Her Devilish Marquess (24 page)

Derek relaxed. Toplyn, it seemed, just might
be one of the few people who understood him.

“
I consider it an honor to
have you here,” Toplyn continued. “Too many people take everything
so seriously. I wouldn’t pay the naysayers any mind. If their way
of doing things is as wonderful as they claim, they should be
happy. But they’re not. Just as you pointed out to Warren, they’re
miserable. Well, if that’s what being reputable with the Ton is all
about, I want no part of it.”

“
You’re a rarity. Usually,
people want to toss me out for stating my opinion.”

“
There are more of us out
there. Most people who agree with you are too afraid to admit
it.”

Derek wondered if Christopher or Ethan had
put Toplyn up to saying all of this. Perhaps this was their way of
trying to get him to go back to White’s.

“
Well, I don’t want to keep
you,” Toplyn told Derek. “I’m sure you have other people you’d
rather spend your time with. I just wanted to get a chance to thank
you for coming.”

Derek nodded and watched as Toplyn went back
into the ballroom. Yes, Derek had friends. Christopher and Ethan
weren’t at all shy about inviting him to their balls. But this was
the first time someone he barely knew took the time to say
something nice to him. He’d been so used to criticism, he didn’t
know what to think.

***

“
You and Derek make a
handsome couple,” Melissa told Danette as the three ladies sat in
chairs at the edge of the room.

Chloe nodded her agreement. “He was so sure
there wasn’t a lady brave enough to be seen in public with him, but
you showed up with him, looking very proud to have him by your
side. Even if he doesn’t say it, I know it means a lot to him you
came here with him.”

“
Is that why you and your
husband invited us?” Danette asked Melissa.

“
My husband, Logan, insisted
on it,” Melissa began in a lower voice, “because of what happened
at White’s.”

Curious, Danette leaned toward her. “What
happened?”

“
Derek told Lord Steinbeck
he was a miserable person and that anyone who agreed with him was
miserable as well.”

Danette’s eyes widened in horror. “He
what?”

“
Didn’t Derek tell you?”
Melissa asked.

Danette shook her head. She hadn’t heard
anything about the day he went to White’s except he’d thought it
was a waste of time. She knew he hadn’t had any plans to go back,
but never once did it occur to her it was because of this. Just
what had Warren said to earn such a comment? And did this have
anything to do with Malcolm? Oh dear, if it had something to do
with Malcolm, this wouldn’t bode well at all.

“
Logan couldn’t stop talking
about it,” Melissa said. “He thought it was the funniest thing that
ever happened at White’s. He went on and on about it for three
whole days. It got to the point where I was ready to lock myself in
a room just to get away from it.”

Danette could feel the color leave her face.
This was awful. Just awful. If Logan couldn’t stop talking about
it, then who else was doing it? She scanned the room, wondering if
her husband was one of the topics of gossip tonight.

“
Lord Steinbeck deserved
it,” Chloe added, as if she sensed Danette’s unease. “My husband’s
sick of listening to him telling everyone at White’s what to do.
They’re all grown gentlemen, and yet Lord Steinbeck is treating
them like a bunch of children. Sometimes he wants to stand up and
say something, but he says Lord Steinbeck can’t be reasoned with.”
She clasped her hands in her lap and gave the two ladies a pointed
look. “Orlando says there’s no point in talking to someone who
already has his mind made up.”

“
I don’t know,” Melissa
replied, her expression thoughtful. “From what Logan said, Derek
really bothered Lord Steinbeck. The whole comment about his life
being meaningless has Lord Steinbeck moping around
London.”

Danette gasped. “Derek said Lord Steinbeck’s
life has no meaning?”

Melissa shrugged. “Well, I don’t know
exactly what was said. I heard Logan’s version of events, and Logan
tends to focus in on parts of a conversation that interest him the
most.”

“
I think all people do that
to some extent,” Chloe replied. “But from what Orlando told me, I’d
say Logan’s right. He has no heir. An heir is everything to a
titled gentleman. If he spends all his time acquiring a fortune and
has no son to leave it to, then what good is it?”

“
But I think Derek meant
more than that,” Melissa argued. “It sounds like he was saying a
life filled only with money has no purpose if there’s no one
important to spend it with. Logan said Derek mentioned his brother
dying without having a wife or a child. It sounds like Derek’s
brother was lonely at the very end of his life.”

“
I can see that,” Chloe
agreed. “I was married to a gentleman who wasn’t really a husband
to me. I felt absolutely no remorse when he died. I wonder if he
felt like he’d had a lonely life as he was drowning.”

“
My parents have always been
adamant that Malcolm and I both end up married,” Melissa said.
“Malcolm didn’t think he needed a wife, but I can see he’s much
happier now than he was when he was a bachelor. Gentlemen need
wives to give them a purpose.”

Chloe shot her friend a wry grin. “Ladies
need companionship, too. It’s not just the gentlemen who benefit
from marriage.”

“
Yes, but Malcolm needed it
far more than Regan did.”

At this point, Danette felt it was a good
time to get back to the topic that had alarmed her. “Speaking of
Malcolm, is he upset by what Derek said to Lord Steinbeck?” she
asked Melissa. Of all people who’d know, Melissa would since she
was his sister.

“
He hasn’t mentioned
anything about it,” Melissa replied with a shrug. “I don’t think he
was there when the whole thing happened.”

“
But he isn’t here tonight,”
Chloe noted.

Melissa smirked. “That’s because he doesn’t
like Logan. Logan finds their little feud amusing, but Malcolm sees
no humor in it. You can’t completely fault Malcolm for it. Logan
did force me into a marriage with him.”

