Page 76 of The Duke's Impossible Deal
“Do you think I had not noticed the way you always put everyone else first? You spend your life anticipating everything everyone else could possibly want. Since you have moved in, I have never run out of ink, and you always ensure it is my favorite brand.” Tobias’s lips quirked into a half smile. “I know that your favorite piece of chicken is the thigh—I can tell by the way your eyes widen when you see me carve. Yet you never take it because that is Georgie and Alistair’s favorite piece as well.”
How closely has he been watching me?
Rowen’s eyes widened, but before she could deny it, Tobias continued, “I watch the way you hold yourself back whilst being so generous with those around you. You give so much, and you have sacrificed so much to care for those you love.”
“Anyone would have done that,” Rowen pointed out feebly.
Tobias shook his head. “No, they would not. And they definitely would not continue to do so once they had come into the kind of wealth you now possess.” He ran a hand through his hair. “In all the time you have lived with me, you have purchased nothing that is solely for you.”
“I bought the furniture?—”
“For the house,” Tobias cut in. “You have done so much for your family. It is high time someone did something for you. You deserve to be pampered, to have someone think about you and what you need.” He reached a hand towards her and then let it fall, his fingers twitching. “Let me give that to you. Iwantto give that to you.”
His words broke something inside her. The lump that had been growing in her throat was so large that she could not speak. She felt tears spring to her eyes. Her heart twisted and turned, and then she was flinging her arms around him and pressing a kiss to his cheek.
“Thank you,” she choked out.
She backed away, wiping a tear from her face. Tobias’s mouth fell open, and his cheeks were a shade of pink. Rowen smiled as he tugged at his collar, shifting his weight from foot to foot even as he grinned back at her.
“Does this mean you will let me spoil you, Duchess?” His voice was oddly hoarse.
She hesitated, feeling that familiar tightness in her chest. Her years of saying no hammered at her, desperate to escape.
She bit her lip and nodded. “Yes. I am not used to being treated like this.”
“Then we shall have to practice.” Tobias grinned.
And Rowen realized that it was not an unappealing prospect.
Twenty-Two
“You will see to it that this does not happen again, Tanner.” Tobias gestured behind them as he and his butler walked down the corridor.
It was the evening before the Salisbury ball, and all day, Tobias had been filled with a restless impatience. The feeling had not been helped by discovering the broken jib door.
A fine thing that would have been. Surprise, Rowen. Here is a door that does not open.
At the thought of his wife, the memory of their shopping trip flooded his mind. He reached up a hand and ran a finger along his left cheek absently.
“Of course, Your Grace.” Mr. Tanner inclined his head, his gravelly voice bringing Tobias back to the present. “I can only apologize for not realizing sooner that it was in need of repair.Though I am assured that with the new changes, it will be more functional.”
“It had better be. This needs to be perfect.” Tobias shook his head. “I will not settle for anything less, not for the Duchess.”
He thought of the way Rowen’s face had lit up when her dresses arrived, of the way she had softened when he had told her that he wanted to spoil her. Even the memory made his heart leap. The way her smile had lit up the whole room filled him with warmth.
“I am sure Her Grace will be delighted by your generosity, Your Grace,” Mr. Tanner said. “Few women alive would ever receive even a tenth of the gift you intend to give her.”
“It is less than she deserves.” The words were little more than a whisper, and Tobias shook his head. “She is the Duchess, Tanner. I am only giving her what she is due.”
“Of course, Your Grace.” Mr. Tanner inclined his head. “Will that be all?”
“Yes, Tanner.” Tobias let out a long, slow breath. “I appreciate your efficiency and discretion. You have done your job well.” He rubbed his hands together. “All that remains is to find my wife.”
“I do not think that will be hard, Your Grace.” Mr. Tanner smiled, nodding his head towards something over Tobias’s shoulder.
Tobias whipped around to see Rowen standing a little behind him. She had clearly come in from outside. Her hair was slightly windswept, with flecks of snow in it.
Her cheeks were red, her grey eyes were bright, and as she tugged off her gloves, Tobias caught a flash of her pale wrist. His stomach swooped as if he had stepped off a steep stair, and his mouth went dry.
