Page 5 of My Dangerous Duke

Eleanor felt herself nod numbly.

“Good,” he stated, calmer now. “Now if you will excuse me. I must go change my coat.”

Just as Eleanor’s father reached the doorway to the drawing room, Bernard, the house butler, appeared, almost running into his Master.

“A thousand apologies, Sir,” the balding servant stammered quickly, working as best as he could to get his wiry thin body to help stabilize Victor’s much larger one.

“Blast, you fool!” Victor boomed, staggering back into the wall. “What in heaven's name are you doing? You know I have an important meeting to get to and you are knocking me off my feet!”

“Mr. Langley,” Xander greeted sharply, stepping out of the shadows of the hallway. The portly man responsible for his ruin stopped shouting at the butler immediately, and his big eyesgrew bigger as he realized his plan had been pushed slightly awry.

“I amsosorry,Sir,”Bernard apologized again, his voice pleading, “But that is why I have come. It appears that your appointment has come to you.”

“Your Grace,” Victor stated with agitation, his hands quickly working to adjust his mussed clothes and hair. “What are you doing here? I said we were to meet at White’s to discuss your wedding details, andthenyou were to come here for dinner.”

After a little digging, Xander discovered that Victor Langley was nothing but an avid social climber whose life goal was to somehow be born again into nobility, and Xander was simply a pawn in making that happen. So, when Xander found out just how many times the man had been denied membership at White’s- their intended meeting place, he could not help but pull access away just a little bit longer.

“I know,” Xander stated, smirking as he entered the room. As he did so, he heard the quiet gasps from the two ladies at the table, and he glanced toward them. His mind quickly scanned through the information he had been given, and identified them as Laura Langley and Lady Edna Wilten; the wife and eldest daughter of his newest nemesis.

Unlike his future bride, whose entire person sparkled like amber among ash, they had no startling features. Their straw blonde hair, dark brown eyes, and small upturned noses were like the countless others of theTon.Ordinary wrapped in tulle. Xanderdrew his eyes back to Victor and strolled further into the room; his gait casual and confident.

“That was the original arrangement, yes,” Xander replied matter-of-factly, walking past Victor and toward the bar cart beyond him, “But my days, to both of our dismay- are busier than most would like. I am afraid I simply cannot afford to give our business an entire day.”

A wicked glee filled Xander as Victor began to stammer and object, but instead of paying the bastard any mind, he went about deliberating on his drink of choice before pouring himself an ample glass full- not for his temperament, but for his pain.

Though he was walking with confidence, his body was screaming at him for the pain he had put it through the last two nights. Needing an outlet, he had spent his time in the ring, boxing. The release of aggression had been glorious and the wins many, but he was now covered in bruises and ached beyond description. He drank the glass in one swallow, giving the strong brew a chance to delightfully numb his aching wounds, and then caught Victor off from whatever it was he had been rambling about.

“You see, the thing is, Langley,” Xander pushed, “You have no choice in this, as I do not. So, we have this moment, and the two-” he paused, checking his pocket watch, “one hour and fifty-two minutes, to conclude this business. Shall we proceed, or scrap the contract altogether?”

Pleasure filled Xander as he saw his adversary finally wilt beneath his dominance. Did this man really think he wouldmake it easy on him? Unable to help himself, his eyes flicked back toward his intended bride. Her full, rosy lips held a smirk of satisfaction; as if she was enjoying this scene immensely.

Interesting.

“Very well, Your Grace,” Victor stated, pulling Xander from his brief distraction.

The defeated tone in Victor’s voice suddenly sealed the second crack in his armor, and Xander reigned in his curiosity. After giving him a nod, Victor led Xander over to the table, where the three ladies had risen from their chairs. He introduced his wife first; whom he had also done some research on.

There was nothing special or particularly ruthless about her- at least, compared to what most mothers would do to arrange a high-profile marriage for their daughters- but it was reported that she was vainer than most, and spent quite a lot of Victor’s new, mediocre-size fortune on crates of beauty creams, cosmetics, dresses, shoes, jewelry, and wigs from Paris.

“And this is my youngest daughter and your betrothed, Your Grace,” Victor stated, finally arriving at the woman he would be forced to call wife. “Miss Eleanor Langley. Eleanor, come meet your soon-to-be-husband.”

Unlike her mother and older sister, Eleanor did not smile or bat her eyelashes at Xander as she offered her hand to him. Instead, she raised her vivid honey eyes directly to his, her gaze once more shooting to the very core of him.

“It is a pleasure to formally meet you, Your Grace,” she responded. The sheer coldness in her tone shocked him. It was the polar opposite of the warmth she radiated, and for the first time since he had been blackmailed, Xander wondered howshefelt about the arrangement.

Shaking off his moment of surprise- a rarity for him, Xander accepted Eleanor’s hand. The moment he did, a strong pulse of electricity jolted through him, spreading from his fingertips and going directly toward his inner armor.

Xander had been with women- many in fact, and quite enjoyed their touch and the way they allowed him to touch them. But never at any time had his hand come in contact with a woman- her mere hand, no less- and felt such a strong current. Unable to take the sensation or the confusion, Xander pulled his hand away swiftly and took a step backward. One of Eleanor’s delicate brows perked up at him as he did so, but he refused to meet her eyes again.

“Right, then,” he stated, walking toward the seat furthest away from all of them, “let’s get this meeting started. We have a wedding to plan.”

Chapter 3

“So, you see that is why it is necessary to have the reception at the Royal Greenhouse proceeding the ceremony at Holy Trinity,” Victor drolled on, “It is so that we may walk our wedding procession through the street, announcing our good fortune! As I stated earlier, our family, me in particular, has been known for our drive to-”

“Yes, that is all very interesting,” Xander stated, rising to his feet, “but I must excuse myself for a moment.”

After being bombarded with inappropriate questions regarding his lineage and state of wealth, Xander had then been forced to listen to forty-five minutes of the pompous man’s boorish voice as he listed off an equal number of self-accomplishments and demands. Between wedding details and details of either Victor's, his wife’s, or his daughters’ accomplishments, Xander’s gaze had wandered to Eleanor.