Chapter 3

Chapter Three

“ E x—excuse me?” Lord Ramsbury stammered, bewildered.

“Did I stutter?” the Duke responded coolly. “I proposed that I marry your daughter, Lady Hannah?—”

“No!” Hannah cried suddenly, the words escaping her lips as if of their own volition.

All heads turned to look at her, and again she was reminded of her current, semi-naked state. Her eyes went wide, and she hastened to cover herself further, glancing around for a savior of some sort to sweep in and take her far from here.

But not before she made certain that the Duke’s proposal was not taken seriously.

“Father! There is no way—surely, you cannot consider this!”

Her father looked at her for a minute, shook his head, and then turned to the Duke. “A marriage proposal? You are serious?”

“Do I not look serious?”

“I…” Lord Ramsbury hesitated, and then the smallest of smiles crept up the side of his face. “Interesting…”

“Father!” Hannah wanted to go to him but feared removing herself from the wall, for it was her only means of protection. “You cannot be serious! This is… this… he is set to marry Selina!”

“N-no!” Selina blurted out. Her eyes were wide as if from fear, as if the very idea of marrying the Duke terrified her. “Please… I cannot…”

“Selina, quiet!” her mother snapped and then turned to the Duke, her tone softening. “Your Grace, let us consider this before?—”

“Mother, no!” Selina gasped and took a step back. “I—” She hesitated as she looked at her mother’s warning scowl. “This is too much!”

With that, she turned on her heels and sprinted out of the room.

“Selina!” her mother shouted after her, looking as if she would give chase, only to turn toward the Duke again. “Your Grace, this is all very… hasty. How about we take the night and?—”

“A night will not change my mind,” he cut her off. “You have made your feelings toward me clear, and nothing you say will alter that. I am sorry, but the wedding is off.”

“You!” Teresa pointed an accusatory finger at Lord Ramsbury. “This was your doing! I knew it!”

“Oh, do not be ridiculous, Teresa! Besides, I have not yet agreed to His Grace’s proposal.”

“Phineas…” Lady Ramsbury took her husband by the arm and raised both eyebrows at him. “We cannot possibly turn this offer down.”

“I did not say that I would.”

“Father!” Hannah gasped. “Surely, you are not?—”

“Quiet!” Lord Ramsbury snapped. “You are in enough trouble as it is.”

“Me?! I did not do anything!”

A ridiculous claim to make, seeing as she stood half-naked in the room. But she had to say something! Hannah had never felt so utterly useless and powerless in her entire life. Despite being half-naked, she felt invisible as the strings of her life were pulled and manipulated before her, unable to do or say anything to stop it.

“I have never been so embarrassed!” Teresa hissed, throwing her hands in the air. “And you, Phineas, you should be ashamed!”

“And I told you, I have not agreed yet!” Lord Ramsbury looked at the Duke, and his expression changed entirely. “We will need to talk terms, of the marriage, Your Grace. What it is exactly that you are proposing. Obviously, I cannot just accept?—”

“Father!”

“Follow me,” the Duke said coolly, all but ignoring Hannah now. “We shall adjourn to somewhere a little more private to discuss.”

Hannah never got the chance to see if they did indeed adjourn to somewhere more private, for no sooner had he asked the question than both her sisters walked into the room.

“What on earth is going on?” Charlotte asked as she walked in. “I just saw Selina and…”

She spotted Hannah standing there, and her mouth dropped open, hitting the floor for how quickly it fell.

“Hannah!” Beatrice swept in. “What are you doing?!”

The pandemonium continued as the two sisters converged on Hannah, finally acting with some sense and helping her to pull her dress up, and then they led her out of the room. Hannah might have fought them, as she wished to stay and protest this impending marriage of which she was the center. But she was worn out, broken, barely able to think let alone protest.

