Page 89 of A Duke's Unwanted Bride
She thought of all the love that had surrounded her and hated that it still was not enough. That some selfish part of her wanted more. Wanted him.Why can it not be enough?
“You cannot what?” Warner took her hand in his, pulling her to face him.
“I cannot keep pretending!” Adele burst out, fear and sadness and shame strangling her voice. “I cannot keep pretending that I do not feel the way I do. I cannot pretend that some part of me does not die every time you touch me. Your kindness, your tenderness. It is like a dagger in my heart.”
“You do not wish for me to touch you?” There was a catch to Warner’s voice as he released her hand and moved away. “I did not… I am sorry, I did not mean to —”
Adele cut him off, “I know that you mean to comfort me, and perhaps in time, that will be bearable, but for now, it is too much.” She took a shaky breath and continued, “I hoped that perhaps you might feel as I felt, but it was a fools hope.”
“And how do you feel?” Warner canted his head towards her.
Adele made a dismissive motion with her hands.I will not humiliate myself any more than I have.“It does not matter. I know that you do not feel the same. When you told me you wanted to read the journal alone, I knew the truth. You had been friendly to me, kind even, but you did not trust me.”
“It was not you I did not trust.” Warner swallowed, his jaw tightening as he took a step towards her. “It was myself.”
“What do you mean?” Adele blinked away tears, struggling to understand what he was saying.
“I thought that being with you had made me weak. That your spirit had made me leave the path I was on and return to a man that I had no wish to be.” Warner clenched his fist. “That man could not give you what you needed. He could not fulfil his debts — not to you, not Eric.”
Adele’s heart quickened, and she rested a hand on her chest as she watched Warner’s face. The tension in his jaw only grew, and when his eyes met hers, there was a wild pain that shot through her like lightning.
“I was wrong. You were not a distraction; you were not a weakness.” He took another step towards her. “You were — no, you are — a reminder that life is meant to be lived, that it is meant to be enjoyed. Rothwell would not begrudge me that.”
“But you wanted me to leave.” Adele chewed on her lip.
“I wanted you to stay.” Warner gave her a small, sad smile. “But I was too scared to ask you.”
“Then why did you ask me to take my sewing projects?”
“Because I wanted to know if you were coming back.”
He wanted me to stay.Adele’s eyes widened. “Then why did you not just ask me that?”I wanted you to ask me!
“Because when it comes to you, all I seem to do is make an ass of myself. I am an utter fool, and my path to you has been litteredwith mistakes.” He reached a hand towards her, brushing a lock of hair from her cheek with the pad of a thumb. “Letting you go was the biggest mistake I have ever made.”
“Then why did you do it?” Adele could not help but ask, even as she leaned into the softness of his touch.
“I already told you that I am a fool. I thought that you would be better away from me. That I would learn to live without you.” Warner clenched his jaw and shook his head. “But then your sisters told me you had been arrested, and my world exploded. I thought I would lose you forever, and I could not bear it.”
“I would rather have a single hour with you than a lifetime without you.” His blue eyes pinned her in place.
“You always tell me the most beautiful lies.” Adele swallowed.
“It is not a lie. I want to spend the rest of my life with you Adele. I want to grow old with you, to have children with you, to go on adventures with you. I want to show you the world, to watch you live out your dreams.” Warner’s voice caught, and he swallowed as the corners of his lips quirked upwards.
“What are you saying?” Adele breathed.This is not real. This cannot be real.
Her heart thundered in her chest, but she could not bring herself to trust in what he was saying. He had let her leave; he did not want her. She knew that he did not want her.
But here he was, telling her all the things she had longed to hear. He was standing in front of her, telling her that he wanted a life with her. That he wanted her. And even as her heart rejoiced, some part of her still could not believe it.
“I think you know what I am saying.” Warner smiled.
“Then say it.” Adele met his gaze.
“I love you.” Three words tumbled in the infinitesimal space between them.
Then Warner’s lips were on hers, and those words were more than just words. They were the feel of his skin against hers. They were the smell of sandalwood as it washed over her like a hug.
