Page 94 of If the Duke Dares
Except he never had before. He’d had countless assignations and was still unwed. Persephone saw no reason for that to change. Particularly since he’d confessed to not being able to fall in love.
Suddenly, Persephone knew the awful truth—she loved him. The pain of seeing him now with this woman wasn’t due to her disgust at his true nature. It was because she’d allowed him into her heart. Another rogue rule broken. With his overprotection, his obnoxious flirtation, and his commitment to helping her sister, he’d completely flattened her defenses. She’d been laid bare to him. And to heartbreak.
Dammit.
Eyes stinging, she nearly turned. No, she had something to tell him first.
Straightening her spine and notching up her chin, she marched toward him. He saw her then, his eyes widening slightly. He immediately removed the woman’s hand from his lapel and stepped away from her, never appearing more like a man caught.
“Good evening, Wellesbourne,” she said haughtily. “I came to thank you for including us this evening. It is a wonderful farewell as my sister and I will be leaving Bath in the next few days.”
He blinked, but there was something akin to panic in his gaze? “Leaving? Where? Why?”
“We’re taking a much-needed respite to the country.” She wasn’t about to tell him where so he could come looking for her and try to persuade her to fall into his arms again. “Good evening.” Swallowing the emotion clogging her throat, Persephone spun about and strode from the room. If her father had been there, she hadn’t seen him, which was just as well. Encountering him would only have made the evening an even bigger disaster.
Persephone hurried back up to the drawing room to find Pandora and her aunt so they could leave. But she encountered Pandora on the landing.
“There you are,” Pandora said. “I was about to come looking for you in the retiring room. You’ve been gone awhile.”
Taking her sister’s arm, Persephone led her up the stairs to the second floor. Thankfully, their mother was no longer there. Persephone told Pandora about running into her and what she’d said about marrying Cousin Harold.
Pandora shook her head. “She finally admitted that they’ll be ruined if you don’t marry him? Fat lot of good that will do her. Did she understand that you aren’t going to marry him?”
They walked into the retiring room, which was pleasantly empty.
Persephone released her sister and faced her. “I have no idea. She then tried to persuade me to marry Wellesbourne. Apparently, he called on them earlier to tell them to leave us alone.”
“That’s rather forward, isn’t it? I mean, I appreciate all he’s done to help me, but calling on our parents seems…inappropriate?”
It was indeed. Why would he do such a thing? Because he was a duke and thought he could order people about? “They tried to convince him to marry you, but he said if he married anyone it would be me.” The emotion Persephone had tried to quash rose again. She began to shake.
“Why would he say that?” Pandora looked dubious. Then her gaze softened. “Oh, Persey. How well have you and Wellesbourne come to know one another?”
“There is much you don’t know,” Persephone whispered.
Hurt flashed in Pandora’s eyes. “Why?”
“Because I didn’t want to talk about what was happening to you. When I met Wellesbourne—Acton—after running from Mama and Papa, he was very protective of me. Annoyingly so, but he did save me from a ruffian’s attack.”
Pandora gaped at her. “That’s terrible! Not that he saved you, but that you were assaulted.”
Persephone wrung her hands. “I grew to like him, against my better judgment. More recently, we have become close. Intimate,” she added, looking away. “I’ve been the real fool, Pandora. At least you didn’t give all of yourself to Bane. I’ve given Acton everything—my body, my heart, my very soul.”
Pandora’s brow furrowed. She seemed…confused? “But you just said he told our parents that if he married anyone it would be you? Does he not want you to be his duchess? If so, I am going to find him right now and plant him a facer.”
“He was going to ask, but I didn’t want to marry him just because we’d been intimate. So, I refused his proposal before he could present it.” Persephone took a deep breath. “And it was the smartest thing I’ve done since meeting him. I knew he was a rogue, yet I allowed myself to be vulnerable to his charms. He said he wanted to change, that he was disgusted by Bane’s behavior. It somehow awakened him to his own transgressions. I foolishly believed that was true.”
While Pandora’s features softened, she still seemed uncertain. “But it’s not?”
Persephone shook her head. “I just saw him downstairs with another woman doing his typical flirtations. He can’t help himself, Pandora.” The emotion she’d worked to keep at bay spilled over as a tear tracked down her cheek. Persephone hastily wiped it away.
“It seems men generally can’t.” Pandora gave Persephone a feeble, sympathetic smile. “I’m so sorry, Persey. It’s not fair that we would both fall for such scoundrels. And as much as I want to say you should have told me, I am not sure I would have wanted to hear about you being entangled with the duke. His friendship with Bane is enough to tarnish him, despite the manner in which he’s helped me. It’s one thing to accept the man’s support and another to trust him with your heart.”
That was the exact correct summation. Persephone nodded. “Just so. I am gladder than ever that we will be leaving Bath. Perhaps we could go tomorrow,” she added with a shaky laugh.
“Aunt Lucinda will ask us to wait until the day after at least. I do think she is sad to see us go.” Pandora took Persephone’s hand and gave her a squeeze. “Shall we go find her now so we can leave this infernal party?”
“Yes, please.” Persephone hugged her sister. “Thank you, Pandora. I love you so much.”