Her sisters led her down the hall and to another bedroom. The walls spun around her, and the floor seemed to sway. She could barely walk, barely think, so out of her mind with shock and surprise and anger and fear and every other emotion in existence that it wasn’t until she was sitting at the foot of her sister’s bed with a blanket around her shoulders that she even realized what was happening.

And even then, it took her a few more minutes to process it.

“… you have only yourself to blame,” Charlotte was saying as she paced the room. She was the middle sister of the three and by far the most proper and prim. “Honestly, Hannah, what were you thinking?”

“Oh, it’s not her fault,” Beatrice sighed. She was the ‘wild’ one of the three sisters, with a wicked sense of humor and an inclination for the outrageous. She sat beside Hannah and rubbed her back. “By the sounds of it, it was an accident.”

“Who doesn’t check whether a room is empty before stripping off?”

“Clearly, Hannah doesn’t.” Beatrice chuckled.

“And the Duke…” Charlotte clicked her tongue. “Can you believe he proposed marriage? What on earth was he thinking?”

“That he wants to marry.” Beatrice shrugged. “And soon. You know how these dukes are. Although to be fair, we both do.” She smirked.

Both Beatrice and Charlotte were married to dukes, and both had entered these marriages under less-than-ideal circumstances. Charlotte had been forced to marry the Duke of Hayward because Beatrice was supposed to marry him but fled at the last minute, and Beatrice had married the Duke of Walford because she’d tricked him into a scandal to avoid marrying a baron who she wasn’t so keen on.

Neither were love marriages initially, even though romance had blossomed later on. From what Hannah knew of their marriages, both her sisters were in love and very happy. Which might have inspired her if it didn’t fill her with dread.

Even more so when she looked at them both, noting the acceptance on their faces… even the excitement. They were not there to help, but to convince her that maybe things won’t be so bad. As if!

“A marriage of convenience,” Charlotte sighed. “As if that’s the only reason to ever marry.”

“It is starting to look that way,” Beatrice agreed. “Although I think we can both attest to the success of such arrangements. I know I can.” Another smirk.

Hannah shrugged off her sister’s hand and then jumped to her feet. “Do not even think it!”

“Think what?” Beatrice asked.

“That you will be able to convince me that this isn’t the most awful, horrible, tragedy-stricken thing to ever occur! I do not want to marry the Duke of Thorne!”

“Want rarely comes into it, I am afraid,” Charlotte sighed.

“But he is supposed to marry Selina!”

“Not anymore,” Beatrice pointed out.

“And Father!” Hannah added desperately. “He will just… he will just sign my life away like that.” She snapped her fingers. “Surely, he will not want me to marry someone Selina objected to? That is?—”

“Good politics,” Charlotte cut her off. “I mean, he is a duke, Hannah. There is little Father will not do to secure such a marriage. Again, I speak from experience.” She looked pointedly at Beatrice.

“Oh, how often are you going to bring that up?” Beatrice snapped.

“Only when it serves to make a point.”

“You should be thanking me!”

“I do nearly every day.”

“Enough!” Hannah shouted over them. She was beginning to gather herself, having overcome the initial embarrassment and the shock of it all. The reality was setting in, and it was not one she was all too pleased with. “I will not marry His Grace. Father cannot make me.”

Beatrice snorted. “Would you like to make a bet?”

“But what about Selina?” Hannah asked desperately. “She was the one set to marry him.”

“Yes, well, that clearly isn’t happening.”

“She will never forgive me,” Hannah groaned as the guilt from what had happened began to sink in. “How could she?”

“There is little use fretting about it now.” Charlotte sighed with sympathy. “What’s done is done and?—”

“No. I do not accept that. I cannot accept that.”

Hannah began to pace as she tried to form some semblance of a plan. The Duke was meant to marry her cousin, also her best friend. And if she were to marry him instead… well, Selina might never speak to her again!

That, she simply could not bear.

What she needed to do was convince the Duke that Selina was the better option and that she herself was even more of a liability than anything he might have imagined.

