Page 9 of A Villain for a Duke

So Astrid made a decision.

Buck society.Buck society and all the people in it.She would live for herself.

Never had she been so wrong about a person.

Chapter 6

Present Day

LADY ASTRID.NEVER HAD he been so wrong about a person.Michael couldn’t believe the cards fate was dealing him.It was Christmas.It was supposed to be a nice relaxing house party with the dowager duchess of Whitewood hosting.If he had known thatshewas going to be here, he might have sent a different RSVP.

But here he was, day one of what was supposed to be a calm house party, on a walk with all the houseguests.There was no snow glistening on the ground.Everything was an unusual green shade for this time of year.And brown.Copious amounts of brown littered his view.It was still nice to breathe the fresh air and be out in nature.

But as he breathed the crisp air, he could feel the matchmaking tentacles of Mavis, the Maven.

Yes, even he had heard the rumors.He couldn’t remember the source, though it had probably come from his sister, Hali.She would know.The Maven was now her mother-in-law, and may have played a part in Hali and Giles’ match.

It was a pity that Hali was on an extended honeymoon with her husband, but if anyone deserved it, she did.In a roundabout way, Michael himself had a hand in his sister’s recent marriage.He had sent the note to Giles requesting that he watch out for Hali in his absence.He couldn’t, however, say he had expected the circuitous route they took to get together.And when Hali started to share with him the details, he had to stop her.There were some things he didn’t want to know about his innocent little sister.

Even though he couldn’t be there to protect her himself, he was responsible for her.And it was a responsibility he wouldn’t botch.He had failed one sibling before, with fatal results.He wouldn’t fail again.

Agitation crawled across his skin.He disdained thoughts on his failures, especially that one.He held his more recent failure in contempt as well.He glanced over at the woman he once thought to be a perfect angel.Astrid.His heart leaped at the sight of her.She was too beautiful to be so wanton, alas, wasn’t that the truth?A person could only have so many favorable qualities.Astrid was laughing at something.That oversized mouth of hers was beckoning to him.He loathed how drawn he was to her.

So when the dowager duchess beckoned him, he was not in his usual degree of aloofness.He was far, far colder.But in the worst way, much, much hotter.

“Duke, be a dear and walk with Astrid.She’s far too often in the company of her brother.”

Far too often in the company of her brother?If that were true,the incidentand its ensuing failure wouldn’t have happened.She hadn’t intended it, but the dowager’s words stirred a bubbling cauldron of angst in him.

And though he tried to remain calm, he couldn’t hide the bite in his words.“I think she would be less inclined to her impulses were she to spend more time under his care.”

“Duke,” Mavis chided with a cluck of her tongue.

The other guests avoided his eyes.He knew it was beyond the pale to say such a thing in public, and when he met Astrid’s saucy smirk, he was grounded in pity.

He didn’t want her pity.He just wanted her absence.

So he eluded the Maven’s matchmaking madness by securing a walking partner for himself.He was going to do everything in his power to stay far away from Astrid.He had done a fairly good job of avoiding the vixen for the last couple of years.There had been a couple of occasions where he had sat beside her at a dinner, danced close to her at a ball.There had even been one occasion where he couldn’t excuse himself from flipping her music sheets while she played the pianoforte.But no matter how intoxicating her verbena scent was, no matter how deep her ocean blue eyes were, and no matter how sultry her curves fit her dress of choice, he abstained.Because that’s all she was.A siren.He was only too fortunate to have learned of her seductive ways before he had made a complete ass of himself by proposing.

Imagine that he had once thought her guileless.She was a troublemaker.As if his thoughts had been read by Isaac, he heard her brother’s voice.With a wide grin on his face, and one arm around his sister, he asked, “You want her?”

“She’s all yours,” Michael responded with as little venom as he could muster.No one knew of his contempt toward her.He had managed to keep that on lockdown.There was no use in stirring up rumors, as her reputation had already suffered enough since that event.

The troublemaker.That’s what she was though, and she had brought it upon herself.Even now, she grabbed her brother’s hat and ran off into the woods.

Childish.

Michael watched as three adults, one by one, ran into the woods.Astrid.Isaac.Hope.A twinge plucked at his heart.Uninterested in what that meant, he turned his attention to something the dowager duchess was discussing.He overheard something about the orphanage’s needs, but he couldn’t make out what she said.

Not being one to eavesdrop, he didn’t try too hard to decipher its meaning.The Ashbournes did an admirable job running the orphanage and protecting those children.Perhaps he would ask later and make a donation to their worthy cause.

For now, he would enjoy the snowless, talkless, Astrid-less walk.

Much to his disappointment, he only enjoyed those-lesses for a few brief hours.He managed to avoid Astrid all evening.Her and her devil red gown with another low neckline, revealing far too much.Didn’t Isaac have a care for his sister?Not that Michael was the paragon for sibling care.That neckline though…every time he caught her laughing with her head thrown back, he was sure a nipple was about to pop out.The tightening in his gut increased all evening until finally he could bid his hostess goodnight.

Needing to have Astrid firmly out of sight, he was finally on his way to bed.With his head down he climbed the stairs and marched to his room.The pesky memory of that kiss with her in the dark had nearly been eradicated from his mind, (well, his daydreams not his nightly one), but being in such close quarters with her was making it hard to breathe.He was stifled.And stiff.

With a hardening cock, he flung open his door.

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