The young lady seemed to have an answer to everything, and Leo found it enthralling. He caught himself on more than one occasion wondering if she would be the same if he were a duke rather than a mere marquess, but then he decided that any gentleman of a station above her own would elicit the same reaction.
To her, he was like any other person, and perhaps that was why he liked her so much.
Not only that, but she had been the first person to not be so willing to give everything away to him in an instant. She was giving him the slightest pieces of her, and it only made him want to know more, rather than the usual situation where a young lady would list her talents and accomplishments as if she wished to work for him rather than have him truly know her, and he would have been wrong if he said he had never faced such behavior with a man.
Then again, that was to those who knew of his true identity. He tried not to feel guilty about keeping his life a secret from her, but it was becoming increasingly difficult to do so.
She had to know, or at least have a feeling, that he was keeping something from her, but he did not dare tell her. It was not because he feared any change, but because he did not know how to do it. Too much had passed between them now, and he did not dare tell her bluntly that he was truly a duke and she had been duped by him.
“Is everything all right, my lord?” she asked suddenly. “You seem rather far away.”
“I am right here.” He smiled, pretending not to know what she meant. “Although I must admit, I have been rather taken by this painting here. It is an extraordinary use of color.”
“Yes, and you can see so much detail,” she replied. “Come closer. You can see the incredibly thin brush strokes.”
He was able to feel relief that he had escaped further questioning for a mere five seconds before his heart pounded once more. She had taken his arm and was pulling him toward the painting.
They had touched before, danced before even, but something felt different this time. She felt warm, and when he looked down at her, her face was flushed, as if she, too, knew what she had done. He looked at the painting so that she would not fear anything, and he realized that she was completely correct. It was, indeed, extraordinarily detailed.
He missed such things when she was around, for he found himself distracted, and he could not admit to himself quite why that was.
“Is this a favorite of yours?” he asked.
“I have never seen it before.” She sighed. “It must be new, though I cannot say that I recognize the artist, either.”
Leo leaned forward to read the artist’s name as if he would have recognized it himself. The young lady accompanying him smirked at him, laughing softly.
“You need not pretend with me,” she said gently. “I know that you do not care about all of this.”
He should have felt relieved to hear that, but he did not. All that he truly felt was a reminder that he was, indeed, pretending.
“I care immensely,” he replied. “Perhaps not about the paintings themselves, but of course, I care about how you are finding it all.”
“I am enjoying it immensely. This is the first time that I have been outside of my household since…I can hardly recall.”
“Do you not even go to the market? That is a part of what you do, is it not?”
“It should be, but…” She trailed off.
“But? I have to admit, the earl and countess seem adamant that you are hidden away. Why is that?”
“I do not know,” she replied calmly, but he could tell from the way she was avoiding his gaze that she knew all too well.
He did not pry, however. If he was entitled to his secrets, so was she.
They passed the rest of the visit in silence. Leo hoped that, eventually, she would come clean and confess everything and give him the perfect opportunity to tell her his true identity, but she did not. Her smile returned, however, which he appreciated a great deal.
“You do not carry yourself like a maid,” he said as they rode their horses back.
“And how is it that a maid carries herself?” she asked, brow furrowed.
“I do not mean for you to take offense,” he said quickly. “Only, you seem to have a countenance resembling a lady, not someone that works for one.”
“Well, I was not always a maid,” she explained. “But after what my father did to them, I began to work for them. It paid off his debts, or at least it will one day. They are good to me, truly.”
“Keeping you as a prisoner does not sound as though it is good for you.”
“Well, if they were to give me that freedom, it would bring shame upon my family if I were recognized.”
“And what if you were to have a wealthy suitor?”
She pulled her horse to a stop, eyeing him carefully.
“Do not ask me that.”
“I cannot help it.” He shrugged. “You are telling me that you must work for them to pay off some debts. If there were a gentleman willing to marry you and pay off said debts, would they agree?”
He did not even know why he had asked that. He had made it sound as though he was asking for her hand, which of course, he was not. He had not known her for very long, and they were not even courting, and there was another young lady that he had to discover the truth about before he could even think of looking for another.
