CHAPTER 2

I do not like any of this.

Damian was trying, he really was. He had taken on board the advice of his accountant, Mr. Marcus Penny, and made an appearance at the ball being held in the Assembly Rooms in Cornwall Town, but now that he was here, he remembered why he typically preferred to avoid this sort of thing. It left him feeling decidedly uncomfortable. Of the three events that he had attended as a duke, he could not help but notice all the same things.

The finery, the fake smiles, the pretend civility.

It was a mere distraction for the ton. A way for them to show off their wealth and status, simply ignoring all the true horrors that went on in the world. Horrors that they would never have to face, simply because they were born into money.

What a waste of effort.

Damian could not even find a way to blend into the background, so he could simply watch what was unfolding in front of him in peace. Silently mocking the pretenses that surrounded him. Not when so many women were curiously looking his way.

Damian hated it when women looked his way.

Throughout his life, he had only ever experienced two types of women. The upper class ladies who were drawn in by his appearance, but turned off the moment they learned he did not have any money, and the lower class ladies. They always used to shy away from his aloof temperament, avoiding him as if he had some kind of disease or something… until he was awarded a dukedom. All of a sudden, they became far more interested in him.

He could not help but wonder if all women were so fickle. If he would only ever be seen as worthless aside from his money and his title. If anyone would ever really see him for who he really was. Because Damian really did have a lot to offer people, if they ever took the time to get to know him.

It truly disgusted him. It made him feel like he was not even a real person when treated like that.

Should I leave?He wondered to himself. Is there any point in remaining here when I am having such a terrible time?

But he did not immediately move. He remained where he was in the midst of the ballroom, watching the throngs of crowds around him. Scoffing internally at the silliness he saw.

How would these people cope if they ever had to deal with real life? With the life of the working classes? The poor who could not afford to feed their children, the fathers who spent too many hours in the mines to spend much time with their families, the children who were sent to live in the workhouses…

They did not have time to worry about fancy dresses and expensive drinks. They were not gossiping about one another because they were too worried about their own lives to think of others. The divide in England was truly sickening, Damian knew that better than anyone else.

As his eyes scanned over the crowd, Damian found himself drawn to a specific woman in the middle of the dance floor. A woman he had never noticed before, but perhaps that was because she did not naturally stand out. Not among the beautiful women who were decorated with the finest most ridiculous jewels known to man.

But there was something special about her, something that kept Damian drawn to her, looking at her even when he thought it best to pull away.

He liked that she had a simple, almost plain look about her. She was not flashy like the others in the room. Her hair was pulled back into a chignon, but not a complicated style like some of the other ladies were wearing. Her sage green dress was not full of lace and charms, but it hung nicely off her slender body. Yet her sweet, friendly looking hazel colored eyes were the most sparkling part about her. Faint laughter lines surrounded her eyes, which showed Damian that she was not afraid to smile and laugh. When she did smile widely and he spotted her lovely dimples, all he wanted to do was get to know her.

Yet even though she did not demand attention, she seemed to be getting a lot of it nonetheless.

All the gentlemen in the room also seemed to be drawn to this lady. She had a lot of dance partners making her the center of attention. There were many ladies who Damian was sure would usually spend the whole night on the dance floor, standing on the side lines looking in.

What was going on?

"I would also like to dance with Lady Moore tonight," someone near him commented. "But I have not had the chance to speak with her yet."

Since the gentleman attached to the voice was staring at the lady in the sage green dress, Damian felt compelled to edge a little closer to the group, to see if he could find out more about this woman. It seemed like there was a lot to know.

"You will be lucky to get a moment alone with her," the man beside him laughed. "Since she inherited that fortune, everyone wants to know her now."

Ah, that made sense to Damian. The ton were a group of people who were terribly obsessed with money. It seemed to be the only thing they talked about and cared about. So of course they were drawn to Lady Moore because of her new finances.

It took all the strength that he had not to roll his eyes in derision.

It was probably not the best idea, but Damian could not pull himself away from the gossip. It had already become an addiction to him.

"Who do you think Lady Madeline will be drawn to?"

"She seems to have her choice, but I am sure she will pick someone quickly while she has this attention. After all, she has never had it before."

They seemed a little cruel to Damian, but he could not resist listening in regardless. He actually moved a little closer, to see what else he could figure out.

But a sharp, shrill voice interrupted his eavesdropping.

"What are you doing here, Damian? This is a very civil party. I do not think you are welcome."

Damian's heart sunk. It was Alicia, his aunt on his father's side, who did not ever hide her disdain for him. Although usually, she did not act this way in public. Perhaps she had drunk a few too many, that would explain why her cheeks were flushed.

"I was invited," he replied coolly. "I do not understand your disdain."

He jutted his chin out confidently, but that did not stop people turning to look at him, including the group of gentlemen that he had been eavesdropping on. Unfortunately, if they were all looking at him, the ton might realize that Damian did not have the social game play that the upper classes were taught from a very young age. Having grown up in completely different circumstances, without even knowing that he was related to nobility, he knew that he lacked a good way to confront his aunt.

