Page 24 of Married to the Ruthless Duke

“I’m glad too, Papa,” she replied, with a forced smile.

“If I’m being honest, I didn’t want you to marry the Duke, but…” he trailed off with a sigh.

“What is it, Father?” she asked, squeezing his arms with concern.

“I didn’t want to tell you or your sister this, but I guess I can now,” he started. “You see, the estate is in dire financial straits, and I’d been worried that I wouldn’t be able to care for you and your sister, but since I’m getting the Duke as a son-in-law, I guess I won’t need to worry about that anymore.”

That was news to Helen, but she guessed she wasn’t supposed to be surprised. The reduced quality of the fare the cook served the past few months hinted at that, even if her father had always been keen to wave off observations to that effect.

“I guess not,” she answered, before realizing that she had in fact just ruined her father’s hope for happiness.

Suddenly, a wave of exhaustion swept over her. The ache in her heart for telling off the Duke and the added threat of poverty was proving quite too much for one day.

“May I be excused, Father? I have to go lie down.”

“Are you well, child?”

“Yes. I just need time to recuperate before the noon meal.”

“All right. Go and have some rest, my dear.” He smiled. “I’ll see you at the noon meal, then.”

She nodded and somehow found the strength to climb up the stairs to her chamber.

In the privacy of her bedroom, she slid to the floor, burying her head in her hands. Even if she didn’t want to get married to the Duke, she had to do so for her family’s sake, but she would have to find him and apologize first before it was too late.

ChapterSix

Alexander could not remember the last time he had felt rage. Of course, over the years he had felt annoyance when dealing with the incompetence of staff and of course the aggravating attitude of his stepmother and siblings, but he could not recall being consumed by a rage so encompassing that he was fairly vibrating with it.

He could not decide what was the root of his anger. Was it the fact that he had lost his head and kissed the lady senseless in someone else’s drawing room, where anyone could have come upon them, or was it the way she reacted after the kiss, painting him as the villain? Try as he might, he could not quite regret the kiss. He only wondered how he would survive without her now that he had a taste.

He didn’t delude himself by thinking he was honorable because if not for the sound that jolted them back to their senses, he would have been just a heartbeat away from lifting her skirts and ravishing her right there in the drawing room with no care for who might have seen.

He was that lost. The helpless lust he felt for her scared him. His lust for her, his fear, and his anger at her were a toxic mix of emotions that were making him very upset. Even while he was angry with her, he still had to adjust the crotch of his trousers to accommodate the erection that had not quite subsided since his encounter with her.

He had always known that kissing was her bad idea because then he would keep going back for more. That one night, hell a thousand nights, would not quench the fire in his blood. And as it always happened when he ignored his instincts, he was right, and oh, how good she felt in his arms.

The woman was a witch who inspired extreme emotions in him, and he definitely was not happy about it. It was amazing how he could be boiling with rage while his body remained aroused. The toxic mix of rage and lust in his blood was hardly ideal for rest, so he decided to stop at the Gentleman Jackson salon. Hopefully, physical exertion would grant him respite from his volatile emotions.

Walking into the salon, he spotted James kitting up for a match, so he approached him

“You look like hell,” James said when he got close to him.

Alexander shot him a dark look of warning, but of course, James would never back down from an opportunity to taunt him.

“You are usually in a sour mood, but you seem to be in a spectacular one at this moment. It has been quite a while since I have seen you this furious.”

“Who says I am furious?” Alexander growled.

“Animosity is streaming off you in waves—even a blind person could sense it. I wouldn’t recommend going for a match at the moment. Apart from the danger of you causing someone’s son permanent injury, matches fought in anger usually end up with a hand or fingers broken. If you need an activity to let off steam, I would recommend fencing instead.”

Alexander sat down in defeat.

“You know, since I have known you, I have never seen you this angry. You are basically vibrating with it. I would guess that your rage has something to do with the lovely Miss Helen.”

At that, Alexander gave him a dark look.

“I will take that to mean that I am right,” James said, chuckling. “I am starting to like this bride of yours. If she can manage to make you, the Ruthless Duke, this angry, she must really be a force of nature. I would love to make her acquaintance and maybe take some leaves from her playbook.”

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