“Accept it, Sister,” Charlotte said. “Even now, Father is likely doing everything that he can to lock His Grace in before there is even a chance he might change his mind. It is done.”

“Father, yes,” Hannah agreed as a plan began to take shape in her mind. “But His Grace… I will simply have to demonstrate first-hand that marriage to me should be the last thing he wants. Seeing as he agreed to this marriage to avoid a scandal, what will he do if I threaten him with an infinitely worse scandal than that?”

Charlotte narrowed her eyes. “And how do you plan on doing that?”

Beatrice clicked her tongue but could not hide her smile. “Sounds like my sort of plan.”

To that, Hannah gave a wicked grin, her eyes flashing because she knew now what she had to do. She had no doubt that by now, the Duke and her father had come to an agreement, one which would likely see her married before the end of the Season. But it was hastily arranged and did not take into account the most important factor: how determined she was not to marry.

What the Duke needed was to be reminded of this, and as far as Hannah was concerned, there was but one way she could do it. Perhaps not the most tactful plan ever devised, but after having already undressed in front of the man, and having been caught by her entire family half-naked, tact wasn’t something that she was too concerned about.

It was well after the house had retired to sleep that Hannah found herself standing outside of the Duke’s bedroom door. She had been patient tonight, lying in her bed, listening until even the sounds of the house’s many servants scuttling about faded into obscurity. And only then, when she was certain that she would not be caught out, did she slip out of her room and sneak down the hallway.

She stood by his door, mentally preparing herself for what she needed to do. The Duke was supposed to marry Selina, not her. And he would marry Selina. From what Hannah could understand, the Duke had decided to marry her instead because a scandal might arise from the situation they had been caught in. Surely, he still preferred Selina to Hannah? And surely, if he was to made to understand how much better Selina was for him than Hannah, he would quickly change his mind again?

As to how Hannah would make him see such a thing? Well, one scandal got them into this mess, so why not another to get them out of it? There was, after all, a reason that she was dressed only in a very light slip…

She took a deep breath. A final moment to steady her beating heart. Then she knocked lightly on the door, held her breath in anticipation, and exhaled when she heard him call, “Who is it?”

She did not respond, instead pushing the door open and stepping inside wordlessly.

“Lady Hannah?” the Duke asked from across the room. “What on earth are you doing here?”

“I had to see you.” She closed the door behind her and pressed her back against it as she scanned the room, finding him sitting at the writing desk. “I could not wait any longer.”

“Wait for what?”

She smirked as she forced herself to look right at him—a wicked stare that she hoped spoke to her intent. A sort of hunger in her eyes that she was certain the Duke would be able to read instantly.

And sure enough, he furrowed his brow as he took in her meaning, only for his face to drop suddenly. “Oh, I see.”

“Do not sound so surprised.” She giggled. “Surely, you felt it too?”

“And what was it that I felt, exactly?”

She rolled her eyes. “Come now, Your Grace. There is no need for games. I…” She swallowed, feeling her nerves begin to build. “I saw the way you looked at me earlier. And…” She swallowed again, forcing herself to look at him. “And the way you touched me.”

Still, he sat at his desk, cloaked in shadow, head tilted as he took her in. It was hard to gauge what was on his mind, for his face was mostly hidden in the darkness, and his eyes were all but impossible to see. Just a hulking figure who, she hoped, was beginning to wonder what on earth he had gotten himself into.

“I am afraid that you will need to be more clear,” he said eventually

Hannah was so darn nervous that it was all she could do to keep her body from shaking. She was still pressed against the door, using it to steady herself, but she could not stay there forever. Especially if she wished to sell what it was that she was trying to do.

A deep breath and she reminded herself that this was necessary and that, if she had read the man correctly, it would work. It had to! A few minutes of shame and she would be free…

“Do you really think it was an accident, what happened earlier?” she purred, pushing herself off the door and walking deeper into the room. “Me, stripping down like that in front of you, as if I had no idea that you were in the room?” She giggled and shook her head. “I did not take you for a fool, Your Grace.”

