Page 78 of The Duke's Spinster Bride
“Good. Though you should know, if he dares show his face again, I will bring down the full might of the duchy on him. No one speaks to my wife like that.” He gestured behind them, eyes narrowing as he thought of her father. “There will be no clemency a second time, Andrea.”
“I know. I doubt he would risk it.” She chewed on her bottom lip. “He knows you could destroy him.”
“You are better off without him in your life anyway. I still cannot believe he lied to you about dying, just to get you to do what he wanted.”
“I can. It is just the sort of thing he would do.” She slammed a fist into her palm and winced. “He wanted to use my guilt against me, to believe that him dying would drive him to truly desperate actions.”
“And now that you know the truth about him, do you regret it? Marrying I mean. After all, you did not have to.” He could not quite bring himself to look at her, dropping in the question as casually as he could.
The rhythm of his heart faltered and then swung into a staccato beat as he waited for her to answer. She stopped walking and arched an eyebrow at him.
“Are you asking if I regret marrying you?” She folded her arms across her chest.
“I suppose.” He swallowed.
“I do not.” She smiled at him and he felt his heart soar in his chest. For a moment, he was sure that if she had asked, he would have been able to fly.
“He may have forced my hand, but that is all. He wanted me to be miserable and now… Well, now I am anything but.” She looked at her feet, cheeks colouring as she continued. “I am married to the most wonderful man, a man who makes me feel safe and seen and… and cherished.”
“You are going to make me blush if you keep saying such nice things about me.” His voice came out more earnest than he had intended as he struggled to get the words out past the lump in his throat.
“It would only be fair given how often you do the same to me.” She gently bumped against him, the brush of her skin sending fireworks through his veins. “Perhaps you are the one who should learn to take a compliment.”
“Does this mean you plan on complimenting me more? Because I do not think I would be terribly opposed to the idea if that is what you wish to do. And of course, I am more than happy to return the favour.” He laughed and ducked out of the way as she aimed a half hearted kick at him.
After a moment, silence fell and she said, “I do not think I could have done this without you.”
“You did do it without me, remember? You asked me to let you deal with it on your own.” He pointed out.
She waved his explanation away. “That is not what I mean… I… You helped me see the truth. Helped me realise just how awful he has been to me.”
She bit her lip, glancing off in the direction her father had left. “I keep expecting him to come back.”
“If he knows what is good for him, he will not. My urge to thoroughly punch the man notwithstanding, I meant what I said, before you told me to stand aside. I will make sure everyone knows he is nothing more than a liar and a cheat. That he tried to lie about dying just to get you to do what he wanted.” He shook his head, lip curling in disgust.
“Technically that is what your grandmother did.”
He arched an eyebrow at her. “Are you really comparing my grandmother to your father?”
“No, just pointing out that people in our lives do seem to have a habit of claiming to be dying when they are not.” She shrugged. “I would never compare Agatha to Father. She is a decent person for starters.”
“Well, I promise I will never pretend that I am dying. If I tell you I am dying, then I mean it.” He placed a hand on his chest as though swearing a solemn vow.
“I cannot tell if that is a good thing or a bad thing.” She shuddered and leaned against him. “All I know is that the thought of you dying feels like someone has thrown a bucket of cold water over the top of me.”
“It seems like you are rather attached to me, Andrea.” He put an arm around her, breathing in her familiar jasmine perfume.
“I am.” She opened her mouth and then bit her lip, shaking her head. “I am glad that we decided to give this a real chance. It feels like.. It feels like things are finally starting to click into place. Of course, if you do not feel the same I would understand. It is just how it feels to me but no one experience is universal.”
He held a hand up to her lips, his eyes glinting mischievously as he shook his head. “I am glad we agreed to give this a real chance as well.”
The memory of the file he had found threatened to crawl to the front of his mind, but he pushed it away. He was just looking for problems where there were none.
There are plenty of real things, without giving myself imaginary ones.
ChapterTwenty-Seven
“Perhaps this was not the most sensible idea.” Frederick gave her an amused smile as they reached their London house.