“
Only so his life would be
complete,” Chloe teased. “He didn’t want to end up miserable and
alone like Lord Steinbeck.”

The two ladies giggled, and Danette tried to
find the humor in the conversation but it eluded her.

“
You needn’t take the
gentlemen seriously,” Chloe told Danette. “They quarrel over the
silliest things. We don’t pay them any mind, and neither should
you.”

Danette relaxed, but only slightly. What
they didn’t understand was that Malcolm seemed to be the type who
did take these things seriously. Very seriously.

Melissa put a hand on Danette’s arm. “I
assure you, Logan has the highest respect for your husband.”

“
It’s true,” Chloe added.
“As does Orlando. In fact, several gentlemen at White’s wish they
had the courage Derek does. You have nothing to be ashamed
of.”

Danette glanced from one lady to the other,
trying to gauge the sincerity in their words, and after several
long moments, she came to the conclusion they were telling her the
truth. Feeling much better, she gave herself permission to
relax.

“
I’ve never been invited to
a ball,” Danette admitted. “Well, that is, I’ve never been with
someone who received an invitation to the ball.”

“
Oh, the invitation was as
much for you as it was for Derek,” Melissa replied. “Chloe and I
were both excited to talk to you and find out how things are
going.”

“
Helena was, too,” Chloe
added, “but she just had a daughter. We promised we’d let her know
what you told us.”

Danette smiled. “Well, in that case, tell
her things are going along better than I dreamt possible. I fell in
love with him as soon as I met him.” And now, she didn’t mind
coming out and saying it to others. Her mother and Regan were
right. It was time she stopped assuming something horrible was
about to happen and just take time to enjoy the moment.
“Everything’s wonderful.”

“
That’s just what we wanted
to hear!” Chloe exclaimed, clasping her hands in excitement. “I’ve
wanted Derek to find a lady who appreciates him ever since I saw
how good he was with my brother.”

“
Also,” Melissa added, “it’s
so nice to know we do an excellent job of matchmaking.”

Chloe grinned. “Yes, that’s true.”

This time, Danette laughed right along with
them. “I can’t think of a better group of ladies who pair up
couples like you three do.”

Chapter Nineteen

D
erek saw Danette sitting with Melissa and Chloe, and since the
three seemed to be having a good time, he opted to delay going over
to her. So, instead, he found a chair and reclined in it, only half
paying attention to people as they danced.

Instead, he tried to figure out why Danette
enjoyed balls so much. He supposed looking at the dresses would
appeal to a lady, though it did little to interest him. However, it
was somewhat interesting to watch everyone.

There were even a couple of humorous
moments. One lady got her hair stuck in her fan. Then there was a
lady whose dress ripped in the back when she sat down. On the other
side of the room, a gentleman was talking to a lady when the
violinist nearby lost control of his bow and the bow hit him on the
behind.

The one that made Derek laugh out loud
involved three people who were victims of circumstance. There was a
gentleman who was pouring himself a glass of brandy. He happened to
be standing close to a lady who was sitting. Someone passed by, not
watching where he was going and knocked into the poor gentleman.
The gentleman, in turn, lurched forward and poured half his glass
of brandy into the lady’s hair. The lady shrieked, jumped up, and
gave him a good slap before storming off.

Perhaps this was the appeal Danette found
when she came to these balls. Simply watching people was turning
into an enjoyable pastime.

“
They add nothing of benefit
to Society,” a familiar voice said. “But we need them.”

Derek glanced over at the two couples who’d
stopped close by him. The person he’d overheard happened to be Lord
Riggley. Derek’s expression darkened. He’d tried not to think of
that day when he’d caught the gentleman slipping out from Christina
Leith’s home, and for the most part, he’d succeeded. As Danette had
pointed out, so many people had affairs it shouldn’t bother him.
But it did. What good were vows if people didn’t keep them?

“
Oh, I couldn’t agree more,”
Lady Cadwalader agreed as she fiddled with her glove that was too
tight for her plump hand. “One almost feels sorry for their lot in
life. They’ll never have it any better.”

“
You shouldn’t be so cruel,”
Lord Cadwalader admonished, though Derek sensed he wasn’t all that
upset by her comment. “They have a place to fill. Someone has to be
in the lower middle class. Not everyone can be like us.”

“
You’re right, I suppose,”
Lady Cadwalader relented. “Who else would do the menial
work?”

“
Exactly,” her brother, Lord
Riggley, replied with a nod. “It’s much like the animal kingdom.
You have those at the top, like the lions in Africa who roam the
open fields, and then you have the rats like the kind we have
scampering through garbage. Each animal has its place.”

The lady standing next to Lord Riggley
snorted. “No one benefits from rats. They’re filthy creatures. I
wouldn’t want one in my townhouse.”

“
I wouldn’t either,” Lord
Riggley said. “I’m just saying those disadvantaged people are still
a part of Society, and we have to bear with them whether we like it
or not. There is no getting rid of them.”

“
Not with how much they
breed,” Lady Cadwalader muttered.

Derek told himself he shouldn’t intervene.
He even looked over at Danette to remind himself why he had
promised her he’d no longer make embarrassing scenes in public.

But then the lady next to Lord Riggley said,
“Maybe if we don’t feed them, they’ll go away and breed elsewhere,”
and not a single person protested. In fact, they all laughed.

Derek bolted up from his chair and stormed
over to them. “I’m dismayed, truly and completely dismayed,” he
snapped, his voice rising with each word he spoke. “How dare you
stand here and joke about people who aren’t as wealthy as you?”