Page 21 of Her Ruse with the Rakish Duke
She climbed down the six stairs, then bent to place the flowers on the floor. She plucked a small bunch and began to map out the pavement. The flowers had a pleasant fragrance. Anyone who decided to use the divan would enjoy it. And it did beautify the stark appearance.
Daphne had a sudden idea to create shapes out of the petals. To do that, she had to perch on the top stair, and reach up. She secured her hair with another strand at the back of her head then traipsed to the top step with some petals. They would go into the railing.
She held the pillar in one hand, to steady herself and climbed up the pavement. She stuck the first one into the hole, the second, and the third. The star-like shape was coming together. Daphne was pleased and was certain that Amelia would love it too.
The last one had to be at the peak, then she would return for another. Daphne could not quite reach it and had to go closer to the pavement. Her right arm was occupied with holding the pavement. She had to steady herself but stepped on the hem of her dress.
Daphne’s foot slipped and fear leaped into her as she tried to grab the railing and failed. She started to crash toward the steps with a muted scream.
A pair of strong arms slid under her, just before her back could hit the ground.
“Always call for help, my lady, someone might be watching.”
Blue eyes blazed down on her, with a worried expression that contrasted with his amused tone. Daphne closed her eyes, hoping it would be a terrible,terribledream.
* * *
Victor left his quarters, his mind plagued with thoughts from the previous night. When Daphne did not return, he had gone to see if she was in trouble. He had overheard a fraction of their talk with her sister.
He hoped she would defend Daphne. He could not interfere in their private affairs, not in that manner, without embarrassing Daphne. By morning, his worry for her state of being had intensified. He went to search for her. She was not inside the house with her family, so he went to the back.
He found her gathering flowers into her arms. Her hair was loose over her shoulders, her face brighter than the early morning sun. Her rosy lips were pursed in concentration. Lips that had kept him awake. She checked if her hair was secure and picked up some flowers, then started to climb the pavement.
Victor watched her with mounting interest.
Partly, he wanted to remind her of their kiss. Sometimes, it burned at the tip of his tongue. Each time, he only had to recall his father’s face, his mother’s downtrodden shoulders, and the other women he ruined. Once that happened, he chose to swallow those feelings. Daphne did not deserve such pain. Too beautiful, too innocent…too?—
…about to hurt herself! Victor dashed forward in alarm. He slammed his arms under her, grabbing Daphne just before she could hit the step. Relief shot through Victor’s veins as he stared down at her face.
Why would she not scream for help?
“The ground is quite close, I knew I would not die if I fell,” she insisted, yet her tone was shaky. Her face was the shade of snow, as she avoided his gaze. Victor hated seeing her this terrified. She attempted to stand and he brought her to an upright position.
“You could still have hurt yourself, so you are welcome,” he said. He kept his hand on the small of her back until she steadied herself. Victor wanted that flush back on her cheeks. He peered at the work she had been doing. “Besides, what an eyesore is this!”
She wheeled around, her loosened hair flying in the morning breeze.
“An eyesore!”
“Is that supposed to be a circle? Or were you creating a shapeless blob?”
She gasped, her face flooding with color. “How dare you! You have no idea how these decorations are done!”
Victor grinned and leisurely strolled to that pile of flowers. He picked some from there and walked down, closely followed by an enraged Daphne.
“Give that back, Your Grace!” She tugged on them, “You will ruin everything!”
“Give me a chance,” Victor said. “You might be surprised. Again.”
Annoyed, she retorted. “Oh, you are shameless. You would actually mention that cheating streak!” She tugged harder, taking Victor by surprise as she twisted. The petals snapped and cascaded to the ground.
She huffed out what sounded like a cuss word. “You ruined it! Are you happy now? I told you to leave it alone, but you would not listen! Now, see!”
“I see,” Victor said.
“You will make this up to my sister, these flowers are important to her.”
“Will that appease you too?”
