Page 31 of The Artisan and the Duke
Jules sat down and pondered what she should do. She still had the welfare of her mother and sisters to think about. There was little to be done but to soothe the man’s ego. After all, he had said himself that marrying him was still just an option. He just wanted her to free him from some of the social obligations that he had been wrapped up in for so long.
The doorman greeting the Duke brought Jules out of her thoughts. She had been waiting just up the stairs, and she took a deep breath as she smoothed down her dress. She walked down the steps and was greeted by the sight of the Duke drenched from the rain.
The servant was helping the Duke out of his overly wet coat, revealing the fact that his button-up shirt was clinging to the man’s every muscle.
Jules made a small gasp that attracted both men’s attention at the same time. “Miss Kelley,” the Duke said almost apologetically. “Forgive my appearance. I am afraid that the rain has sought to drown me.”
“You do not have to apologize for the rain, Your Grace,” Jules said as her eyes lingered on the hint of the man’s firm chest. “I was just coming to find you,” she said, clearing her throat. “I wanted to apologize for my behaviour earlier.”
The Duke looked completely taken aback by her announcement. “You do?” He eyed her curiously. “I was under the impression that I might have to perform some sort of dramatic action to gain your favour again.”
“That would be amusing, but it is wholly unnecessary,” Jules said. She fidgeted with the banister for a moment before she said, “I should let you go change.”
The Duke looked at his attire and agreed with a nod. “It might be best to continue this when I am properly clothed, yes,” he said in amusement.
Jules nodded before she dashed back up the stairs as quickly as her dress would allow. The Duke and the doorman exchanged a glance before the Duke just shook his head and went to his rooms to change.
***
Jules burst through the bedroom door and flung herself onto her bed. She did not know whether she should laugh or cry. She seemed incapable of using her wits when the man was around, but she had done the right thing to apologize. Jules took a deep breath and thought back to the way the Duke had looked in his soaked shirt.
There were many things that Jules could apologize for in her life, but she felt the most scandalized by the way her heart sped up at the mere thought of the man’s chest and strong arms. “I think my corset is on too tightly,” Jules said to herself. She rolled over and sighed at her reflection. “What am I going to do with you?”
Her reflection looked back at her with hints of colour still on her cheeks. Jules shook her head. “You are wanton and should be ashamed of yourself,” Jules told her reflection, but she smiled even as she said it. She had spent so long pretending to be one of the men that these feelings had caught her completely out of her element.
She sat up and went to the doors in her room that opened onto a balcony. Truth be told, Jules was a bit wary of heights, but she stepped through the doors and out into the rain. It felt cool and lovely on her skin. It chilled the steam in her blood and calmed the beating of her heart.
There was euphoria in just feeling and letting go. Jules closed her eyes and let herself whisper out into the rain the secret that she would never tell anyone, least of all the Duke, “I love him.”
***
The next morning, before Jules had a chance to do more than get out of bed, Sherry was in her room bustling about. “Wake up, Miss,” Sherry said with quiet urgency.
“Hmm?” Jules rubbed her eyes and yawned. “What are you doing here so early?”
Sherry said, “Someone’s coming to visit. The kitchen staff thinks it might be the Duke’s uncle. He’s a horrible man, so you must be on your best behaviour around him.”
“If he’s so horrible, then why is he coming to visit?” Jules asked as she grumpily got out of bed and began washing up.
Sherry said with a shake of her head, “Probably due to the announcement of the Duke’s engagement.”
“Great,” Jules said flatly. She had little to no urge to put up with more family members of The Duke of Thornton.
Sherry ushered Jules from the washbowl over to the vanity where she began to powder Jules’ face despite her protests. “Be still now,” Sherry said to the defiant woman.
Sullenly, Jules did as she was prompted, but she stared without amusement at her reflection the whole time. Her dreams had been a blur of blond hair and grey eyes.
She stopped her thoughts before she made herself blush in front of the chambermaid. As much as she liked Sherry, Jules had no inclination to admit to her unabashed dreams of the Duke the night before.
By the time Sherry finished, Jules had realized she was starving, and as soon as the maid was satisfied with how Jules looked in her silver dress, Jules made her way down to the kitchen. Along the way, she saw the Duke just exiting his own set of rooms.
“Good morning, Miss Kelley,” the Duke said with a bow to Jules.
Jules squashed down the ridiculous rush of giddiness that the man’s charming way brought out of her. “Good morning, Your Grace,” she said as neutrally as possible.
If the man noticed her suffering, then he did not let on. He simply fell into step beside her. “I do so loathe when Uncle comes to visit,” the Duke said conversationally. “He deliberately comes early enough to disrupt the household, hoping to catch us all at our worst.”
“Why would he do that?” Jules asked incredulously.
