Page 20 of My Blind Duke
He had a disgusted expression on his face and Prudence could easily surmise what had happened.
“How many times must I – enough. This foolishness ends, now,” he declared, angrily as he marched toward the door.
The look on his face told Prudence that if she did not stop him, things would not end well for Melanie, and without a second thought, she put herself between him and the door.
“Move,” he demanded, through gritted teeth.
Swallowing at the unease churning in her gut over how enraged the duke was, Prudence shook her head. “No. Not until you calm down–”
“I have told her time and time again that such jokes are unladylike and silly. I refuse to indulge my child as she continues to make a fool of me. Get out of my way.”
“No, Your Grace. Please think about this. You scold her so much, continuously, but you fail to see that she merely vying for your attention. If only you would just talk to her–”
“Talking to her will not fix anything. I have been far too lenient. I have been too patient and she has consistently taken me for afool. A punishment is long overdue – and perhaps then she will take me seriously,” William snapped, seething.
“You are not listening to me! All this – this anger and rage will only push her further away from you. I understand how upset you are but letting your feelings control you will not help matters. She is just a child! In a new home, expected to build a life of her own, without any guidance because you refuse to sit with her or spend time with her. All she wants is your attention and as we have all seen, she is doing whatever she can to get it,” Prudence pressed, with her hands firmly placed against the door.
After the time she had spent with Melanie, she could not help but see herself in the child. She knew what it was like to feel neglected enough to want any form of attention from a parent – not particularly caring if it was good or bad.
William did not understand the loneliness haunting his daughter, and focused on propriety, as opposed to the happiness of his child. Prudence was prepared to do whatever was necessary to protect a child whose only offense was seeking affection and acknowledgment.
“I will not have a stranger who knows nothing about me or my family tell me what to do. You will be out of this house, Duchess. If I have to carry you out myself, then so be it,” the duke said, his voice low and laced with danger.
Prudence could not understand why he was so intent on displacing her all of a sudden. If he truly wished for her to leave,why did he not say so from the start? Why had he gone as far as to scold the servants for their neglect and disrespect toward her?
“Is that so?” she whispered, dropping her tone to match his as a familiar yet strange feeling started to swirl around in her chest as she became aware of their proximity once more. “And why is that, Your Grace? Why are you suddenly so desperate to see me leave? Have I done something wrong? Or is it that I make you uneasy?”
William placed a hand on the door behind her, and leaned forward, eliminating a great deal of the already little space between them both, and said,
“Although it does not matter – as I do not necessarily need a reason to have you removed from my house – I do not trust you at all. There are far too many suspicious circumstances around you, Duchess. And I do not want that anywhere near me, or my daughter.”
It was almost petulant, the way she immediately responded indignantly.
“Well, I do not trust you either. It is shocking that I need to point this out, but you have not exactly exuded trustworthiness yourself. How dare you judge me when you are basically the same?”
He laughed, humorless and low, and his fingers wrapped around her chin, holding her face up to his in a firm but painless grip.
“You are right not to trust me,” he told her, right before his lips claimed hers.
Prudence felt the thoughts in her mind fade as he kissed her deeply, pressing his body to hers as he kept her trapped between him and the door. Heat flared beneath her skin as one of his hands came down to hold the back of her neck, his fingers fisting her hair as he ravaged her with his lips.
William’s tongue swiped over her lower lip and she gasped, granting him entrance to her mouth, her hands coming up to grip the sides of his shirt as he licked and sucked her tongue.
It felt like a lifetime had passed before he pulled back, leaving her a panting, flushed mess. Mercifully, her back was still against the door and she could lean on it as her weakened knees shook.
Prudence could not move, could not think, could only stare at him and try to catch her breath, losing it once more as he reached out to move her away from the door gently. Then he opened it, and nudged her out of his study, leaning in close to whisper into her ear,
“Do not let me catch you again, Duchess.”
Then he went back in and slammed the door shut.
Chapter 7
“Very good, Your Grace. We can finally begin to earnestly work on restoring the Pemberly title to its former glory.”
William nodded, pushing his chair back from his desk as he stretched his arms and legs. It had taken more days and nights than he would have liked, but he and Robert were finally able to make sense of the estate’s affairs and craft a plan on how to deal with the numerous issues on the ground.
The duke had been particularly encouraged to sort it all out as soon as possible, in a bid to keep his mind occupied and focused on more important things and away from a certain vixen.
