Page 22 of Married to the Ruthless Duke

Alexander caught up with them and offered his arm. The lady turned to him, and a brilliant smile split her face. Alexander could not help smiling back.

“My love, you’re back,” she said, clutching his hand tightly. Alexander’s smile died a natural death. “Where have you been?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t…”

“Thank goodness, you are back. Nobody will dare refer to me as a widow again, will they? Not when my husband is alive and well.”

Helen clapped a hand over her mouth to stifle her laugh. This was getting even better; the woman thought he was her dead husband. Since he wanted a wife so badly, the universe had provided him with one.

He looked torn between running for dear life or helping the confused woman. The woman, on the other hand, didn’t mind his lack of enthusiasm and proceeded to rub her cheek on his hand like a cat. Alexander let her while he figured out what to do.

The snort escaped Helen and made him turn to see her desperately fighting to suppress her laughter. He gave her a warning look. Instead of being apologetic, a mischievous gleam entered her eyes.

“Why, Sir, don’t you help your sweet wife up, so you can take her home and take proper care of her? She has clearly missed you,” Helen suggested, her eyes dancing in obvious enjoyment.

He narrowed his eyes in warning, but she ignored it and continued, “She must have been so lonely, waiting all this time for you to come home. You don’t want to keep her waiting anymore, do you?” she asked sweetly.

Alexander turned to the elderly lady to see her looking up at him with a rather hopeful look on his face. He smiled at her, heaved a long-suffering sigh, helped her up, and led her towards his coach, which was waiting at the edge of the park. He was going to use it to take Helen sightseeing, but he guessed it would have to serve a different purpose. Helen led both of their horses over to the coachman, who tied them to the back of the coach.

After settling the old lady and Helen in the coach, Alexander instructed the driver to take them to Stromborn Manor. He had recognized the lady when he first saw her face. She was the Dowager Countess of Stromborn, who was known for her love of morning strolls and stray dogs. With her display today, it seemed it was time that such excursions came to an end, as her mind seemed to be bending to the effects of old age.

Throughout the journey, the Dowager Countess kept a firm hold of his hands, and her grip only slackened when she drifted off to sleep. Helen had an amused look throughout the short journey to the Countess’s home, and Alexander gave her one in return that spelled retribution once they saw the woman well settled. Helen shot him a daring look that made him chuckle and shake his head. The damn girl was too troublesome for her own good.

When their party arrived at the manor, he and Helen introduced themselves to the butler, who rushed frantically towards the coach when Alexander explained the reason for their presence. Apparently, the Dowager Countess had somehow slipped away from the house without her companion knowing, and they’d already had almost all their staff out searching for her.

When they had successfully transported the sleeping Countess into the manor, Alexander expressed his concern to the butler and advised him to keep a better eye on her. He would have preferred to talk to the Dowager Countess’s son himself, but the young Earl and his Countess were not in town for this Season. The Duke made a mental note to write a letter to the Earl when he returned home.

When the butler and the frantic companion went to see the Dowager Countess settled, Alexander turned back to see that Helen still had an amused look on her face.

“What is it?” he asked with a frown.

“You certainly handled that well. You were the very picture of a devoted and caring husband,” she said, laughing at the exasperated look he threw her way.

When she finally got her laughter under control, she noticed that the Duke was not laughing.

“It’s a good thing.” She smiled at him.

“Did it convince you to marry me?” He smiled back. A full-toothed smile that made her stop and stare.

She had never seen him that way, and she admitted he was rather handsome when he smiled.

“No, but it was a good attempt,” she answered.

“Huh? I guess I’ll have to try harder.” He pouted, making her laugh.

“How? You’ll look for more elderly ladies to save?”

“No,” he said seriously. “I’ll look for more elderly ladies with a love for stray dogs to save.”

A loud peal of laughter escaped her before she could control it, and when she finally quieted, she found the Duke’s gaze was fixed on her lips with a rather hungry look on his face.

Her eyes widened, and her mouth went dry, her tongue subconsciously darting out to lick her lips. She felt hot as his pupils dilated, his green eyes darkening.

She wondered at all the strange sensations she was feeling, and even though she had read in novels that they were all symptoms of desire, she still found it hard to believe that she desired the Duke when she barely knew him and, even stranger, that he desired her.

He moved closer as if spellbound, and she could feel her body throbbing in anticipation. Her mind blanked till everything around them faded into the background.

She became increasingly aware of him, his sandalwood scent made her want to lean in closer, and his proximity let her feel the heat coming off him in soothing waves, reminding her of a warm furnace on a cold winter day. The matching increased rate of their breathing and the relentless throbbing in the lower parts of her body both scared her and made her want something she couldn’t name.

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