Page 63 of The Duke's Second Bride
Ava,
You looked so beautiful and peaceful sleeping. I could not bear to wake you.
I am off to meet with a business partner, but I will be back by the early afternoon.
She couldn’t help but smile at the note. Just like that, all her fears of abandonment were soothed.
He didn’t regret kissing her, she knew. He didn’t regret any of it. He wanted her as badly as she had wanted him. It was almost too wonderful to believe.
Having slept in late, Ava had just finished bathing, dressing, and taking a late breakfast when the housekeeper showed Edith into the room.
“Ava!” her friend exclaimed. “I was worried sick! You went for lemonade, and then the next thing I knew, you were gone from the ball entirely. Are you all right? You look all right.”
Ava felt a warm flush spread across her cheeks, accompanied by an uncontrollable smile.
“Yes,” she said. “I am quite all right. Come, sit, if you’d like. I’ll have more tea sent.”
Edith sat next to her, observing her expression. A knowing smile spread across her face.
“You look more than quite all right, if I do say so myself,” she said, her glee evident in her voice. “Am I to understand that relations have … improved between you and your husband?”
Ava’s smile turned into a full-fledged grin, and she couldn’t help a giggle from escaping her. “Well …”
Edith smacked her arm, the way she had in their younger days, and let out a delighted laugh of her own. “Ava! You absolutely must tell meeverything.”
When Christian arrived back at the house, he was not displeased to find Lady Edith Nealton sitting in the parlor room and chatting with Ava. They both stood upon seeing him.
“Lady Nealton,” he said, giving her a polite bow.
She returned the gesture with a curtsy. “Your Grace.” She giggled, sneaking an unsubtle glance in Ava’s direction.
Christian couldn’t help but roll his eyes with amusement. He didn’t begrudge the ladies their bit of gossip. It seemed clear to him that Lady Nealton was to Ava what Vincent was to him—a safe harbor in the often-treacherous seas of society.
And to be frank, there was little that could sour his morning when Ava was in the same room. Somehow, she had outdone herself; even without the finery of last night, she was breathtaking.
Last night, she had been a glittering goddess, every movement a spell. Today, in simple attire, she was no less radiant. Sunlight caught in her hair, highlighting the warm glow of her skin, the soft curve of her shoulders. She moved with an ease that made his chest tighten, a quiet grace that drew his eyes as if by gravity.
And then, of course, the memory came unbidden—her flush, the arch of her back, the tremor beneath his touch. Heat pooled low in him, a slow burn that tightened his hands into fists at his sides.
He had learned long ago that some desires were impossible to ignore, and Ava—beautiful, irresistible—was one of them.
They had a guest, so he would have to wait until later. But damn, what he wouldn’t give to take her here and now and make her cry his name in pleasure again. Now that he had heard her do so multiple times the night before, he knew there was no sound in the world that he would ever find more beautiful.
“I will leave you two ladies to your conversation,” he said. “I will be in my study, if you should need me.”
As he continued towards his study, he passed by the library door and noticed it was open.
Peeking inside, he saw Luke, sitting in a chair with a hefty adventure tome in front of him.
On the arm of his chair, Pudding was curled up beside him, purring.
Just over the purring, Christian could make out the sound of Luke’s voice as he read quietly aloud to himself.
“… and r-reached the mountains of …
Christian quietly entered the library, approaching the boy with light steps. It wasn’t until he was rather close that Luke noticed he was there.
The boy looked up at him and stopped reading.
