Page 44 of Bound to a Wicked Duke

As she was otherwise occupied with her guests, Emily was too busy to spend much time with her family, so they were left to their own devices. Cecil and Madeleine moved about the garden together, leaving their parents to find their own associates with whom to converse. “A game of nine pins?” Cecil invited her with a smile as they came out onto a grassy expanse of lawn where outdoor games had been set up for the Viscount’s guests.

Madeleine smiled and nodded. “Shall we wager upon it?”

Cecil laughed in delight. “If I win, you feign ill tomorrow so that I do not have to sit through another boring afternoon of chaperoning your callers.”

Madeleine laughed. “We both win in that scenario, but you know that mother and father would not stand for it.”

Cecil chuckled. “I know, but it was worth a try.” He shrugged. “No wager then. Let us simply play for the fun of it.”

Madeleine nodded in agreement. Their manner towards one another had been much lighter since their conversation about the pain of the past, and she had forgiven him. It had done Madeleine a great deal of good to forgive Cecil, and Cecil now had a better understanding of his sister’s previous behaviors towards him. It had helped to clear the air and heal a rift that had kept them at an emotional distance from one another.

For the moment, they were mostly alone, aside from the various scattered servants. It was a blessed relief from the crush of humanity that they endured during balls and larger society dinners. She and Cecil took the quiet moment together as an opportunity to rebuild their sibling relationship on a new foundation of mutual love and respect.

“I have taken to the business of our country estate with fervor, working closely with our steward, James Stuart. Since arriving in London, he and I have maintained a consistent correspondence. As you know, I have also taken to managing the family’s interests in the slate industry. I do not wish to boast, butI can safely say that it is going well. We may even have a new investor in one of our ventures.”

“That is good,” Madeleine smiled encouragingly at him. “You have kept yourself quite busy, much to the disappointment of the unwed ladies of the ton.”

Cecil chuckled, shaking his head. “I do not presently wish to wed as I prefer to spend my days on affairs of business. There will be time enough for marriage in the future. I will not shirk my duty when the time comes to produce an heir.”

“I admire your goals, Cecil. I am proud of you for putting the family first and ensuring our financial future for generations to come. Father has a steadfast and worthy heir in you, brother. You are his dream son. Not all men are so fortunate. You will make an excellent earl when the time comes.”

Cecil flushed with pleasure at her compliment. “I am equally blessed to have such a patient and instructive father. I am a firm believer that my destiny should not be solely aligned with our father’s passing as is the case with so many heirs. I see it as my duty to be the best nobleman that I can be now. The future is just that, in the future. I am interested in making our lives better today. Father has been most understanding and supportive of my goals.”

Madeleine’s experience with their father was a bit different than Cecil’s. As a young, unwed female of marriageable age, the Earl was not as patient with her as he was with his son. Cecil would be allowed to wed when he chose to do so unless an heir wassuddenly needed to secure inheritance succession. Madeleine was not given that freedom. She had been born to wed a man of worth. In the eyes of society, that was her sole purpose. As if he could read her thoughts, Cecil asked her about her own dreams.

“How about you, sister? What is it that you desire?”

Madeleine was caught off guard. It was the first time that anyone in their family had ever bothered to ask her such a question. Unfortunately, she could not answer honestly. Cecil was too good of a son to be able to tell him the truth about her wish to remain unwed. His conscience would lead him to tell their father. He would think that he was doing it for her own good, but the result would be the same. She did not believe that he would understand her fear of childbirth either.

“I do not know,” she answered as honestly as she could. She knew that she did not wish to have her fate determined by marriage to a man that she did not know or love. “If I had my way, I would spend my life reading and traveling the world. I would love to be able to go on a Grand Tour.”

Cecil nodded. “That suits you. You always seem to have a book in your hand. Perhaps you will be fortunate, and your future husband will have a large library and take you on a tour of the continent for your honeymoon.”

Madeleine stopped herself from correcting him. She did not wish to argue with him when they were getting along so well. He was a man bound by the thoughts and beliefs of his time with noreal understanding of women or their desires. He was not alone in that. Most of the ton felt as he did.

A larger library truly was a lovely thought—but it was not all she wanted from a marriage. She wanted more than a room; she wanted a man’s heart. And she wanted to feel safe enough to give him hers in return.

She almost laughed aloud at such a thought of a man existing, but her laughter turned bitter in her throat, and the brief moment of amusement did not even make it to her lips.

“Perhaps,” she murmured to her brother instead and turned to bowl her ball at the nine pins standing in wait.

“Ah, here comes Percy,” Cecil remarked. His voice held a tone of disapproval towards his friend that he had not used until Percy and Madeleine had started courting.

Madeleine’s breath caught in her throat, causing her to suddenly feel as if she were having trouble breathing. Her thoughts and feelings pertaining to Percy had been tormenting her since their passionate exchange at the last ball. She did not know how to be with him now. Their interlude at the cricket match had only served to make things worse. She was afraid her lust for him would show on her face and in her eyes. She was clearly not very good at hiding her own thoughts and feelings where he was concerned as her own mother had noticed his effect upon her person.

Her body ached for him to do what he had done at the ball once more. She longed to feel his hands and mouth upon her body. Just thinking about it caused a feverish sensation to course through her nervous system, but it did not absent the reminders of past pain.

But the wounds of her heart had not fully healed. Where Percy was concerned, she knew desire could not exist. He was beyond her in many ways, and his and Cecil’s constant teasing had ensured that she retain the knowledge.

So, last night, in order to save herself from drowning in her own desire for him, she had chosen to turn her anger towards him into the power to resist him. It did nothing to aid her in sleep, however, and this morning she woke up agitated. She had been successful in hiding from her family, but the question was: would she be able to hide it from Percy?

“Percy,” Cecil greeted as the Duke approached.

Hearing his name as she thought nearly had Madeleine jumping out of her very skin, and she had to feign a sudden sneeze to hide it. She glanced quickly back at her brother and was relieved that neither he nor Percy had seemed to notice.

“Cecil,” Percy greeted in kind. Their tones were measured, as if there was something going on between them that Madeleine did not quite understand.

In spite of her curiosity, Madeleine refused to turn around and pretended that she was concentrating very hard on her bowling.

---