Page 74 of A Duke, a Virgin and a Baby
“You are truly the loveliest creature to walk the earth,” he said breathlessly, his eyes dark and heavy-lidded.
Anna pressed closer, smiling innocently at him.
“And I’m all yours.”
Julian’s eyes widened a tad, then he grinned, his expression promising her simultaneous ruination and salvation.
“You are. All mine.”
His words echoed in her mind for the rest of the night, blanketing her senses with reassurance and adoration. Anna had never felt so loved before, and she could not wait to spend the rest of her life with this man.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
“Afair?”
Lysander nodded, his gaze fixed on the chessboard between them.
“Yes. My wife has mentioned that there will be one taking place tomorrow, and I thought that your wife might be interested in spending some time outside these walls and away from your sodding face. Though you are welcome to join us, if you wish.”
Ignoring the jab was an easy feat for Julian, who had long since grown immune to most of Lysander’s tricks to rile him up.
“A fair sounds nice, ideally, but it is rather stressful in practice. I’m not sure if she would like to deal with the crowds, but I shall ask her.” Julian replied, moving one of his pieces forward.
Lysander glared at the obvious attack, moving a piece of his own in defensive retaliation.
“Somehow, I feel as though you get worse at this every time we play,” Julian commented in amusement.
“That isn’t true — shut your mouth.” Lysander shot back at him, clearly irritated.
Julian stayed silent because it was much sweeter to taste the inevitable defeat of his friend without a word.
As Lysander struggled with his losing battle, he attempted to distract Julian by asking questions he hoped would distract Julian.
“So, how has your married life been, now that you have finally committed to it?”
It was clear what he was trying to do, but Julian played into his plot anyway because he had practically won the game already.
“Good. Peaceful.”
Dissatisfied, Lysander prodded while he continued to glare at the chessboard, as though he was waiting for it to provide him with a solution on how to defeat Julian.
“Does your wife know that you described your marriage so simply in two words and three syllables?”
“My wife is well aware of my feelings about our marriage — details that you are not privy to. Now, hurry up and lose, so that I can go and bask in her wondrous presence .” Julian stated, making a shooing motion with his hand.
Bitterly, Lysander moved his piece, and four moves later, from both of them, he conceded to his fate and hung his head in misery.
“Thank you for such an entertaining afternoon. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must go to my wife. She must be basking under a tree in the garden, and she always looks so lovely during such moments.”
Lysander snorted, clearly still mourning over his defeat.
“I never thought I would see the day you would be so wrapped around your wife’s finger.”
“People change. Though, unfortunately, the same cannot be said about you and your chess skills. Or lack thereof.”
“I see she is yet to do something about that sharp tongue of yours. Go away, you fiend. I shall see myself out, after such a blatant display of inhospitality.”
Julian waved him away, a smile climbing his lips at the mere thought of seeing Anna as he turned to leave the drawing room. He wasn’t sure if it was a good thing that he was so peaceful these days, and the thought was as pessimistic as it was fleeting.
