Page 68 of The Duke's Unexpected Family
At least she had been thinking that, until she looked over Ronan’s shoulder and spied someone in the crowd watching them, someone whose very presence made her blood boil and body tremble with the type of rage that her husband was now so careful not to let take him over.
My husband might be doing everything he can to fix his image, but I made no such promises.
She held that person in her glare as the dance slowly came to its end. He watched her from the safety of the crowd, wearing a smug expression because he likely thought that he was safe and that there was nothing she or her husband would be willing to do. Oh, how wrong he was.
“Where are you going?” Ronan asked as Thalia pulled away from him.
“I will be just one moment,” she spoke without looking back.
She walked across the dance floor, headed to the front edges of the crowd where none other than Lord Westmere stood watching. He saw her approach and his smile grew and his eyes glimmered with untold levels of arrogance.
“Ah, Your Grace,” he greeted loudly as she came for him. “What a pleasure it is to see you and your husband together. You have no idea how happy I am for—argh!”
Thalia did not waste time with pleasantries. She did not see the point in pretending that she liked this man. And she certainly wasn’t about to let him get away with what he had done.
That was why she punched him square in the nose.
Lord Westmere cried out and stumbled back as his hands went to his shattered nose. The crowd around them gasped. Those bodies nearby hurried away, leaving a space around him. Eyes were wide. Mouths were hanging open. And Lord Westmere, still clutching his nose, turned toward fury.
“How dare you!” he snarled from beneath his hands. “How dare—argh!” he cried again when she punched him a second time.
This time, Lord Westmere dropped like a bag of dirt.
Thalia stood over him. “I would ask that the next time you see my husband and me, that you turn and walk the other way, unless you enjoy having your nose broken.” She looked him over and scoffed. “Although I can’t help but think it is an improvement.”
“Thalia!” Ronan was at her, taking her hand and pulling her away from Lord Westmere. “What did you do?”
“Nothing that didn’t need to be done.” She exhaled as if a weight was being lifted from her, and not once did she bother looking at the crowd of guests who stared dumbstruck at what she had done. Truly, she did not give a damn what they thought. “Now, shall we head home?”
Ronan’s mouth hung open. He glanced from her to Lord Westmere on the ground and then broke into a smile before taking her hand. “Yes, I think we should. Before the storm arrives.”
“It always does,” she joked as she allowed herself to be led.
The crowd parted for them both, whispers already brewing in their wake. But Thalia paid them no mind, figuring it best that, for once,shewas at the center of a scandal and not her husband.
“You know, I was only joking about finding a lord to punch,” Ronan said to her as they continued across the ballroom.
“Oh, were you?” she frowned as if she had not known. “You really ought to have been clearer. We will have to work on that.”
Ronan shook his head as he brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. “Gosh, how I love you.”
“As I love you.”
They smiled together, laughed at what had happened, and left the ballroom behind as they made their way outside to theircarriage. This little moment was sure to cause a stir among their peers, and Thalia had no doubt that, come tomorrow, the entire ton would be speaking of it in condemnation.
Not that this bothered Thalia one little bit. She did not care what others thought. She did not care for the opinions of those who mattered so little to her. All she cared about was her husband, and from the loving look he bestowed upon her, the smile on his lips, and the laughter in his voice, she knew that he approved greatly.
Perhaps the monster lurked inside of Thalia? Lucky that she had Ronan there to calm it. He was, after all, her protector, and she knew that no matter what happened or what she did, he would be there for her always.
The End?
