Page 23 of A Tale of Two Dukes

Still though… My heart thunders in my chest as I take in her pale features glowing in the moonlight. She looks so ethereal, so fragile, as if one puff of air and she’ll shatter into a million pieces. I shouldn’t be so besotted with one I don’t even know. Much less one who is here only for my pleasure.

And yet, the more I stare at her, the more I want to peel back every layer of her being, to understand her on a fundamental level, and to slay whatever demon it is that lurks in those haunted depths of her eyes. I want to be her Sir Galahad or Lancelot, slaying the dragons of her mind that cause her to look so sad.

I’ve never been of a mind to be leg-shackled, condemned to the love of only one woman. And yet, since taking her maidenhood, all I can think about are the things I want to do to her. It will take a lifetime and a day to tire of her. Deep down, I know that. And that’s the most frightening aspect of all.

As we stop, I hold my hand out for her to step down, and when she takes it, my little ladybird moves with the grace and knowledge of one who is my equal. If only I’d met her under different circumstances.

As it is, I cannot court her. I cannot find her parents and ask to wed her. She’s a harlot. Though innocent that she was, she’s merely a worker of the night. That’s all she is, and that’s all she can be.

Gathering her into my arms, I hold her close, bounding up the steps. The moment the doorman opens to me, I glance about, pleased with how quickly they’ve prepared her new home. Granted, it’s not as if it’s wasted away in disrepair for years at a time.

I clutch Kitty to me, reveling in the quick intake of breath. Now that we’re no longer at The Rose and Thorne, I can rest easy. She is safe from Hugh and his meddling ways. Now, all I have to do is affix my attention onto her and the lessons in love she so desperately desires.

Here, I can revel in each small gasp without worrying who else can hear it. I can touch her, tease her, and drink in her moans without having to share the decadent sound with anyone else. In truth, I’m smitten with this woman and crave figuring out what it is about her that drives me mad.

Taking the stairs two at a time, I bypass the corridor that leads to my dungeon and take her straight to the bedchamber. Already I’m rock hard and prepared to take her again. This time, however, it won’t be some hurried tryst.

I plan to take my time with her, teaching her what pleasure really means. What a delicious contrast from when I take her down below and play a different sort of game with her body. Scenting the air, I take in her spicy notes laced with rose. Now that we’re no longer in the club, it’s far purer, not tainted with the incense that fills the place.

Dragging another breath deep into my lungs, I memorize it, committing each note to my brain. I will never tire of her scent. I know that, and for the moment, I feel no panic at being taken hostage by Cupid. Since we cannot marry, I can indulge in her without fear of her attempting to make an honest man of me.

We can have our revelry that will never end. Never be dampened by the shackles of matrimony. Though I crave her, and at the moment, only her, I can indulge without guilt.

It’s a rare sensation, one that I hope to explore with her. Never before has someone captured my attention so desperately. Never before has anyone made me think in terms of something longer than just a night.

Setting her down long enough to open the door, I sweep her back into my arms once it’s closed behind us. A roaring fire lights the way to the bed, illuminating the large, four-poster monstrosity that takes up a fair bit of room. As she stares at it, she worries her bottom lip, uncertainty dancing within the flames of her eyes.

“I took you hard at the club,” I growl softly, nuzzling her behind the ear. “I plan to do so again, but not just yet. Tonight, I want to show you a different way.”

“Different, Your Grace? I wasn’t aware there were multiple ways to achieve the act.” She ducks her head, burrowing it in my chest. “In truth, until tonight I had no knowledge of anything that transpired between man and woman. For that, you have my eternal gratitude.”

I freeze for a moment, her words spearing me through the heart. Though I knew she was a virgin after that fateful thrust, I had no idea she was sent into the fray unprepared. Is this the future path Madame Douler wishes to take?

Though I enjoy frequenting her establishment, the knowledge that she sent Kitty out amongst the wolves so wholly unprepared sits ill with me. How many other girls has she done this to? Or plan to, for that matter.

Setting Kitty onto the bed, I tip her chin up, forcing her gaze to mine. “You truly knew nothing?”

“No, Your Grace.”

“And yet, the things you allowed me to do to you…”

“I- I wasn’t aware I had a choice.” Again, she looks away, her face turning a light shade of pink.

She has me there. Even knowing what I do now, I probably wouldn’t have done any differently. With a sigh, I skim my fingers across the swell of her cheek, committing the satiny feel of her skin to memory. So many questions, and yet, I’m not sure I want the answers.

“Did Madame Douler force you? That is, did she take you and turn you out?”

“No!” she cries out, her eyes widening at the very thought.

That’s a relief at least. “Then pray how did you find yourself in this situation?”

Kitty goes silent and turns to stare at the fire. She doesn’t move except to breathe. What secrets does she harbor in that mind of hers? I give her time and space, not wishing to push this particular issue, especially if it’s an answer I don’t wish to hear.

Eventually, she speaks, her voice flat, monotone, as if the girl I took home is no longer in residence. “I had nowhere else to go. I was hungry, starving in fact. She was kind enough to take me in and give me a place to stay.”

“In exchange for your maidenhood?”

“I knew what was expected of me. Generally speaking, that is. I know what happens in those houses of ill repute. I figured I’d end up losing that part of me at some point, anyway.” Again, her voice grows soft, distant almost. “Is it wrong of me to say that I’m glad it was with you?” Her lashes flutter as she peers up at me, tenuous hope shining from her eyes.