The Phoenix and the Duke.
Sounds like a fairy tale.
He fought the beastly urge to rush up to them and yank her away. His eyes watered and burned as if someone had ground salt into them. Jasmine should be onhisarm. She promised she would wait for him.
Did she lie?
Matthew stood transfixed as Duke Kendall brought Jasmine to the center of the room, with his hand splayed wide over her back. AndGod,he couldn’t bear it.He had forgotten how much it hurt to watch her dance with someone else.
“Is she through with me, sister?” he forced the question out. “Tellme truthfully.”
Cassandra shook her head and gave a sad sigh.
“She cares for you, Matthew,” she said. “She told me to tell you that she’s yours.”
“It doesn’t bloody well look like it!” he snapped. Anger replaced his hurt, and he tried not to yell. “What is she doing with Duke Kendall?”
“She wouldn’t tell me.” Cassandra placed a hand on her hip and scowled. “If you want to know, ask her.”
Oh, hewould.
Jasmine might have said she was his, but shewasn’this. Not at all.Until she married him, she could marry anyone else! And they should be betrothed already!
Only one man stood in his way.
“I’ll start with her father,” he bit out. He scanned the room and found Lord Dorchester in the wide ring of guests around Jasmine and Duke Kendall. Matthew left his sisters, marched up to Lord Dorchester, and squared his chest. Ignoring the guests nearby, Matthew forwent all formalities and barked his demand.
“Give her back.”
Lord Dorchester’s grey eyes met his, guarded and firm. “Give herback?”
“I’ve done what you asked. I’ve transferred his assets back to him. I signed the last paper this morning,” Matthew said. “You gave me your word, now honor it.”
“Matthew,” Lord Dorchester warned. “Keep your voice down.”
But he couldn’t. Unwanted images flashed in his mind of Jasmine in a wedding dress, walking down the aisle to a monster. He wanted to scream at the injustice of getting to hold her in his arms, only for her to be ripped from him once more.
“You cannot allow her to marry Duke Kendall. I would rather hermarry Don Lorenzo than see whatever Duke Kendall has in store for a wife. At least with Don Lorenzo she’ll stand a chance.”
“Duke Kendall is an ideal and respectable match. If my daughter wishes to be a duchess, she should be given that choice,” Lord Dorchester said. “And he has yet to offer for her.”
“But I have! I’ll offer whatever you want. She’ll live like a duchess, I swear it. I will build her a castle if that’s what it takes. Please,” he begged. “Please,be reasonable.”
“We can discuss this tomorrow,” Lord Dorchester said dismissively.
“I have been trying to gain an audience with you for days. How will tomorrow be different? If you’re going to reject me, do it now. Don’t leave me hoping for another fortnight.”
“And if I do?” Lord Dorchester raised a brow. His stoic façade slipped, and his harsh gaze bore into Matthew. “If I say you cannot marry Jasmine, you’ll respect that?”
No,the word almost left his mouth, but he couldn’t lie to Lord Dorchester, so he told him the truth. “I’ll do what’s best for her—like I always do.”
Lord Dorchester shook his head and sighed. “You still haven’t learned.”
“What answer do you want from me? Every time I reach the bar you raise it. Everyone else has free access to her, regardless of danger or disrespect. You hold me to a higher standard than anyone else!”
“Precisely,” Lord Dorchester said. “And I don’t like what I see. You were raised better than this. If your father were alive—”
“If my father were alive, he would side withme,” Matthew spat. “My father taught me how to be a man, and to stand up for what is right.” He stood at his full height and looked down at the man he once respected. “So you’re correct, Lord Dorchester, Iwasraised better than this. It’s a shame you weren’t.”