“Is that so?” he asked evenly.

“My only regret is that we were so quickly interrupted. Although…” She let out another giggle, followed by a smirk, as she reached the middle of the room. “I suppose we can make up for that, can’t we?”

“And that is why you are here? To pick up where we left off?”

“Why else?”

“You surprise me, Lady Hannah.” He was so calm and collected, nowhere near as surprised as she had hoped. “I did not take you for that type.”

“Oh, well…” She shrugged. “You do not know me that well, is why. I am not like my cousin.”

“Clearly not.”

“Selina is…” She felt sick, utterly ashamed. But this was for Selina, and it was that higher goal that forced her to continue this charade. “She is far more proper than I. With her, you would have had a boring marriage. But with me…” A forced smirk that made her stomach churn. “Let us just say it will be the complete opposite.”

Her heart beat so furiously in her chest that it hurt. And her body ran so hot that she could feel herself sweating through her slip. But she stayed the course, kept her hungry gaze fixed on him, waiting for him to do what she knew he would do—denounce her actions as scandalous and uncouth and unbecoming of a lady.

Hopefully, it would make him realize the error he had made. Hopefully, come tomorrow, everything would be back to the way it had been.

It was a risk. But it was a risk that she had no choice but to take…

The Duke did not answer her right away. Still cloaked in shadow, his hulking mass watched and studied her for far longer than she had expected. Surely, it was because of shock? That he was unable to form the words needed to expel her from his room and then his life. Surely?!

“I must say,” he spoke eventually, “this is most unexpected.”

“And as I said, you simply don’t know me,” she purred. “I am unlike any lady you have met before. My cousin, especially.”

“Clearly.”

“And if that is too much for you…” A casual shrug, another giggle. “You best tell me now, lest we get into all sorts of trouble together. In fact, if this is too much for you, I am sure that Selina will happily take you back.”

“I did not say it was too much for me.”

She blinked. “Ah… excuse me?”

“On the contrary…” The Duke rose slowly from his chair. “I knew from the moment I saw you the exact type of lady you are. And you, Lady Hannah…” He chuckled deeply. “Are the exact type of lady I have been looking for.”

“I-I am?” She took a step back as he rounded his desk.

“Oh yes,” he growled. “Very, very much so. While I am somewhat surprised by this late-night visit, that is not to say I am not pleased by it either. It is as if you have read my mind…” Another growl rumbled deep in his chest.

He was bigger than she had remembered. As he strode toward her, his breadth was such that the room seemed to shrink around him. There was a purpose behind each step, a power to his gait that made Hannah feel hopeless and weak and completely at his mercy.

This was not the plan at all! She had completely misread the man, thinking him to be a typical gentleman of the ton, a proper gentleman, not one who would welcome an unmarried woman in his bedroom late at night. One who would be ashamed at the thought!

Her heart skipped a beat, and her legs began to shake as she felt the blood drain from her face. The Duke was wearing a shirt, but it was unbuttoned, his chest and abdominal muscles glistening with a light sweat. His pants, too, were undone, and he was barefoot. He was practically naked, or in the process of getting so, and while Hannah felt a spike of fear for the position she put herself in… dammit, she could not help but stare.

He came to her, she took a step back, but he was on her before she could do much of anything.

“I… I must warn you, if my father finds out?—”

“He will not,” the Duke interrupted her, looming over her now. “I promise I will not tell.”

“I may be loud,” she warned, not even certain what that meant. “Too loud.”

“There are things we can do about that.” His voice was low and deep, and she could feel his warm breath on her cheeks as he leaned in closer.

“But Selina,” she tried again. “Surely, you would prefer a wife who is not as scandalous as I. If people were to find out about this…” She swallowed. “I know how much your name means to you.”

