Page 66 of Alone with the Beastly Duke
“I do not care. What the Ton has to say does not concern me,” she insisted. “We could marry. We could elope. I could leave with you.”
At this point, Jasmine was simply saying whatever she could to convince Axel not to leave.
“But you will not be the only one affected by this. Every member of your family would be ruined too,” Axel continued. “I do not wish for your family to suffer because of me.”
It was then that Jasmine realized the implication of what she had been saying. If she eloped with Axel, she would never see her family again, and not only would they all be thrown into confusion, but the Ton would also stigmatize them.
“I suppose we do not have to elope,” she replied, “but I do not wish for you to go.”
Axel shook his head. “I have to go. It is the only way that you will be happy. You could get an eligible bachelor here to marry and have children with. Then, you will be happy.”
“No, the only way I can truly be happy is if I am with you,” Jasmine argued.
Axel sighed. “You cannot do that to yourself. You have to–”
“I will not,” Jasmine insisted as she stared at Axel. “Thoughts of you consume my being. I cannot get you out of my head, and if I am being entirely truthful, I do not wish to. I had never been this alive and happy until I met you. Before I met you, I was used to being the wallflower, the girl that no one saw, not my parents and not my siblings. But when we met at that bookshop, you saw me and spoke to me.”
“Ever since that day, all I have been able to think about is you. It is only with you that I can indeed be myself, the simple girl who reads all day. With you, I have learned that there is nothing wrong with being myself. If you left, I would go back to the girl that I used to be. The girl that no one cared for. The easily forgettable girl. So, tell me, Axel, how do you truly feel about me?” Jasmine asked.
She held Axel’s gaze, but he looked away.
“The passions you stir in me are those I have only ever read about, Axel. Do you truly not feel anything for me?” she asked.
Axel finally looked at her; his eyes set hard.
“Jasmine, I am dead inside,” he lied. “My heart is dead, and I simply cannot love anyone.” Like a dagger, Axel’s words struck Jasmine in the heart, and she could feel her heart ache. “I am a damaged man, Jasmine. I am too damaged for anyone to love, especially you. You are pure and lovely, and it would kill me if you got ruined because of me. I care about you, Jasmine. However, I do not truly believe that I am capable of loving anyone…ever.”
Jasmine touched her palm to her chest as she felt the pain of her heart breaking. At this point, however, she had no tears in her eyes. The only testament to her heartbreak was the physical pain that she felt in her heart.
“It is best if we stay away from each other,” he said. Jasmine did not respond. “I do not trust myself to stay away from you if I continue to stay in London. This is why I have decided to move to Norway, where the ocean between us will prevent me from seeing you. This is the only way that I can be sure that I will stay away from you,” Axel said. “I know that you probably see me as a heartless man, and I probably am, but I am doing this to protect you.
“I do not need you to protect me,” Jasmine responded in a hardened tone.
“Everything and everyone I have set my hands on has been destroyed, and it would kill me to ruin you too. I am protecting you fromme.”
Jasmine nodded. Axel was already set in his way, and she had to take his word for it, even if it killed her to be so far away from him.
“Goodbye, Axel,” Jasmine replied as she stepped out of his carriage and walked into the night.
ChapterTwenty-Two
Jasmine walked into the house, dejected and with her shoulders slumped in defeat. Fortunately, the last of the guests were beginning to leave when she entered the house. All she wanted to do was lock herself up in her room for as long as possible.
“Where have you been, Jasmine? Rose told us that you were in your room, resting?” William asked.
“I took a walk in the gardens…I needed some air to make me feel better,” Jasmine said simply as she made to head to her bedroom.
“You had better be careful; you know that the Nordic Beast is out there,” William said, and her other siblings laughed…all except Rose.
Jasmine, who had been holding her emotions in all evening, decided there and then that she had had enough. She was prepared to stand up to her siblings and everyone else who made Axel feel any less than the amazing person he was.
“Pray tell, William, what would the Duke do to me if he caught me?” she asked, her eyes blazing.
“I am simply jesting,” William responded.
“Maybe you should not jest about things you know nothing about,” Jasmine replied. The entire room was silent as her siblings stared at her as though she had lost her mind.
“Well, I know enough about the Nordic Beast to know that he has a violent streak,” William replied stubbornly.