“No,” she replied softly, shaking her head and urging her horse on to catch up with his.
“But why would they not? If it is funds they require—”
“By now, it is more that they have a maid that they need not pay. I have a home, and they have their debts paid without needing to pay a wage. That is not something that they would be willing to lose.”
“So it is because they specifically have a vendetta against you.”
“My lord, that it is not—they are not—it is not like that.”
“Then why do you find it so difficult to tell me more? If someone harbors so much resentment toward you, you can tell me. I know that it has only been a short while, but I assure you that what we discuss stays between the two of us. I am not one to gossip, and I never will be.”
“I do not distrust you,” she said gently. “Which is quite strange, I must admit, because I do not meet people all too often, but it is the case. I cannot tell you how I feel about it all because I do not know how I feel myself. I am conflicted. They might not be the kindest to me, but they have been good to me, better than I ever deserved at least.”
“Even if your father did leave debts behind, that does not mean that you deserve anything less than kindness. You are not to blame for the mistakes of another.”
“I suppose not, but in any case, they have worked hard to recover the losses my father caused, and now they are at last beginning to do better for themselves, and I do not wish to jeopardize that. It is not in my nature to leave others destitute if you can believe it.”
Leo blinked at her.
“They are hardly risking destitution. Lady Imogen is out in society, is she not?”
“Yes, but it is the duty of a gentleman to aid his daughter in her entrance into society, not his niece.”
“You know, I still cannot believe that you kept your true identity from me.”
“I apologize for lying to you for so long, but I did not know how to explain myself. You must agree that it is not a particularly common predicament for a young lady to find herself in.”
“I do not blame you.” He nodded. “I am simply glad that I know now, Lady Evelyn.”
“Evie,” she corrected him. “I use the name Evie now. It is more fitting, considering my position.”
“Rather informal, is it not?”
“Oh! Well, if you would prefer to call me Lady Evelyn, I suppose that it will not make too much of a difference.”
“Not at all. If Evie is the name that you prefer, then I am more than happy to call you that. After all, even if it is improper, when will there ever be a time where we are heard?”
She laughed gently, then looked down at her horse’s mane.
“Evie,” he continued, clearing his throat, “I—”
“I want to be more,” she said suddenly. “I do not wish to be a simple maid and nothing more all my life, but I do not know what else to do with myself. I do not see a way out of this beyond marriage, and there isn’t a single gentleman in London who would dare lower himself to that. That is why I do not like the suggestion that there is a way out. There is not, and it is best for me to see the good in what I have rather than dream of a life that I can never have.”
She had said it all so quickly that she had not even taken a moment to breathe. As she did, Leo tried to think about all that she had said.
There was so much that he had wanted to tell her, namely that he also had a secret, but now all that he cared about was the fact that she did, indeed, want more. He was in a position to do so, but he couldn’t. Not yet, at least. Once he had honored his father’s wish, he could handle other matters that he cared about himself, but until then…
Until then, he would have to punish himself for not being able to do more.
“I did not mean to pressure you,” he replied gently. “About marriage, that is. It was only a suggestion, nothing more.”
“I know that,” she replied. “You are not the sort of person to force a person’s hand, I can see that. I am only telling you because I do not wish to become your project. As a marquess, I am sure you have more than enough to do without concerning yourself with my well-being. I am perfectly content with my lot in life when all is said and done.”
“If that is how you truly feel, then I shall not pry any further. Evie, I must tell you something.”
But she was not looking at him. Instead, she was looking a decent way behind them, her eyes narrowing for a moment before she lurched forward.
“My uncle,” she explained sharply. “I must go.”
“I wish to see you again!” he called, but she did not turn back.
As he continued, he understood exactly what she was talking about. Seconds later, the carriage of the earl rolled passed, with the earl inside. He nodded to Leo with a smile so sly that Leo had to force himself not to scowl in response.
He had to keep the earl happy if it meant he would not grow suspicious of Evie.