Page 14 of Bad Duke

“You still cold?” I check.

“A little but I’ll be fine.” She shakes her head and focuses on the drink in her hand, knocking back a mouthful and almost choking when it hits her throat. “Wow.” She presses the back of her hand against her mouth as she takes the burn.

“Good stuff, huh?” I raise my glass to her before I knock mine back in one swallow.

Suddenly that awkward silence is back again, the one that reminds me that we are strangers and probably have nothing in common.

“What you did today was nice. I’m not used to people doing nice things for me,” I admit, suddenly aware of how pitiful that sounds.

“It was nothing.” She shrugs as if it’s not a big deal, but for me it really was. What Olivia did today was thoughtful, and selfless. She stood in the rain just so I didn’t have to be alone, and suddenly I feel the need to show her how much it meant to me.

I steadily step towards her, then almost bite my own fucking tongue when she launches herself onto her toes and presses her soft lips against mine. For three sweet seconds, our mouths touch and just as I’m getting over my shock and preparing to do something about it she gasps in horror and pulls away.

“Jesus Christ, I’m sorry.” She manages to get away from me and all the way to the door because I’m still stunned.

I feel the frustration building up inside me along with the desperate need to chase after her, but instead, I stay back and let her go.

How has this girl, who I barely know, got me doubting all my natural instincts? Since she came here I haven’t been myself. I’ve not left the house all week. I’ve not had any more parties. All I’ve done is mope around trying to figure out how I should talk to her and the best way to treat her. I need a reminder of who I am.

I’ll give the people on the other side of the door their new duke for the next couple of hours, but when they're gone I’m taking some control back and I’m partying my way. I take out my phone and send a text to Trent telling him to make it happen.

OLIVIA

The last thing I feel like doing after making a complete fool of myself is to face a room full of people, but when I step out of Alex’s office Barnaby quickly grabs my arm and sweeps me to the side.

“Please tell me you know where Alex is?” He speaks in a panicked but hushed tone, smiling politely at the couple that pass him. I realise now how full the house is and understand why he’s concerned.

“He’s in his office,” I explain, clearing my throat and hoping the fact I just tried to kiss him isn’t written all over my face. What was I thinking when I did that? Alex Stanley isn’t the kind of man you kiss. I’ve been here nine days and he hasn’t so much as looked at me. Apart from the incident on the first night, which I clearly messed up because he’s avoided me ever since.

I smile politely as I move into the living room and when Leah spots me she quickly heads towards me with her tray of canapés.

“Have you seen the Duke? Everyone’s asking for him,” she whispers under her breath.

“No, why would I have seen him?” I snap back, feeling all the blood rush to my cheeks. There are so many stunning women in the room, who I doubt are here to pay their respects to the former duke. They are dressed to impress, all of them here to catch a glimpse of the handsome new one, and I can tell by the way some of their mothers are fussing around them that they’re just as eager for their daughters to draw his attention.

“Relax, I just thought because you stayed behind at the cemetery you might have known. Everyone here is curious. They want to meet him.” She smiles, making me feel bad for snapping. She’s right, I really do need to relax or I’m bound to give myself away.

“Oh, there he is.” She points her head towards the front door when he magically steps through it. All eyes in the room turn to focus on him and I feel my knees weaken. He walks down the hall with such authority, nodding his head and shaking hands with those who offer him their condolences, and when his eyes eventually meet with mine and his lips make that same smile that he gave me back in his office it makes my skin tingle. I realise that I’ve been holding my breath when my chest feels like it’s going to erupt, and I take in a huge gulp of air. I should never have agreed to this arrangement, especially now that it’s inevitable that I will fall for him. His arrogance is as sexy, as it is irritating, and just having his eyes on me makes me feel as if I’m going to melt.

“That’s Emillie Deauvier, her mother was the queen's second cousin, and her father was a famous French actor,” Leah informs me as a girl around my age struts confidently towards Alex, she has legs like a giraffe and the neck of a fucking swan and as I watch him take her hand and shake it I feel a pang of jealousy flicker in the pit of my stomach.

“Her parents were very friendly with the former duke,” she adds.

“She’s pretty.” I watch the way she smiles at him, and how her hair is swept up in a perfect bun like it’s been professionally styled. The black dress she’s wearing emphasises how skinny she is in comparison to her enormous tits.

“Pretty awful,” Leah scoffs. “She’s not a nice person. She had Will scrape fox poo off her boot when her family came here for the New Year's Day shoot.”

“Leah, those canapés aren’t going to serve themselves.” Barnaby comes over to remind her, and she quickly flits off to offer her tray to more guests while I continue to watch Alex talking to the girl. His eyes peer over her shoulder and fix on mine, and when he smiles at me again, that pang of jealousy turns into something different. Something that's needy, desperate, and really concerning.

ALEX

It’s been over an hour since I left the confines of my office to enter into this circus. I pretend to listen to the Countess of wherever talk about my father and what a lovely man he was, but all my attention remains on the girl across the room who just kissed me. She looks different now. She looks like she’s mine and as she smiles politely at those who pass her I can’t help thinking what might have happened if I hadn’t let her leave. I nod and agree, now and then, pretending to be engaged with the middle-aged woman who can’t seem to stop talking. When I notice Olivia backing up towards the patio doors like she’s making some kind of escape, I shake my head to remind her that she is here to do what I command.

“That’s decided then, Henry and I will host a garden party in your honour, this weekend.”

“This weekend?” I suddenly turn my attention back to the countess when I catch the tail end of what she’s saying.

“That really isn’t necessary. It’s very short notice.” I smile politely.

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