Chapter 25

Marie held her breath as she entered the club in search of James McFunnugh. If Christopher was right, he'd more than likely be skulking in a dark corner of the club between the many tables of unsavory characters.

The dingy so-called ‘gentlemen's club' on the outskirts of London consisted of a tall building nestled between a baker and a tailor. The blinds in all the rooms were drawn, making it hard to tell who exactly was there.

Dubious-looking men of all sizes and ages glared at her with great interest as she walked down the semi-dark hall. Old cigar smoke filled the air along with the stale scent of cheap whiskey. She began to regret her decision to come alone when a tall man in a dark coat whistled at her, beckoning her over with a nod of his head.

His dirty mustache made her shiver with disgust as she hurried along, looking into alcoves in the hopes of spotting James. She found it astonishing that anyone would enjoy spending their time in places like this. The sound of billiard balls clattering against one another filled the air as she neared one of the rooms at the end of the hall.

"Well, well, well, look what the cat dragged in. Have you come to reconsider my offer?" James' broken voice carried across the hall, drawing her attention to a small alcove to the right that she hadn't noticed before.

James McFunnugh sat in a single chair beside a table with a lamp and a glass of whiskey along with an ashtray for his cigar. "If you have come to accept my offer, I am afraid it is too late." He puffed on the end of his cigar before blowing a cloud of smoke in her direction.

Marie wrinkled her nose in disgust, using her gloved hand to wave the smoke away. She hadn't thought that James would hang around in places like this. He always seemed to be such a well-put-together man who prided himself on being invited to balls.

"I knew it wouldn't be long before you came crawling back to me. You were not a match for that bull of a duke. No, he was just passing the time with you until he could find a real lady to become his wife." His lips curled into a nasty sneer that hit the pit of her stomach with a painful blow.

She hadn't thought of the Duke as a man who would toy with any woman, yet she still didn't know why he held such a strong determination to make her his wife.

Doubt set in, making her wonder if James wasn't right, but she quickly pushed it aside. "I am not here to come crawling back to you, James, nor do I plan on marrying the Duke, whatever his motives may be." She held her head high and lied, despite the sting in her chest that his words had caused.

"Oh, then to what do I owe this pleasure? I have already found a wife, so perhaps you have come to congratulate me?" He seemed to be taking a great amount of delight in mocking her as he lounged in the chair, swigging the last sips of his whiskey before replacing the glass. "I would offer you a drink, but as you can see, I have been banished to one of the less savory clubs in London."

Banished?

Clutching her purse to her side, Marie stepped out of the way of a few passersby, trying to make herself as small as possible while wondering what he was talking about.

"I am glad to hear of your good fortune, but that is not why I am here. I want to discuss the rumors that have been circulating." She cut to the chase, wanting to leave as soon as possible.

She was beginning to feel as if she had made a grave mistake in not telling the Duke where she was going. She felt far too vulnerable with all the men that were undressing her with their eyes. She had been exposed to many kinds of men during her days as a barmaid, but even then, she hadn't felt as vulnerable as she did at that moment.

Men seemed to come and go with ease without so much as showing their faces.

"Rumors? Please do enlighten me. I can't wait to hear what it is that I am supposedly guilty of now." James flicked the side of his cigar against the rim of the ashtray, causing a line of ash to fall from the tip.

"It seems that there has been a great deal of talk, not only about the ordeal with Lady Arrindell's daughter but also of the supposed relationship between me and the Duke." She shifted to the side again when a large man brushed past her, causing the side of her arm to brush up against the wall as she tried to sidle away.

"And you think that I am the one spreading these rumors?" He seemed thoroughly entertained by the way she kept dodging the men who brushed past her in the hallway.

"Can we go somewhere else and talk?" Her heart raced with fear when a particularly large and unwashed man appeared at the end of the hall and leaned against the wall, staring at her with an animalistic grin.

James narrowed his eyes at her in disgust before spitting a reply. "No, we cannot. Your problem has always been that you think yourself far superior to the class of people you were born into. You are just as lowly as the rest of us common scum. Don't think that you are better than me just because you rub elbows with the aristocracy. None of them would so much as flinch if anything were to happen to you."

Her pulse raced uncontrollably when he stood and towered above her, his scowl sending a shiver of fear down her spine. "I would not stoop so low as to spread rumors about someone as insignificant as you. And if you dare question me again, I will make sure that the precious duke of yours gets held up for breach of contract."

Marie backed away until her hands touched the dirty wall at the other end of the hallway. "Breach of contract?" she almost stuttered as she struggled to keep her nerve.

The man at the end of the hallway seemed to be enjoying the show. His presence made her even more uneasy when she realized that there was nowhere to run if anything went wrong. She couldn't run toward the man, and James was blocking the only other exit.

He tilted his head to the side with a mocking scowl. "Oh, was I right? Has the grand Duke tired of you already? I would have thought that he would at least have mentioned our little arrangement before he cast you off. No, it was not I who spread all the rumors. When the Duke bullied me into selling one of my most profitable buildings, our contract included a clause of confidentiality."

"How would that stop you from spreading rumors about me?" Marie's eyes frantically searched for a line of escape. There was no denying it now that she had made a grave mistake.

"How? Part of that blasted contract states that I am never to utter a word that so much as hints toward anything to do with you. All the money that the Duke placed in my lap would disappear in the blink of an eye if I didn't leave you alone."

Marie winced when he reached out and touched a loose strand of her hair, letting it slip through his fingers as he placed an arm above her on the wall and sneered down at her.