"You know what I am talking about, Damian," she seethed. "I do not see any reason to cause a scene."

Now that was an utterly ridiculous statement, since she was the one who had come up to him. But she seemed to be holding herself up well, lording above him without even trying. It was like she simply had this air about her, that allowed her to fit in without even trying.

"I am here quietly enjoying myself, Aunt Alicia…" He was sure to show off his family connection because he knew Alicia would not like that. "You are the one who came up to me and started to make an unnecessary scene."

Her cheeks flamed red and her hands curled up into fists by her side. She looked like she was about to explode at any given moment. The more that she behaved this way, the more eyes Damian could feel upon them. More attention from the ton was the last thing he wanted.

Damian worried that they would start to look at him like he was some kind of buffoon and that they would notice how little he fitted in. He might not have wanted to be like the rest of them, but he also did not want that to be picked up on.

It was a very challenging position that Damian wanted to escape from as soon as he could. He was unwilling to play his aunt's game, and to give her what she so clearly wanted, but he also did not wish to be near Alicia and everyone who might agree with her any longer.

Without saying a word, Damian turned to leave the assembly, to get himself some fresh air while he attempted to work out his next move.

Once outside the assembly hall, Damian took some time to let the cool evening air wash over him. Almost immediately he felt much calmer, the thoughts in his brain stopped racing at the ridiculous pace they had been while he was inside. There had been a tight knot in his chest that started to loosen because he was no longer surrounded by the people who made him feel incredibly uncomfortable.

This was the last time he was ever going to allow his accountant to talk him into anything!

Marcus was at the event, Damian had spotted him across the hall a couple of times, but he had never been able to get close enough to actually talk to him, which made the whole evening even more of a waste of time. Not that any visit with Marcus was a waste of time. Especially this time around.

Coming to town, Damian knew that he was not in for good news. He had been trying to prepare himself for a nightmare, which was exactly what he had gotten. While Marcus had managed to stabilize the estate funds, there was no capital to keep the copper mines running throughout the summer.

Damian could not stand the idea of leaving those men with no work, it was not right. They were good men, hard workers, and had families to care for. He knew that all too well because he had spent many years working with them, before he found out who he really was.

It had been a shock to him, to inherit the dukedom. It was not a life he ever thought he'd have to navigate.

Born to a maid in Samuel Fairhurst's estate, Damian was always simple Damien Myers and that was not something he'd ever thought to question. It was not something he had even thought of until his mother passed away a few years ago. But even then, it was not something that he could chase up because his life was busy in the mines. He had to spend every day doing his best to simply make a living. He had not even thought to dream of much more. Survival was his main aim.

That was until a few months ago when his employer, and his mother's employer before him, passed away. Upon Samuel Fairhurst's death, he had left a will which stunned everyone. A will which confirmed that Damian was in fact, his son, and the one who would inherit everything.

That trust led Damian into a life he never expected to have, which was why he even found himself attending such a ball.

But it was not all smooth sailing. Damian had faced nothing but troubles since inheriting the estate. Not only was the whole place run down and a little shabby, but also the finances were in disarray, which unfortunately affected all the people who lived around him. All the people who relied on the work in the mines had been facing troubles for years.

When the cousins that Damian did not even know he had started to crawl out of the wood work, trying to contest the will and take the estate for themselves, all Damian really wanted to do was tell them the truth of what was going on. That there was not much to inherit.

But Damian was not a quitter.

He had never been known as someone who was likely to give up, and this was not about to change. Little by little, he had been trying to make changes to the estate to make everything better in the end.

Firing the house staff had been his first port of call.

That was not something he took lightly because he did not want anyone to be out of work, but the staff had been around Samuel for years, and had become complacent in their work. The more his father drank himself to death, the less they worked. They had become lazy and incompetent. Even with Damian taking over and trying to change things, they were frustratingly resistant.

Damian would rather get his hands dirty and do the work himself rather than allow lackluster behavior in his home.

Now, he only had Leonard Scott, an elderly steward who perhaps should have retired by now because his physical health was not the best, but he was a great resource of information. He knew the house, area and network of merchants and traders like the back of his hand. Plus, he had always cared for Damian and his mother, so Damian felt very close to him.

He also had Annie Benson, a maid who was diligent and hard working and cared deeply for the quality of her work. Damian respected that, so was happy to have her on the staff.

But if the finances continued to plummet and he lost the mines, Damian might end up losing those two as well, which was not what he wanted.

He really wanted to bring wealth and work to Cornwall, especially to his town. Damian wanted to take his new dukedom and to do something positive with it. To make a difference to the people who lived around him. He did not care for all these fancy balls and silly upper class events. He simply wanted to make the world a better place around him. As much as he could anyway with the small power that he now had.

But he was still going to have to learn to play the game properly if he wanted to make this difference. He was going to have to find a way to fit into this world, even if he did not want to. He was going to have to find a way to make himself wealthy enough to support everyone. It was not the easiest dream to make come true, but Damian was determined, and he had never been a quitter.