Free Her Counterfeit Husband by Ruth Ann Nordin

expression that made her afraid she’d give him anything he wanted.
    She swallowed and debated whether she should take his arm or not.  Up to now, she hadn’t touched him, except when she had cleaned his healing wounds .
    He took her hand and placed it on his arm.  “There.  Now I can feel like a true gentleman and let you escort me to the fountain.”
    Despite her apprehension at being so close to him, she chuckled.  “You’ll let me escort you?  If you were a true gentleman, you’d be the one escorting me.”
    “Hmm… You have a good point, though to be honest, I don’t mind it when you take the lead.  As long as you let me come with you, I’m content.”
    “At least you’re not hard to please.”
    “I try to be accommodating,” he teased.
    “You are.”
    After a moment of silence passed between them as they strolled down the path to the fountain, he asked, “Is now a good time to ask about the invitation you received?”
    “Yes,” she softly replied, thinking if she was going to do it, it might as well be now.  “You remember Lord Mason?”
    He nodded.  “My brother.”
    She winced and hoped he didn’t notice since the parasol partially obstructed his view of her face.  “Yes.  He came to visit you shortly after you lost your memory.” She cleared her throat.  “He’s having a dinner party in a week and we’re invited to attend.”
    “What happens at dinner parties?”
    “Not much, really.  You catch up on the latest gossip, eat, play a few games, and go home.”
    “It doesn’t sound like you enjoy them.”
    “It depends on who attends the dinner parties.”
    They stopped at the fountain, and she sat beside him on the bench. She fingered the invitation and glanced at him.  Considering the clothing he’d been wearing w hen she and Appleton found him, she wondered if he could read it.  If he could, then he’d understand , by the way Lord Mason worded the invite , what kind of gentleman he was.   Otherwise, it was hard to explain.
    “Can you read ?” she asked him.
    “I don’t know. ”
    As a duke, he should be able to, and it suddenly occurred to her that if someone were to find out he couldn’t, then problems might arise, even if he did lose his memory.  To find out if he needed to be taught to read, she showed him the invitation.  “Can you read this?”
    He studied the script and shook his head.  “No. ”
    She turned so she could face him.  “This is very important.  You must not let anyone know you can’t read.  Even if you’ve lost your memory, you don’t want them to know you ’re illiterate .” She took a deep breath and willed the image of Lord Mason’s smirk from her mind.  “Some people don’t care who they hurt.”
    “Are you talking about my brother?”
    Choosing her words carefully, she replied, “Lord Mason isn’t someone I’d voluntarily spend time with.”
    “Why not?  What has he done?”
    Breaking eye contact with him , she shrugged and faced the fountain.  “He hasn’t done anything, exactly.  I don’t know how to explain it, but even though he’s of noble birth, he’s not what a gentleman should be.” And how it pained her to even think of him as a gentleman, but because of his status, she had to.  She cleared her throat.  “As long as you don’t let him get any power over you, you’ll be fine.”
    “I don’t understand.  How could he get power over me?  Did he manage that in the past?”
    “No.  You’ve never given him the opportunity.” At least, h er husband hadn’t.  “ Try not to show him your weaknesses.” He furrowed his eyebrows, and she knew he wasn’t sure how to follow her advice.  “If he makes you uneasy at all, leave the room.”
    After a moment, he nodded.  “All right.  I can do that.”
    She really hated to go to the dinner party.  It was akin to sending him to the wolves since there would be times when he’d be alone with the gentlemen while she would be with the ladies, but she