Page 50 of Seven Nights with the Wicked Duke
"The weather is not always favorable for a promenade, my lord," she said gently, smiling to soften her words. "Besides we usually depart for the countryside once the season comes to an end."
"I understand, my lady," he said smiling, but somehow the smile did not reach his eyes. "Precisely the reason why having a painting of this would be lovely."
"I agree," she replied.
"I am curious as to the reason why a young lady like you does not know how to paint. I thought it is the sort of feminine pursuits young ladies are required to learn?" he asked.
And there it was, that hint of irritation that had haunted most of their conversations for the past few weeks. These questions he asked like he was trying to compare her to another woman -a perfect one- while pretending that he was enamored with her. By all other accounts, he was the perfect gentlemen, appearing every now and then to take her out to many different interestingplaces that she never knew existed. So far, she had visited several theaters across London, museums, and art exhibitions. Spending time with Hector was definitely interesting, but for some reason she could not summon the right amount of excitement for their adventure.
In every way Hector was the perfect suitor for her, he was tall and handsome in the way that would make her the envy of theton, he was also a viscount who had his own fortune and so was in no hurry to snag hers. Lastly, he was funny, interesting, and shared the same hobbies as she did. From all indications she should be falling at his feet, eager to marry him.
Instead, she felt nothing.
She could not fault him for thinking her lacking in some way, when she spent the bulk of their time together comparing him to someone else. While his blue eyes smiling down on her were flattering, it lacked the spine melting intensity of Theo's and when he stared at her, she felt nothing of the shivers that came with Theo sparing her a glance. When he placed a proprietary hand on the small of her back as he led her about, she found herself wishing that it was someone else touching her. Someone who could turn her mindless with such a simple touch.
But even as she thought it, she knew that such a wish was dangerous. Theo, no matter his charm, was a rake, one who has made a sport out of charming his way into so the beds of many ladies in the ton and beyond. While such attention might be electrifying, she did not think that she could bear the humiliation and abandonment that would come after. Because,even though she might be naive of the ways of men and women, she knew that what she felt for Theo went a little deeper than lust, with every day she spent in his arms, she felt herself falling deeper for him in a way that would make the inevitable crash to reality excruciating. Theo would definitely not marry her, and she would never want him to suffer from being trapped in a marriage he did not want. She admired his freedom and spontaneity too much to let that happen.
The best decision was to stay far away from him, just as she had been doing, marry Hector, the perfect gentleman, and give birth to little blonde babies, while she locked her dark desires in a drawer that would never be opened again, just like her list was.
Even as she made that decision, it felt wrong, but life came with choices, each choice with its own price. The price for the perfect life she wanted was to lock away her forbidden desires for a certain man. She just had to hope that the life she wanted would be worth it. She had to make it enough.
"As you are aware, I lost my mother at a tender age. My brother and I hardly knew the importance of learning watercolors. We had no older female to tell us," she replied, keeping her expression carefully bland, in order not to betray her irritation.
"I apologize, my lady," Hector replied, his cheeks slightly flushed with embarrassment. "I did not mean to remind you of painful memories."
"It is all right," she said offhandedly, adjusting her skirts around her for want of something to do.
This was one of the ways the duke was different from Hector. The duke would have been too busy urging her to indulge in some wicked actions with him to wonder about her lack of some feminine skills. Unfortunately she was marrying Hector, not the duke. She had to get her head on straight.
Suddenly, Cecilia spotted a grey stallion coming towards them carrying its rider. When man and horse came even closer, she recognized it was none other than the one that had been plaguing her thoughts in recent times.
Emerton had appeared as though she had summoned him with her thoughts.
Today he was dressed for riding, his brown breeches hugging his strong calves where they pressed against the horse. He had his shirt on with a waistcoat, but no cravat, and the top buttons of his shirt were open, granting her a peek at the bronzed skin of his chest. She watched mesmerized at the play of muscles in his torso as he alighted from his horse, running a hand through his already disheveled hair.
He was wickedly handsome and he was coming towards them.
"My lady," he greeted, when he stopped in front of them, taking her hand in his, he placed a kiss on her knuckles, one she felt all the way down to her toes and she had to do her best to suppress the shiver that ran through her, but the way he was looking at her was not helping. The longer he looked into her eyes, the faster the world around her faded into the background, until she almost forgot that Hector was standing beside her.
Apparently the viscount was not about to let that happen, because he cleared his throat, breaking them away from their trance, but Theo took his time letting go of her hand while he stared at Hector steadily, almost as if he dared him to say something about it.
"Who is yourfriend, my lady?" he asked her without removing his gaze from the other man.
His tone was dark and she wondered at it because he was usually more friendly. It was her brother who had the more brooding personality around strangers.
"Your Grace, this is Lord Hickling," she said, gesturing to Hector, thanking the heavens that her voice sounded halfway normal. "Lord Hickling, this is the Duke of Emerton."
Hector gave a bow and the duke inclined his head slightly in acknowledgment, while eyeing the other man with open dislike.
The tension between them was so thick it was so palpable, she was racking her brain on how to break it, when they were interrupted by Magnus.
"Emerton," he greeted. "Fancy seeing you here. You do not seem the type to visit the park, thought you would be at the salon."
"What, I am not allowed to enjoy the outdoors?" he asked with a sly smile, finally breaking his gaze on Hector.
"Of course you are," Magnus laughed with a shake of his head. "I trust you have met Lord Hickling?" he asked gesturing towards Hector.
"Yes," Theo replied, sparing Hector a passing glance, he turned back to Magnus. "Might I have a word with you, Blackmore?"
