Page 11 of Yours Truly, the Duke
Elise remembered more about her parents than the other two and it had taken her longer to accept the fact that her mother was never coming home. She still had real fears of being left alone again. Because of that, Fredericka had always considered her more fragile than the other two.
There were times in life when things had a way of getting out of hand. Sometimes things happened that you had no way of preparing yourself for. This was one of them. No doubt, it would have been better to break the news of a possible marriage to Elise in a gentler fashion. And Fredericka would have, after she’d settled on a husband.
She laid a comforting hand on Elise’s shoulder and, with the other, she gently took hold of her chin and looked sweetly into the young girl’s eyes. “I’m not going anywhere. I promise to tell you everything later tonight after the little ones have gone to sleep. All right?”
The doubt didn’t leave her face, but Elise nodded and then suddenly grabbed Fredericka around the waist and held tightly.
“Don’t leave me,” the little girl whispered.
Fredericka returned the hug with an affectionate squeeze and then gently pulled Elise’s arms from around her waist. “You have my word. Now, please do as I say. Come on. All of you out into the garden to find Miss Litchfield and let me talk to the duke.”
“W-w-what about our f-fruit t-tart for b-being good?”
“Yes, of course,” she said, brushing Charles’ sandy-blond hair away from his forehead in a gesture to calm him. It was so like a boy to think of his tummy while little girls thought of their hearts. “Thank you for reminding me. I’ll have Mrs. Dryden take them up to the schoolroom for you and tell her to add cups of warm chocolate. Would you like that?”
Satisfied, Charles whooped and quickly covered his mouth. Elise grabbed hold of Bella’s hand as they walked out of the room.
Now it was time to deal with the duke. He stood quietly, regarding her with daring interest that sent a shiver of expectancy down her spine. She feared he wouldn’t be as easy to handle as the children. But handle him she would.
After taking in a deep breath, Fredericka regained her composure and strode over to the towering man. She didn’t stop until she stood toe-to-toe with him. All her hard-earned lessons in decorous behavior failed her. “Look what you have done! What kind of man introduces himself with a proposal of marriage? Forget ‘How do you do, Miss Hale.’ And in front of delicate children! You should be ashamed of yourself. Though based on your rumored reputation, I’m sure you aren’t.”
He crossed his arms casually on his chest and looked as if he didn’t have a care in the world. “How is a proposal something to be ashamed of? You need to get married. I need a wife. Seems simple to me.”
“To a simpleton, maybe.”
“Fine, my apologies.” His jaw ticked, but to his credit he seemed sincere. “I didn’t know it would upset the little girl. But tell me what is so horrible about something as common as marriage, Miss Hale?”
“It’s a delicate matter and not something to be talked about in front of little ones,” she asserted. He was unbelievable. Fredericka moved her face closer to his, not caring whether she kept her voice low. Before the children became her responsibility, she was always calm, always reasonable, always in control. She never raised her voice to anyone. Certainly not a guest.
And a duke at that!
“It’s an adult subject,” she finished firmly, still not ready to forgive or accept his rational, purely masculine thought process.
He dropped his arms to his sides and pinned his intruding gaze on her eyes. “I sent you a letter stating my intentions,” he assured her in a tone almost as severe as her own, and then grimaced. “Shortly after I arrived, I asked if we could take a walk in the garden. Speak in private. You refused. Twice. I assumed it was all right to talk in front of the children.”
She expelled a surprised sound. Her chest heaved as her nose edged closer to his. Despite his statement being true, she couldn’t believe he was suggesting this debacle with the children was somehow her fault.
“I refused because I had no idea what you wanted to say. You could have given me a hint.”
He looked incredulously at her and folded his arms across his chest once again, seeming unperturbed by the censure in her glare. “Tell me, how does one hint at a marriage proposal, Miss Hale?”
Fredericka had no idea. Proposals were a man’s responsibility. Still, she said, “You could have simply stated you had a delicate matter to discuss with me.”
“Ah,” he whispered softly, giving her another one of his charming grins as he nodded slowly. His voice lowered again. “You like the word ‘delicate.’ I’ll be sure to remember.”
In that moment, she realized they were standing so close they could have touched. Kissed. And it was all her doing. She had advanced on him without realizing it. She was the one on her toes, lifting her face to his, staring into his dreamy-colored eyes, and making the inappropriate advances. That’s when her heart tripped, and when she should have moved away from him.
But she couldn’t. Not yet.
She once again felt that intangible connection between them that seemed to cause her world to shift and change. She couldn’t help but think he must have felt it too. His expression was suddenly unreadable and his body still as his gaze drifted over her face like a caress.
It was exhilarating to be so near him she could feel the heat of his body, hear his erratic breaths, inhale the scent of his fresh-shaved face. She didn’t want to deny herself the immense pleasure of enjoying these titillating sensations arousing her senses to new heights. If only for a few seconds. Surely that would be long enough for her to remember and study at a later time.
“You intrigue me, Miss Hale,” he said in a soft tone as his lips moved closer to hers.
Yes. He had felt the attraction between them too. She drew in a steady breath and fought the impulse to stay exactly where she was and continue to drink in all the sensations surrounding him.
The man she was experiencing right now must be the captivating man some of the scandal sheets swore he was even though others swore he was a permanent rake who would never be tamed. Whichever the case, she had to gain control of herself and not get caught up in the thingsabout him she found appealing and inviting, or wondering why her heart was pounding.
