Page 53 of Married to the Ruthless Duke

She seemed satisfied with the answer as she turned her head towards the window, effectively ignoring him. It seemed he was going to have to do a lot of groveling before he could get back into her good graces, and frankly, he was not looking forward to it, but if it was what it took to get her to forgive him, he was willing to try.

The journey back to the manor was uncomfortable, to say the least, as they sat in silence. All efforts by Alexander to draw Helen into conversation were met with cold, stony silence. She didn’t even turn her head to acknowledge him when he spoke.

When the carriage stopped in front of their castle, he stepped down first and then extended his hand to help his wife down, but she ignored his offered arm and jumped down herself—rather unladylike he might add, but it seemed Helen was happy to do anything to avoid interacting with him.

Inside the manor, she walked before him and proceeded to climb up the stairs. Considering the state of their relationship at the moment, Alexander should not have enjoyed watching her swaying hips as she climbed up the stairs before him, but he couldn’t help himself any more than he would gouge his eyes out.

When they got to her bedroom, she walked in, slammed the door in his face, and proceeded to latch the door in an unspoken command not to trespass.

Damn.

He had married one firecracker, and it was quite inflaming to watch her in a rage—she was simply glorious. And he was probably out of his mind, since he was having erotic fantasies about a woman who was furious with him, but he had already accepted that he was addicted to her, and he was tired of fighting his addiction.

The problem was that he had succeeded in getting himself highly aroused with no hope of relief in sight. It appeared he had an appointment with a cold bath if he hoped to achieve some modicum of peaceful slumber that night.

Hopefully, by the next morning, she would be a little less angry with him. A few nights of this kind of denial, and he might spontaneously combust. His desire for his firecracker of a wife never ceased to amaze him, and he had given up hope of making sense of it.

It helped that he was not the only one consumed by that desire; his wife desired him just as much, and under his hands, she became a hot flame.

Together, they created an inferno that turned their world on its axis. Their joining was always ballistic, and he couldn’t wait to have her in his arms again, begging him, screaming his name in ecstasy.

Yes, he definitely needed a cold bath, especially as his erection was threatening to split the seams of his breeches. He was always painfully aroused around Helen. It appeared to have become the norm. It was very unusual for any man of the ton to desire his wife the way he desired Helen, but he had come to realize that there was nothing normal about what lay between him and his delectable wife.

The next morning, Alexander went downstairs to meet his wife, who was already seated at one end of the massive dining table, sipping her tea daintily.

She made no move to acknowledge his presence, but he knew she was aware of him due to the slight tension in her shoulders.

They might be at odds at the moment, but her body was attuned to his at an elemental level just as he was attuned to hers. Alexander made his way towards her, making sure to stomp his feet a little to make his footsteps more audible. Childish maybe, but he didn’t particularly care at the moment.

When he stood behind her seat, he placed his hands on her shoulders and then leaned forward slightly to speak in her ear.

“Good morning, darling. I trust you had a splendid night?” He was satisfied with the slight shiver she tried to suppress.

It definitely was a big stroke to his trophy ego to see her react strongly to his proximity, but it appeared he was torturing himself as well, since his position brought him close to the skin of her neck and her intoxicating scent.

It was all he could do not to lick her skin. He forced himself to move away.

“I slept very well, Your Grace,” Helen replied stiffly.

It took him a while to realize that she was answering his previous question. Rather coldly, if he might add. It appeared the hours had not mitigated her anger towards him.

“Ah, love, are you still angry with me? I am really sorry for speaking to you that way. That was uncalled for, and you didn’t deserve such. Forgive me? Hmm?” he apologized finally, still standing behind her.

She kept her face in profile, and her next words told him he had just failed at conveying his apologies correctly.

“Apparently, it seems I’m supposed to forgive your outburst of anger every now and then without any explanations as to the reason until the next time you lose your temper,” she stated calmly. “How long do you expect us to keep repeating that cycle?”

Alexander released her as her words hit him. He thought he knew the worst of her anger, but this cold side to her alerted him that there were more sides to this woman than he knew. He walked to the opposite side of the table, so he could see her face fully.

Helen waited till he was standing in front of her before continuing, “Don’t get me wrong, Your Grace. You are entitled to your secrets, but I hardly think it is right that I suffer from your periodic outbursts of anger without knowing their source. To make this marriage work, even if just for the duration we agreed on, I think we have to at least make an effort to be transparent with each other. I was under the impression that we had come a long way from us not trusting each other, but if that is the type of marriage you would prefer, then you can hold on to your secrets as tightly as you like.”

Then, dropping her cutlery, she continued, “I no longer have an appetite. I think I would retire above stairs. Enjoy your meal, Your Grace.”

She rose from the table and disappeared upstairs.

Alexander highly doubted he could enjoy his breakfast, now that he had seen how upset Helen really was. He had built his secret and remote personality to keep away members of the ton, primarily his stepfamily, and to protect himself, but it appeared the walls he had built around himself were putting a strain on the nearly peaceable relationship he had with Helen, preventing him from reaching her and enjoying what they had together.

He had to make a choice to either drop his walls and enjoy the company and care of his lovely wife while accepting the vulnerability that came with it, or hold on to his walls and wallow in the misery and self-pity that had been his companions for the past decades. The answer was quite clear, but then old habits died hard, and it would take quite some effort.

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