“It is, my lady,” the young woman murmured.
“I was quite surprised when Mr. Rathborne-Paxton invited me to attend today’s race,” Miss Garrett went on. “But I hear that the Duke and Duchess of Westminster are in attendance, so I believe this is precisely the place anyone of quality should be on a Saturday afternoon.”
Joseph held his breath, wondering if Miss Garrett had gone too far.
But Lady Grayson merely smiled and said, “I quite agree, my dear.”
“Have you, by chance, seen Her Grace as of yet, Lady Grayson?” Joseph asked, hoping he could speed the process of Miss Garrett’s acceptance along.
“Yes, I believe they were on their way to the stables to take a look at His Grace’s entrant in today’s race before it starts,” Lady Grayson answered.
“Perhaps we will take a look as well,” Miss Garrett said, sending Joseph a look of excitement. And relief that their plan was proceeding so quickly, if Joseph interpreted things right. “It was a delight to meet you, my lady,” she finished with another curtsy for Lady Grayson.
“And you, my dear,” Lady Grayson smiled at her. “I do hope you will call on me soon. I am befuddled by these rumors I have heard, and I wish to learn more about you so that I might dispel them.”
“I would be honored, my lady,” Miss Garrett said with genuine enthusiasm.
When Joseph escorted her on and they left the seating area to make their way over to the stables, he couldn’t help but whisper with excitement, “That went splendidly.”
“It did,” Miss Garrett squealed back, all smiles. “I must confess, when you first instructed me on how to speak and stand, I had my doubts. But it worked. It actually worked. Who knows what else I might accomplish with a bit more instruction?”
The way she grinned at him had Joseph turning hot all over again. It also left him wishing that he had more things in which he could instruct her…such as kissing. His fear was that he would need her to impart those lessons to him, and he wasn’t entirely comfortable with that idea.
They made their way closer to the stables, and Joseph thanked his lucky stars when he spotted the duke and duchess speaking with some friends. He’d met Westminster once or twice before at balls and political events, but as they approached, Joseph was suddenly uncertain of the reception he and Miss Garrett would receive. Miss Garrett stood taller and wore a bright smile, but Joseph’s nerve threatened to give out the closer they got.
Those nerves came to disappointing fruition when Westminster glanced in their direction, met Joseph’s eyes for a moment, then looked away and resumed his conversation. Joseph hadn’t been given so much as a nod of the head in acknowledgement. Surely, the man must know who he was. He should know that his father was a marquess and his brother was an earl. The lack of recognition froze Joseph in his steps.
“Now you know how I feel,” Miss Garrett told him softly, hugging his arm a bit.
That squeezed Joseph’s heart. It was not a pleasant feeling, and if that was how Miss Garrett had felt all this time, then his heart truly did go out to her.
Before he could do anything about it, a man stepped up to Westminster, whispered something in his ear, and then he and Westminster stepped away at a fast pace. Westminster wore a concerned frown as the two separated themselves from the others.
“This might be our chance to impress the man,” Joseph said, tugging Miss Garrett forward and following Westminster to the side.
“Shouldn’t we be more concerned about introducing ourselves to the duchess?” Miss Garrett asked in a whisper.
Yes, if the aim was to secure an invitation for Miss Garrett to the ball. Joseph was forced to admit that his pride had been hurt by Westminster failing to acknowledge him, and if he could get that little token of respect, if he could be seen in the eyes of someone as important as Westminster, perhaps everyone else would begin to take him seriously as well.
“Are you certain of the loss?” Westminster had just asked the man who had drawn him aside when Joseph and Miss Garrett came within earshot. “Is there nothing to be done?”
“Not that I can see at the moment, Your Grace,” the man said. “The deal simply fell apart without explanation. I’m afraid it will mean a substantial financial loss.”
“That’s the second in two weeks,” Westminster muttered, rubbing a hand over the lower half of his face. “One slip I could understand, but something does not feel right about this.”
“I will do what I can to research the failed deal and to determine who the parties involved were,” the man said.
“Thank you, Stephenson,” Westminster said, resting a hand briefly on the man’s arm. “Let me know what you discover.”
Westminster turned to head back to his wife. Joseph missed his chance to step forward and say something, but it didn’t matter. He’d just fit a few pieces together in his mind. Unexplained financial losses dealt to one of the wealthiest men in England? A duke at that? There could be only one explanation.
Sure enough, as soon as the thought entered Joseph’s mind, his gaze settled on a lone figure standing near the edge of the stables, as if observing everything that had just taken place.
Montrose.
And the man wore a sly smile, as though things were going his way.
It was Westminster. Montrose’s next target was none other than the biggest fish in the entire pond—the Duke of Westminster.