“Forget about your cousin.” He chuckled, and his eyes flashed wickedly. “It was you who came to me, remember? Let us not play this game. You want me. I want you. Why pretend any longer?”

“I—”

“Am shaking…” He trailed a finger down her cheek, his touch making her tremble even harder. “Let us see if we can make you shudder.”

He stood less than a foot from her. Tall and commanding, she was forced to look up to meet his eyes—forcing herself not to gawk at his muscular chest. His deep green eyes drank her in, his toothy smile was enchanting, and for a moment, Hannah began to wonder if maybe married life would not be such a bad thing, after all?

No! That was not why she was here. Selina was who she concentrated on, and for that reason, Hannah knew that a final push was needed. One more chance to remind the Duke that she was a no-good sort who he would do best to stay away from.

“Per—perfect,” she purred, and then she reached up and took his hand, holding it to her face as she looked into his eyes. As nervous as she felt, there was something else there that she could not ignore. A fire brewing inside of her… a desire that she had not known was possible until now. “What shall we do?”

He chuckled deeply. “You are the one that came to me. Surely, you have an idea?”

“I—”

“Or do you need some help?” His eyes twinkled, and she gasped, her breath catching as suddenly this plan she had concocted took on a new meaning.

She had not wanted to marry this man. She had felt guilty for it. Awful about the way things had happened. But now, with how he looked at her, Hannah began to consider the other side of the coin—that being the benefits of being trapped in a marriage with such a… such a… such a man as him.

He growled as he wrapped his large hand around her waist. She gasped, feeling her pulse quicken as her heart leapt in her throat. That same sensation grew inside of her, one that began between her thighs and built in her stomach until her body ran so hot that she thought she might catch fire.

And as he leaned in, Hannah found herself slowly closing her eyes, her lips parted, waiting for a kiss that she had not known she wanted until it was right upon her…

She felt his lips graze her own, his warm breath touch her skin, another growl leave his lips, and she could barely take it.

Kiss me! Do it!

She wanted to grab his head and pull his face toward her own, but then he moved his lips toward her ear. She gasped, for she thought he was about to nibble on it, and she nearly melted when she felt his breath on her earlobe.

“You must think I am an idiot,” he breathed softly.

Her eyes shot open. “Excuse me?”

“An idiot,” he repeated. “A fool. You must be if you thought a plan as blatantly obvious as this one would work.”

“I…” She had no idea what he was talking about. “What are you?—”

“Drop the act.”

He let go of her waist suddenly and stepped back. Hannah felt her stomach drop. The hunger in his eyes was gone, replaced with disgust and anger and disappointment, most of all.

“It is beneath us both.”

Hannah’s mind raced. “The act? What are you… I am not sure what… There is no act, Your Grace.”

He laughed. “And still you keep at it. I must give you full marks for your commitment. I would be impressed if I wasn’t so perturbed with this entire charade.”

The Duke knew what she had come here to do. Somehow, he had figured it out. And while a part of Hannah was almost relieved, seeing now that he had simply been playing with her, she was disappointed, for the thought of his lips on her own still lingered in her mind. And dammit if her heart wasn’t still racing.

Strange…

“Do not look so surprised.” He chuckled, thankfully misreading the look on her face. “Do you really think that I would have agreed to marry you in the first place if I did not know what I was getting myself into?”

“Getting yourself into?” she echoed. “I have no idea what that is supposed to mean.”

“Oh, I do not mean like that ,” he said acidly. “I know you are not so verbose as you are pretending to be. But you are trouble, Lady Hannah. There is a good reason you are still unwed, and it has everything to do with your character.”

Ah, now she understood. Not that this made her feel any better.

“How dare you!” she hissed. “That is not… that has nothing to do with… it is my choice that I have not married yet.”

He chuckled. “Whatever makes you feel better.”

“And what about you, then?” she accused. “If I am such a… a troublemaker, why have you agreed to this farce of a marriage? Surely, a duke like you can have his pick of any woman he desires.”

