She is ill.   The doctor that was brought in earlier
tonight does not know with what, only that her constant need for sleep is a
sign of some far graver problem other than lack of rest."   He rose and came to stand next to her,
leaning against her dressing table and acting the imposing lord of the manor, just
as he'd done when they were children.   He nudged her shoulder with his.   "I'm sending her home, Jules.   Not to Bath, but to Seldon Park where my physician can watch over
her.   Dr. Heddington from here in town,
the one who saw her tonight, agrees that the country air might help her.   Until we came to London, her lungs knew
nothing but clean air.   Heddington
thinks that may be at the heart of her problem."
    "And Lady Berkshire has agreed
to this?"   Julia had only met the
woman once, even though she knew of her by reputation, so she had no idea why
the countess would ever agree to such a thing.
    Nodding, Nicholas pushed away and
began heading for the door, the matter settled, at least in his mind.   "She owes me a favor, Jules.   From a long time ago.   Let's leave it at that."
    "But the events she
attends..."   Julia did not know how
to voice her concerns without offending Nicholas or the countess.   Though Lady Eleanor Hathaway, the Countess of
Berkshire, was quite young, Nicholas's age in fact, her husband was most
decidedly not.   Many evenings, the young
countess and her elderly husband would be departing events as others arrived,
citing Lord Berkshire's busy schedule.   If Julia was truly to enjoy her last few weeks in society, she didn't
want to adhere to such an odd schedule.
    Holding up his hand to ward off the
flurry of questions he knew was coming, Nicholas shook his head.   "I would never do that to you,
Jules.