Page 24 of Alone with the Beastly Duke
“Uhm…” Jasmine cleared her throat and glanced at him, only to see him staring right at her. She shivered again, but it was due to the intensity of his gaze this time.
“Would you like to start by telling me why you are here without a chaperone?” he asked.
Jasmine sighed. “That is because my entire family already left for the countryside,” she explained.
The Nordic Beast looked confused.
“Then what are you doing in London?” he asked.
“Well, I was left behind,” she replied.
“What?” the beastly man looked at her like she was crazy then, he burst into laughter. “I can see that you are a jester,” he said.
“I am happy that my situation can bring you some laughter,” she remarked scathingly.
“Wait, did that really happen?” he asked. Jasmine nodded. “I am really sorry. I thought you were fooling around,” he apologized. “How could that have happened?”
“I did not sleep well the night before we were to travel. There was a lot of commotion in the house due to the preparations, so I decided to take a quick nap. When I woke up, it was already nighttime, and my family was long gone,” she related.
“You must have been terrified, being all alone in the entire house,” he observed.
Jasmine laughed. “Quite the opposite, in fact. I was happy that I finally had the house to myself for the first time, and I had some quiet,” she said.
“Until the intruder came?” he asked.
“No, I already regretted it by morning when I was near freezing to death, and I could not make a fire all myself. I was also hungry, and there was nothing to eat,” she answered.
“Oh, the maid will fix you something once we finish talking,” he offered. Jasmine smiled and nodded. “Now, tell me about this intruder that you speak of,” he inquired.
“I had tucked myself in for the night when I heard some rattling. I was terrified out of my wits, yet I hoped that it was simply some animal. When the intruder broke a window in the kitchen, I poured water on him, and that was why I thought that…you…” she trailed off, too ashamed to talk about her earlier display.
He nodded.
“I understand. I will go to your house with my groundskeeper to see if we can catch the intruder,” he suggested.
“I would like to follow you,” Jasmine decided.
“Oh, no!” He shook his head. “You absolutely must stay here where you will be safe.”
“But I need to be there. I…”
“You might be in danger and…”
“You can protect me if I get in danger,” Jasmine refuted and smiled.
The Nordic Beast stopped in his tracks and looked at her for a moment. He looked like he wanted to agree with her.
He shook his head instead. “You will be better protected here.”
“You need me there,” she stated.
“I am sure that my groundskeeper and I can handle one intruder just fine,” he said.
“No, I mean you need someone who knows the estate through and through and can lead you around,” she argued.
“Fine. However,” he replied sternly, “you must stay by my side at all times. I will not have you endangered right under my nose.”
“I will do that,” she agreed. With that, Jasmine followed the Nordic Beast right back to her Father’s estate. She led them through the gate, and when they entered the compound, Jasmine began to address him in a low tone so as not to alert the intruder.