“I do.”

“Selina!” she tried. “Surely, Selina is a better option than I! And there is no reason you cannot go back to her. I know Aunt Teresa would?—”

“I do not care what Lady Langham wants. She slighted me. Calling my honor into question as she did, refusing to listen when I gave her every reason to.” His tone was cold. “No, there is nothing in this world that would make me reconsider marrying her daughter.”

Hannah’s world turned on her. This entire plan was folly! Even before she walked into this room, her plan had never stood a chance, the only possible outcome being her total and utter embarrassment.

“And what if I do not wish to marry you? Did you think of that?”

He chuckled coldly. “You ask the question as if I should care.”

Her eyes flashed with anger, fueled partly by embarrassment. This marriage, as far as he was concerned, had nothing to do with her. She was but a pawn on the chessboard for him to move around as he saw fit.

The Duke saw the look in her eyes and laughed. “Oh, do not give me that look. If anything, you should be thanking me for saving you from becoming a spinster, as would most likely have happened. Admit it.”

“I’d rather be a spinster than marry a scoundrel such as yourself. Honestly, it is no wonder that you have remained single this long. I suspect you had no choice in the matter.”

He frowned and tilted his head. “Is that what you have heard? That I am a scoundrel?”

The truth was, Hannah didn’t know much about the Duke. Rumors of a marriage from long ago that had ended when his wife died. The odd word spoken about his reputable character, the respect held for him among his peers, but nothing untoward or noteworthy. By all accounts, he was very much marriage material, and any lady would be glad to find herself in Hannah’s position.

Well, almost any lady.

“If the boot fits,” she said. “The way you were just behaving, I have half a mind to go and tell my father.”

He scoffed. “Oh, please. That was for show. I knew what you were doing…” He waved her off. “An interesting ploy, and quite the gamble, I must say. Tell me, Lady Hannah, what would you have done if I did not pull away?”

Her eyes went wide, and she felt her cheeks flush. “I would have pushed you away. And then told my father that you attacked me.”

“Ha. If you say so. But you need not worry,” he continued, folding his hands behind his back. “I am aware that you have no desire to marry me, Lady Hannah. You have made that perfectly clear.”

“How very perceptive of you.”

“And if it makes you feel any better, I am not exactly thrilled to be marrying you either.”

She blinked at that, not sure whether to be happy or insulted. “What does that mean?”

“This marriage, like the one intended with Miss Gouldsmith, is solely for convenience. In our circles, certain things are expected, marriage being one of them. So, although we shall marry—and yes,” he added with emphasis, making sure to look her in the eye, “this marriage is going ahead, do not worry yourself with expectations.”

“Expectations…” She frowned at the wording, for it felt like a dismissal—water being thrown over a fire.

“I will not touch you,” he clarified. “I will not force myself on you. We may be man and wife in name, but that is where it ends.”

“R-really?”

“Yes.” He laughed, likely at the surprise on her face. “And to hammer home the point, let us go one step further. Once we are wed, I hardly expect the two of us to see or speak to one another. Surely, that is something that you can appreciate? With me being the scoundrel that I am.”

“Well, that is…” The words left her before they came, as she had no idea what to say to that most bizarre announcement.

Hannah did not know if she should have felt thrilled or insulted. Oh, sure, deep down she knew that this was as good an option as she could have hoped for, seeing as this marriage was proceeding. A marriage of convenience with a man who refused to touch her. It was the best of a bad situation.

Yet, on the other hand, it felt like a slap in the face. The Duke had already seen her practically naked. He had witnessed her at her most vulnerable, even getting so close that she could still feel his lips softly grazing her own. And his grip on her waist! The way her body shook when she thought he was going to finally kiss her.

That thought alone had her heart racing, wondering what it might have been like to complete the action. Clearly, the Duke was not of the same mind.