"But I think I may have just found a loophole; nothing in the contract states that I must honor our little agreement if you wander so willingly into my territory." He shut his eyes and took a deep breath as he sniffed her hair.

Her heart suddenly leaped into her throat when the smell of stale, cheap whiskey flooded her face. Shutting her eyes, she balled her fists at her sides, readying herself to fight him off.

A gush of fresh air suddenly filled her lungs as she opened her eyes to see James being pulled back into his chair.

The fear in his eyes was palpable as a large figure stepped between them.

"Dominic!" Marie gasped, raising her hands to her mouth as a wave of relief washed over her body.

Dominic held up his hand, silencing her without turning. He towered above James who cowered back into the chair, trying to make himself appear as small as possible.

"Your Grace, I swear I didn't do anything. She came to me for answers; you cannot blame me for this!" All the blood seemed to drain from James's face when the Duke cracked his knuckles at his sides.

"You may not have gone looking for her, but you surely seemed to be liberal with your threats." Dominic's arms moved quicker than a flash as he gripped the lapels of James' coat and lifted him from the chair.

"This is the last warning that you will ever hear from me. The next time I find you so much as sniffing in her direction, I will make your life a living hell. I do not care if she comes to you. If you see her walking down the street, I expect you to cross to the other side, and if you touch what is mine ever again, you won't live to see the light of day."

James gripped Dominic's hand as he fought for breath, the toes of his shoes scraping the floor.

"Do I make myself clear, James McFunnugh?" Dominic's voice was so low that Marie had to strain to hear him.

Nodding his reply as he failed to grasp the Duke's hand, James gasped for breath when Dominic finally let go.

Taking a step back, the Duke continued to glare down at the man until he stumbled to his feet and scurried away.

Feeling vulnerable with the same man standing at the end of the hall, Marie took a step forward and reached for Dominic's arm, drawing his attention to her. "Can we please leave?" she asked in a quiet voice.

Dominic nodded, placing his arm around her shoulders before guiding her toward the exit.

Men stopped to stare at them, glaring as they spoke in hushed tones.

Marie kept close to his side until they were out in the open air with the door to the club firmly shut behind them.

"Just what were you thinking going into a place like that by yourself?" The Duke rounded on her, his eyes dark with anger. "Do you have any idea of what could have happened if I had not shown up?"

She felt like a child being scolded when he gripped her shoulders and shook her lightly. "I needed to dispel the rumors; I did not know how else to deal with it."

"You could have come to me, and I would have dealt with it! But no, I had to hear of your troubles from my friend instead." Dominic's voice softened along with his eyes when tears welled up in her eyes.

"I have always dealt with these things on my own; I do not need you to follow me around!" Hot tears stung her cheeks as the fear that had taken hold of her in the club finally subsided.

"Marie, I am here to help you. Why won't you accept that?" he asked her softly before pulling her into his arms and allowing her to sob against his chest. The reassuring feeling of his fingers gently stroking her hair only proved to make her cry more as she melted into a puddle against his chest.

"I didn't mean to cause you any trouble, Dominic. I just don't know what to do anymore. Everything I have worked so hard for in my life is suddenly being threatened. My business is going under, and my maid is making herself sick trying to help me!" She felt herself sobbing when his arms drew her closer to his chest.

The reassuring warmth of his body suddenly engulfed her as she gave into his embrace, allowing her body to rest against his.

"I'm not mad at you; I was just scared. Believe it or not, I do not want anything to happen to you. It defeats the purpose of asking you to spend the rest of your life by my side if you are not around."

"Will you never stop asking me to marry you?" She pulled back a little and looked into his eyes.

A half smile spread over his lips. "Have you accepted yet?"

She felt her heart skittering when he continued to search her face. "No, I have not," she swallowed hard and shook her head.

"Then I will not stop asking you to marry me." He placed his fingers under her chin and tilted her face toward his.

Her breath stilled in her lungs as a reply lingered on the tip of her tongue.

Dominic moved his fingers along her jawline, gently caressing her skin until he cupped her cheek. "It is getting late; let's not discuss this now. We need to go somewhere where we can talk in peace without the stench of this hellhole distracting us." He lowered his hand and turned to leave.

"Dominic wait!" Marie suddenly raised her voice, feeling a flood of emotions engulf her body. Throwing her arms around his neck without thinking, she pressed her lips into his—soft and gentle at first until he responded in kind by deepening the kiss.

His tongue slaked over her lips before parting her mouth and drawing her closer to his body.

Feeling the desire to be closer to him, Marie drew back first after a moment or two and opened her eyes. "My grandmother isn't home. Would you like to come over and talk about everything that has happened?" She wasn't even sure of what she was doing; all she knew was that she needed him close.

Dominic nodded, his eyes dark with passion as he kept his hands on her waist. "I think that would be a good idea." He reluctantly drew away from her and nodded to a carriage that had been parked down the street.

Marie followed suit, allowing herself to be guided down the street, and for the first time in weeks, she finally felt as if she knew exactly how to respond to his proposal. The safety and care he had shown toward her had swayed her heart in what she hoped was the right direction.

Her relief, however, was short-lived when she realized what had occurred inside the club. James McFunnugh hadn't been the one spreading the rumors. He couldn't have been when Dominic had threatened him with ruin if he tried anything of the sort.

Who is it then?

She suddenly felt at a loss for words as they entered the carriage. Who held such a grudge against her that they felt the need to singlehandedly try and ruin her life? Whoever it was, they seemed to want nothing more than her utter ruin.