Page 71 of Saved By the Rakish Duke

“Your Grace?” her voice sailed into the room again. “I promise I don’t have any chicken soup with me.”

Duncan’s eyes looked down at the state of his covers, wrinkled and miserable against the shape of his sick form. He propped himself up onto his elbows with a groan.

“Just a moment, Lady Pen!” he called out, running a hand through his hair, which—even without getting up to look in his dresser mirror—he could tell was beyond salvaging at this point.

He dragged a hand over his face, his fingers flinching in surprise at the stubble that cropped up since he was last well enough to shave.

Resigning himself to the fact that there was no way he could resolve two days’ worth of unkemptness in the span of the few seconds he had left, he finally called for her to come in.

The door opened slowly to reveal Lady Penelope. She stood healthy, composed, and pristine, the opposite of everything Duncan was right now.

“My apologies for intruding, Your Grace,” she said.

“It’s hardly an intrusion if you’re just going to stand in the doorway,” Duncan teased, “but I suppose it's better that you stay safe rather than catch my cold as well.”

“No!” the young woman exclaimed. “I mean, it’s not that.” She looked down at her restlessly fidgeting hands. “I know we haven't been on the best terms of late and was unsure whether you’d even want to speak to me.”

Duncan reached for a handkerchief and covered his mouth with it as he coughed. When he was done, he gave her a weak smile. “I agree that things have been awkward between us, but not to the point where you have to act as though I’d bite your head off. You can come in if you want.”

She raised her hazel eyes to him, knocking the breath out of his already tortured lungs.

“Alternatively...” he added, “you can return to my mother and let her know that you did as she asked you to and that I'm all right.”

Duncan broke their eye contact as he asked drily, “That’s why you’re here, isn’t it? Because Mother's desperate for someone—anyone—to get through to me.”

“Her Gracedidask me to come,” her voice answered.

Duncan scoffed softly, placing both hands under his head as he stared straight up at the underside of the canopy that hung over his bed.

Her footsteps drew closer. “But I was already worried. I just didn’t have the courage to-”

Duncan turned his head to face her, biting back the surprise at the sight of her form standing so close to his bed.

“Worried?” He raised an eyebrow. “Pardon me, Lady Pen, but I find that very difficult to believe.”

“Why?” she asked, her tone neither mocking nor teasing—but honest. “Is it not expected for friends to want to help each other?”

“I presumed our friendship ended that night under the archway,” he stated matter-of-factly, avoiding her gaze again. “At first, I worried and worried about what had pushed you to act so abruptly. But I eventually let it go once I realized that I have never been privy to your motivations.”

“That’s not true!” she protested.

Duncan reached for the half-filled glass of water on his nightstand once more and downed its contents in a giant gulp. The tasteless juice giving him the strength he needed to meet her gaze again.

“Isn't it?” He rubbed his temples to soothe the dull heaviness around them. “Even when things were going well between us, you still never even explained why a spinster like you suddenly decided that you wanted to get married—and by the end ofthis Seasonno less!”

She opened her mouth to answer but closed it again.

Duncan sat up straighter than before, his mind now gathering together all of the thoughts that had been plaguing him about Lady Penelope and pushing them out of his tongue.

“Do you see?" He gestured with both hands. “Even after everything we've been through, you still refuse to give up even a hint of the reason. Perhaps you never considered me a friend andthatis why you pushed me away with such ease.”

“No!” she choked out forcefully.

Duncan was taken aback to see her eyes filled with tears, her eyebrows creased in frustration and maybe... pain?

Her hands balled into determined fists by her sides, she answered, “Iwouldtell you! Iwantto tell you! I only pushed you away because-” her voice faltered, her pained expression plunging an invisible knife into Duncan’s chest. “If you only knew how much I- You-

She wiped a tear away on the back of her hand. “After burdening you with so much already, I saw no reason to burden you further with my family's problems.” Her lips pulled into a sarcastic smile. “I’msorryfor wishing to avoid troubling you more than necessary.”

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