The Clarendon Rose Read Online Free Page A

Instead, it was this brother whose presence caught Tina’s senses and set them on a knife’s edge of awareness.
    Once they were seated and the first course served, he smiled at her.   “So, have you given my request any further thought?”
    “I have, Your Grace.”   She hesitated.
    “Miss Merriweather, please, don’t keep me in suspense!” he quipped.   Her polite smile froze briefly; she had never seen him grin before.   The man had dimples!   When he grinned, he looked younger—and devastatingly, recklessly handsome.  
    Tina looked away, her smile fading.   She tried to ignore the unsettling heat that tightened the muscles of her abdomen, even as she strove to keep her expression blank.   “I have decided to offer whatever help you require, Your Grace.”
    “Excellent!”   The duke’s tone was hearty, but Tina had not managed to tear her gaze from the demolished remains of the first course, so she had no idea what his expression might have been.   “Is there anything I can offer in return for your graciousness?”
    Tina frowned, still staring down at her plate as she gave the question serious thought.   Then, steeling herself, she looked up to meet his inquiring gaze.   “Yes, Your Grace.   There is.”
    “Name it.”
    “I would like you to give serious consideration to the various long-term plans Uncle Charles and I laid out for the future.   Times are changing, and if the Clarendon estates are to remain profitable, then we must keep up.”
    A frown had begun as she spoke, and by the time she finished, he was scowling at her.   “Miss Merriweather, I have already given them serious consideration, and though I might question the profitability of some—”
    Tina jumped in before he could continue, “Profitability was not always a primary concern.”   She could hear the defensiveness in her tone and tried not to wince at it.
    “Oh?”
    Her face heated up under his cool scrutiny, but she tried to keep her tone calm.   “After the war, the returning soldiers placed a heavy burden on the economy, looking for jobs that were no longer always available.   Prices dropped, as did profits.   To mitigate the situation as best we could, Uncle Charles and I began developing ideas for ventures that would stimulate the local economies.”   A glance at the duke revealed that he was still watching her with that disconcertingly neutral expression.  
    When he did not respond, she made an impatient noise.   “We may not see any tangible profits in the near future—or at all—but surely you must see that a robust economy, in the regions of our holdings at the least, will ultimately be of benefit to us all.”
    “Indeed, Miss Merriweather, I do recall seeing some notation to that effect among the copious papers you forwarded me.”
    “And?” she prompted tensely.
    He shrugged, as if the future prosperity of hundreds were not at stake.   “The ventures seemed worth a try—something must be done to, as you say, stimulate the local economy.”   He tilted his head, frowning at her.   “They are good ideas and I intended to follow them.   Why would you think I might do otherwise?”
    “I had concerns that you might dismiss them when you found out they were partially formulated by a woman.”   She tilted her chin up.   “But I feel they have merit.”
      “Which is unaltered, regardless of who conceived them,” he said.   “What interests me is why you think I would have been so ready alter the status quo, despite my ignorance of the nuances of the situation.”
    “Your reputation, Your Grace—“ she blurted, before she could stop herself.   Eyes wide, she stared at him.  
    “What is my reputation, Miss Merriweather?”   His expression had turned glacial.
    “Impetuous…” she trailed off.
    “Yes?   Please continue.   I find this most interesting.”   His tone sparked Tina’s annoyance.   This was the man who had once plunged into a roiling ocean to retrieve a lost