Was he rejecting her for a specific reason? Or because he had seen her without her clothes on and didn’t desire her? And if that was the case, why did she care?

It was all very confusing, leaving Hannah standing in silence as her mind raced to come to terms with everything he had said. And most of all, most importantly, her true feelings about the man she was set to wed.

“That is enough for one night,” the Duke said suddenly.

“Excuse me?” She blinked, snapping herself back into the moment.

“It is late,” he said simply. “I am tired. And I would hate to think what might actually happen if we were seen alone together—and do not get any ideas,” he warned her.

“I wasn’t…” she said a little too softly. “I mean, I wouldn’t.”

“Good.” He walked right past her and popped the door open. “I know you might still be struggling to reckon with the turn of events today, Lady Hannah, but if all goes to plan, our marriage should be perfectly agreeable. I even dare say pleasant.”

“That is… good to know,” she muttered vaguely, not at all certain it sounded like that at all.

“Good night,” he said, resting a hand on the small of her back and guiding her out of his room. Almost shoving her. “We shall speak shortly, I am sure.”

“Yes—I mean, no!”

At the door, she suddenly came back to her senses. The Duke had taken complete control of the situation, and if she allowed it as such, it spoke volumes to what their marriage might turn into.

“Not until you give me some answers.”

He frowned at her. “Answers?”

“Yes.” She forced herself to meet his gaze. “If you expect me to just… to just go along with this marriage—if it could even be called that. I want to know, why even bother? What is the point of marriage if you are not going to… to…” Her cheeks flushed, but she held his stare. “To touch me.”

He smirked. “Is that what you want? For me to touch you?”

“What I want is to understand,” she said defiantly. “Otherwise, I will… I will… I will… not make life easy on you.”

What a pathetic threat, and she knew it as soon as the words left her mouth.

The Duke looked amused for a moment, only for a shadow to pass behind his eyes. His expression turned steely, and he stepped toward her suddenly, pulling the door closed and trapping her between himself and the wood.

“You want me to touch you? Is that it?”

“I—” The words got caught in her throat. Fear. Excitement. That feeling of utter helplessness… all the same, as far as she could tell.

“You want me that bad?” he growled, bearing down on her. Their bodies were close. His teeth were bared. The look in his eyes similar to that of a lion cornering its prey.

“I never said that I did,” she whispered, her body shaking, her mind turning blank as she seemed to forget what she was protesting.

Why would she in her right mind turn down a marriage to this man? The thrill she felt trapped between him and the door like this was so great that she could not imagine a marriage now where he did not wish to touch her. Surely, those were just words.

“Let me be clear, Lady Hannah. If I wanted to touch you, I would have…” He reached up and hooked a finger under her chin. She gasped and leaned into it, pushing her lips out because oh how she wanted to tempt him. “It is I who will decide such a thing, not you. And as for my reasons…”

“Y-yes?”

“They are not your concern.” Suddenly, he dropped his hand and stepped back.

“W-what?” She half moved as if to follow him, but he was already opening the door behind her.

“Good night, Lady Hannah.” He stepped forward so quickly, his hulking mass so powerful, that she reacted on instinct, stepping through the open door and into the hallway. “I will be seeing you.”

And then, without so much as another word, he slammed the door shut in her face.

Hannah stayed where she was, staring vaguely at the closed door, her mind still adrift and fractured as she tried to make sense of everything that had just happened. She had gone in there to try and convince the Duke to take her cousin back, had failed miserably, and very nearly given in to a temptation that she suspected would never have occurred, for the Duke seemed to enjoy teasing her.

But that temptation… Her body was still hot, and her knees wobbled as she walked down the hallway to her room. Oh, she wished to feel guilty for her cousin. She wished to curse this arrangement she was now trapped in. But despite those efforts, even she was not such a fool as to believe either of those was a concern.

This marriage, whatever it became, whatever it was, would not be boring. Of that, she had no doubt.