Page 73 of The Duke's Only Desire

Shay nodded silently, his eyes narrowing on something far in the distance, although she knew he wasn’t looking at anything.

“So we can’t engage in a war of words,” she determined and lifted the glass contemplatively to her lips. The scent of port wafted up to her and mixed with the masculine scent of man on the sheets, of the lingering scent of bergamot from his shaving things on his washstand. She’d never thought she could be so comfortable in a man’s world. That how all of this might be destroyed was more terrible than she wanted to contemplate. “Then what do we fight with?”

“We need to think through what he’s going to do and find ways to counter him.”

“We know what he’s going to do. When he finds out that I haven’t left Ravenscroft, he’ll file a formal inquiry with the Committee, claiming you murdered John to inherit the dukedom and have me for yourself, and he’ll use our marriageas one more piece of proof on top of what he used before.” Her voice cracked. “He’ll have you arrested for murder.”

Shay turned away from the window and silently approached the bed, his face inscrutable. “I’ll be tried in the Lords, and even those pompous arses won’t hang me for it.”

“He doesn’t have to hang you,” she reminded him. “He just has to raise enough doubts about your actions that the crown will change the letters patent to remove you from the line of inheritance, and then he’ll happily present himself as the perfect candidate to assume the vacated title. TherightfulDuke of Malvern,” she drawled sarcastically. “That’s all he cares about—obtaining the dukedom for himself and his sons—not if they hang you, transport you, or otherwise destroy your life by labeling you a murderer.”

Frowning at her fears, he sat on the edge of the bed, leaned over, and gave her a reassuring kiss. It warmed her lips and bloomed a tingle of affection low in her belly, but not enough to vanquish her worry.

“The Lords will find in our favor,” he murmured. “Even if they don’t, Malcolm’s accusation will backfire on him, and Prinny will attaint the title completely and claim the dukedom’s assets for himself. In his greed, Malcolm just doesn’t realize that could happen.”

Thatgave her no comfort. “It was one thing to think John might have had a legitimate heir who might have slid into the title and set us free of it, butthis—to attack you as a murderer, to destroy your reputation as corruption of the blood and those of our children…” She bit her bottom lip. “He’ll end our lives.”

With a soft gaze, he brushed her bottom lip with his thumb until she released it. “You don’t need to worry. We’re together in this, and we won’t let that happen.”

She gave a wholly dubious nod that turned into a dissenting shake of her head as she deflated against the pillow behind her.“All evidence in our favor was destroyed in the fire, and there were no witnesses to events that night. That’s why John picked that barn to take that woman into because he knew no one would see them. He was clever that way, and so—”

She sat up quickly and reached for his arm as a frantic thought struck her.

“Therewasa witness,” she reminded him, a desperate hope blossoming inside her. “That woman—she must have seen what happened. She could attest to how drunk he was, how he swung at you first, that you walked away while he was still alive. She can testify that it was all an accident.”

“She disappeared after that night,” Shay told her gently. “Most likely, she didn’t want to be caught up in it and left the area. I never saw her again, never even learned her name. John called her Cora, but it was John—he probably forgot her name and just called her whatever popped into his head.”

“I want to locate her, to find out for certain what she knows,” she pressed, her fingertips sinking into the satin of his banyan and the hard muscle beneath. “We can convince her to testify on our behalf, and then it’s no longer only our word against Malcolm’s.”

“Or she confirms Malcolm’s version of events,” he said quietly. “That I really am a murderer.”

“Never.”

The hard determination with which she uttered that single word made him smile. If only she could make him see what she saw in him! That he wasn’t at all a monster or a murderer, that he was far more than the heartless mercenary he was in his youth. That he was a man who warranted the right to be happy. And loved.

“Regardless, we have to try,” she insisted. Her plan was a long shot, certainly, but it was also their last, best hope atstopping Malcolm’s threats, once and for all. “She might still be living somewhere near by.”

He pushed himself off the bed with the pretense of wanting another drink. But Sophie knew better. Something else weighed on him.

“How do we find her?” He shook his head as he reached for the bottle and splashed more of the dark liquid into the glass. “We don’t even know her name.”

“We ask around. There aren’t that many taverns, inns, and public houses in the area where she could have worked.”

“More than you would think,” he muttered.

“Not that many,” she repeated, sensing his reluctance. But why? He should have been thrilled they’d found a way to save their future and the dukedom. “We send Pearson and Henley out to learn what they can about her. And we ask your friends—Devlin, Chase, and Lucien—to dig up what they can in London. You said they’d helped you find information on James Norton. Surely, they can do the same with your uncle. I’m certain he has skeletons in his closet that he doesn’t want to see the light of day.”

He chuckled dismissingly into the port as he raised it to his lips, but the amusement was forced, not reaching his eyes. “Blackmail the blackmailer?”

“Fight fire with fire,” she corrected.

“No.”

She blinked, taken completely aback. “No? But it’s our chance to defend ourselves, both offense and defense.” She cocked her head as she studied him. “What’s the matter, Shay? Why don’t you want to at least try to—”

“Because I don’t want to return to that night,” he snapped out, setting down the glass with a thud against the nightstand. “And I sure as hell don’t want my friends involved. Christ! What you’re asking…”

When his voice trailed off, she finished softly, “What I’m asking is for a chance to save our future.”