Page 120 of Doxy for the Ton
“What do you say, my love?” he asked. “A house of your own, plus the two thousand guineas, of course. You’d be set for life. Then you needn’t fear what might happen if…” He gestured to himself. “And, of course, if you were caught, I’d ensure any child was taken care of.”
She closed her eyes and grew still.
“Mimi, what do you say?”
He held his breath, awaiting her reply.
Then she opened her eyes, and his hope faded at the resignation in them.
“Thank you,” she said. “It’s a generous offer for one such as I.”
“Then you’ll take it?”
She shook her head. “Forgive me, Alexander. The price is too high. I-I cannot risk it.”
“Mimi, if you’re angling for something more…”
She withdrew her hands. Alexander caught a blur of movement before she struck him on the cheek, delivering a stinging slap.
“I’m angling for nothing!” she said. “But if I accept your offer, then I’m in far greater danger than I ever was with Wal…withhim.”
“Why?” he asked.
“Because my feelings for you far surpass any feelings I had for him!” she cried. “Because he didn’t occupy my every waking moment, and fill my hopes and dreams—and because I didn’t love him with every fiber of my being!”
He recoiled at the force of her passion—finally unleashed, as if, at last, she revealed her soul.
He opened his mouth to reply, but she raised her hand.
“I believe we’ve both said enough on the matter,” she said. “Please, go.”
The pain in her eyes pulsed like an open wound. Guilt gnawed at him at the knowledge that he was the cause of it. He held up his hands in appeasement and retreated toward the dressing room.
“I’ll send for Charles to help you dress,” she said. “I shall, of course, continue to honor our agreement, but I’d be obliged if you give me a little respite from my—mydutiestoday.
“I’ve no wish to cause you pain, Mimi,” he said. “I’ll meet with my banker today to settle the money owing to you.”
“There’s no need.”
“There’severyneed,” he said. “If you cannot accept my love, then at least accept my honor. Perhaps then you might come to believe that there are some men in this world who keep to their word—and that there’s one man in the world who loves you.”
She nodded, but did not reply.
Leaving her alone in the bedchamber, he entered the dressing room and closed the door behind him. Moments later he heard a soft knock on Mimi’s door followed by female voices. Then Charles entered the dressing room, carrying Alexander’s own clothes, and helped him to dress.
After he’d dismissed the footman, Alexander approached the adjoining door to Mimi’s chamber, but the female voices indicated that her maid was still with her. Then he heard a soft sob, followed by the maid’s voice in low, soothing tones.
He didn’t know what broke his heart more—Mimi’s anguish, or the fact that, in her moment of despair, she turned to someone other than him.
Chapter Twenty-Five
“Welcome home, ma’am.I trust you had a pleasant walk. There’s a gentleman to see you.”
“Is it the Duke of Sawbridge, Charles?” Mimi asked, her heart fluttering with anticipation as she approached the front door.
The footman shook his head, and the flare of hope died. Alexander hadn’t visited since declaring his love and tempting her with a life of comfort and dependence as his mistress. But, true to his word, he had deposited two thousand guineas into an account on her behalf.
He had given Mimi her freedom.
