Page 95 of The Duke and the Runaway Bride

ChapterThirty-Six

Home At Last

Walford Estate, London

Beatrice waited patiently in the Duke’s bed. She listened to the sounds in the house. Everyone else would likely be asleep, except possibly for Elizabeth and Hannah.

Hannah had opted to stay for the night, and Beatrice and the Duke had left both girls in the drawing room talking animatedly about the Season.

The Duke had snuck out to enact their plan while Beatrice remained in the room. She was thankful for the note that Sally had passed to her, warning her of Agnes’s plan.

It paid to be a decent person.

There was a noise from outside, and Beatrice thought she saw a shadow pass under the door. She pulled the blankets up to her neck—below, she was completely naked.

The door swung open, and the Duke stood on the threshold.

Beatrice felt her insides melt at the sight of him.

He stepped into the room, closed the door behind him, and smiled.

“Is it done?” she asked.

“It is done,” he confirmed. “You should have seen her face when she realized she fell into her own trap. It could not have gone any better if we had planned it for a month.”

“What will happen to her?”

“I don’t know for sure, but she will not bother us anymore. Between what happened at the ball and the revelations at the tavern, her reputation is ruined. She has nothing to attack us with, and even if she did, no one would believe her.”

“Is it possible to both feel glad for someone’s demise and pity them for it?” Beatrice asked.

“Yes, I believe it is. She would’ve fared a lot better if she had not gone after you, but she could not let it rest,” the Duke said. “You don’t have to worry about that right now. Let’s not think of Miss Jennings for quite some time. I believe we have unfinished business.”

“Then what are you waiting for?” Beatrice asked coyly. “I have become cold lying in this bed alone.”

Edwin stripped down as quickly as he could. He tossed his coat, shirt, and trousers over the chair. Then, he removed his drawers and threw them onto the floor.

Beatrice stared at the man who was now fully hers. He was majestic, standing in the middle of the room with tree-trunk legs, broad shoulders ready to command, and a muscular frame ready to pleasure her and make her succumb to his whims. Yet, what mattered more than all of that was his ability to protect and love her.

Beatrice lifted the blankets, feeling a slight chill for a second as the Duke slipped in beside her, but it disappeared a moment later when his naked body pressed against hers. His warmth seeped into her, and it soon turned into a burning passion.

Beatrice wanted to claw at him, but she also wanted to take it slow. They had been intimate before, but this time was different—it was more real. She wrapped her arms around him and placed her head on his chest. For now, she just wanted to feel his warmth. She had to make sure he was really there with her.

“It feels like a long time ago now, but do you remember when I told you I would not beg you to stay on the estate?” the Duke asked.

“I remember,” Beatrice replied. She could smell his musk and a hint of bergamot on his skin. “And I was a fool to get up and leave because you would not grovel in front of me. I was naive.”

“Perhaps, but I was wrong,” Edwin told her. “I should have begged you to stay that day, and I should have begged you every day after that. I should have begged you to come home. I was afraid of where it would lead, and that makes me a fool.”

“No, you are no fool, my love. You don’t need to beg me to stay. I am not going anywhere else ever again, and that is a promise. We needed this time apart to realize what we mean to each other.”

“I needed the time, and perhaps a dose of reality from Mother, to understand that I can’t keep pushing against who my father was. I need to be more like him, and I need to love you, and I will beg you to never leave. I would get down on my knees right now and beg.”

Beatrice kissed his chest. “You will never have to, but I might like to see it.”

Her head moved with his chest as he laughed. She turned her head so that her ear was right over his heart and listened to the steady beats.

“I still can’t believe what you did at the ball,” she continued. “I was so sure you were about to ask for a divorce and marry Miss Jennings. She thought it, too.”

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