Page 36 of If the Duke Dares
“Did I hear a hint of laughter? I would be affronted that you would find my nickname humorous, but I am too delighted by the sound of your mirth. And before you admonish me for flirting, I am allowed to be delighted by you. That happens with friends, which I’ve decided we are. You can argue with me about that in the morning, if you wish.”
She rather liked arguing with him, she realized, but she wouldn’t about this. “I think I must accept you as a friend.”
“Don’t sound so thrilled,” he said with a sardonic laugh.
Again, she giggled, but she didn’t try to stop it this time. She also snorted. The idea of her laughter delighting someone, especially someone such as he, was too exhilarating to ignore. “Since we are friends, am I to call you by your first name or by the ridiculous Wellesy? What about Loxley? Wasn’t that your name before?”
“For my entire life until my father died last year. Lox or Loxley. But my nurse and my governess always called me Acton.” He had a vague memory of his mother calling him that too, but more often she referred to him as Loxley.
“Which do you like best?”
“I hadn’t thought about it, but I suppose Acton. That’smyname, not one I’ve had to share with anyone else in my family tree.”
Persephone found that revelation fascinating. How odd or even overwhelming it must be to be one of a long line of something bigger than oneself. So much responsibility and expectation. She hadn’t considered that before.
“I didn’t mean to laugh at Wellesy. Especially since I have a nickname of my own.”
“Please tell me.” He sounded rather fervent.
She grinned as she thought of her sister not being able to say Persephone when she’d learned to speak. “My sister has always called me Persey.”
“That is agreatnickname. Much better than Wellesy.”
“Lox isn’t bad,” Persephone said. “Do you have siblings? Is that what they called you?”
“Two younger sisters. They didn’t call me anything. We didn’t live in the same household. They resided with my mother.”
Persephone felt foolish. Of course she’d known that Lady Wellesbourne had two daughters. She just hadn’t put together that they were his sisters, which had been foolish. “Did you know them at all?” she asked quietly, wondering if she’d even spoken loud enough for him to hear her.
“No, so I don’t really know what it’s like to have siblings. I imagine it’s nice.”
His tone sounded flat, as if he couldn’t imagine it. But perhaps he wanted to? Blast, shehadbecome his friend. She was beginning to like him and to want to get to know him better. He was far more complex and caring than she’d anticipated him to be.
“My sister is my favorite person in the whole world,” Persephone said.
“That’s marvelous,” he said softly, mayhap even wistfully.
“Good night,Acton,” she said, though she suspected she could have continued talking with him all night.
“Good night, Persey.”
Persephone was shocked she didn’t tell him not to call her that name, that it was only for Pandora to use. Except it sounded, somehow, right.
The second time he felt the movement against his leg, Acton jolted completely awake. He’d imagined the prior nudge might be Persey’s hand as he’d been dreaming of her limbs entwined with his.
However, this was not Persey.
Acton kicked out his leg and heard the unmistakable skitter of rodent feet across the floorboards. Once he’d blinked the sleep from his eyes, there was just enough light from the hearth for him to see the shadow of the rat before it disappeared beneath the dresser.
Swearing, he bolted upright and instinctively rubbed his hands over his legs. Then he jumped to his feet and looked furtively around the room for any other creatures.
If only he hadn’t fallen off the chair-bed, he would not have been asleep on the floor. It was somewhat of a miracle he’d found any rest on the hard surface. The blanket was off to the side, the corner hooked on one of the chairs. Acton plucked at it and was rewarded with another rat. This one was smaller but louder as it let out a piercing squeak, surprising Acton so that he threw the blanket and shouted.
“What’s happened?” Persey’s sleepy question came from the bed.
Acton felt like a fool for his reaction to the second rat, but he hadn’t expected it to be lurking beneath his blanket. Good God, were there more of them? Were they even now trying to scale Persey’s bed?
“I think you should get up,” he said as calmly as possible, seeing that she was already upright as she wiped her hand over her eye. “I find that I have bedded down with rats.” He shuddered to think of the two rodents snuggled beneath his blanket with him.
