But the Duke of Thornbury. Of all the rotten luck. She had hoped to put her performance as the bubbly, brainless Lady Bronwyn to rest for five minutes during dinner before the pretense started back up in the ballroom for the last ball of the trip. In truth, she could have stayed in her stateroom, too.

You wanted to see him. Admit it.

Shut up.

Yes, perhaps in the ballroom from a good measure away, so he could look at her and long for what he couldn’t have! Not directly across from him, so close that she could lift her slipper and touch his person beneath the table, if she so desired.

Yes! No!

She’d had to keep her traitorous feet glued to the carpet to prevent an international incident. The breathiness of her voice hadn’t been a pretext—she could barely form two words together with his unwelcome proximity.

A man so dour shouldn’t be so handsome. But even with a scowl on his full lips, Thornbury was unfairly, sickeningly attractive. Curse them all if he had dimples! But if he had any secret indentations in his cheeks, she wouldn’t know because the man never smiled. His ex-wife was right about that. But even his surly demeanor didn’t detract from his sinful looks. There was definite padding beneath that finely tailored coat; there had to be. No man was that…perfect.

He’s not perfect, she reminded herself. He’s a jackass.

Yes, the lord of the jackasses.

King of the jackasses, in fact.

“So are you really going to Philadelphia to visit a sick aunt?” A low voice interrupted her internal tirade.

Bronwyn blinked for a beat and then nodded. “Yes.”

The lady chewed a mouthful. “You know, I ran from my home once, too. I could not bear the monotony a second more.”

“Where did you go, my lady?”

“Please call me Lisbeth.” Her smile was warm. “I went south. Stole my father’s carriage and took it all the way to Brighton.” She shook her head at the memory. “I barely had a farthing to my name when I arrived, but I found work as a governess. I shared a flat with three women of rather questionable morals, though they were kind, and by the time I came back home, I was a different girl. I’d seen the world and I wanted to see more.”