Page 20 of When the Duke Met His Match

While she wanted to believe that was true, she couldn’t ignore the nagging sensation in her heart. It was easy for him to say since he didn’t belong to the country that lost. His childhood memories hadn’t been tampered with by the war.

She covered the sour taste it brought up by eating more of the apple. It was like he had given her fruit dipped in liquid gold after being locked away and fed abysmal food to keep her going.

The officer cleared his throat and tapped against the tabletop. He snuck a glance at her in the corner of his eye. “Have I told you that my brother died in the war?”

She paused her eating and met his gaze. Theophilus averted his eyes and stared into the distance.

“Harold was the pride and joy of my father. He was supposed to inherit the dukedom and would’ve been great at it. I’d go as far as to say he was born for it,” he began, his features dragged down with sorrow and remorse. “He died tragically from an ambush attack. By then, I had made a name for myself here and let the attention and notoriety corrupt me. I became someone else—the very thing I grew up envying: my brother. But I ruined it for myself.”

Odette listened intently and watched him, not understanding why he was sharing so much with her. Even so, she didn’t stop him.

It was clear that he needed to unburden himself, and Odette wasn't about to interrupt him. Her curiosity about his story had been piqued when he had first started speaking, and it remained just as strong now.

“If it was what you wanted, why did you ruin it?” she asked curiously, her brows stitching together.

Theophilus shook his head absently. “My greatest wish was to become something other than Harold’s younger brother, but I wasn’t prepared for what I’d become. I let it go to waste.” He sighed, visibly burdened by the thoughts. “I lost myself, and I never found my way back.”

She looked at him for a long moment, unsure what to say. She swallowed harshly. “Why are you telling me all this?”

He hesitated for a moment, then released a careful breath. “To show you I’m not your enemy. I’m trying to help you.”

His voice wobbled briefly, filling with emotion.

Odette was startled by the sound of it, caught off guard by his sincerity. She stared back at him and took in his features laced with concern.

“Why now?”

He held her gaze long enough for confusion to scatter across her face, then dropped his head. His shoulders slumped.

“You have been found guilty of treason, Odette. My superiors want to send you back to France.”

She went numb at the echo of his words in her mind, scrambling to grapple with the information. A chill ran down her spine.

Going back home to the place she loved was all she ever wanted. But she couldn’t understand why it made a cool sweat move through her body.

“That’s absurd.”

A shaky breath moved passed his lips before the words could trickle out. “It was either that or the gallows.”

It isn’t the worst outcome to return where my fondest memories are from rather than hanging for treason.

Theophilus wouldn’t look her in the eyes for a drawn-out moment, as if he were more devastated than she was.

Neither of them said a word, and when she didn’t speak up, the young soldier lifted his head to meet her eyes.

Odette swallowed her pride and regained her resolve. She met his gaze bravely, her eyes full of defiance. “So be it.”

He seemed to struggle with that response, dropping his jaw open as if to speak. He tripped over the words until they came through clear and desperate. “Why can’t you understand? The war is over. Why are you hell-bent on clinging to the past?”

She struggled with how raw he sounded. She stood on weak legs that trembled beneath her, stumbling in her place. “It’s the only thing I have left. Nothing else matters.”

When the weight of it all became too much, her legs gave out, but Theophilus’ chair scraped back the moment he stood, arms out to catch her.

She blinked back at him from his careful hold, his hazel eyes looking down at her in disbelief. It was like he was silently pleading with her to understand.

He studied her face, his strong hands holding her like it was the last thing he’d ever do. “Now is not the time for idealism.”

Odette struggled against him to try and break away, but he didn’t relinquish his hold on her. She knew he meant it but didn’t want to feel like a bird trapped in a cage. She didn’t want to seem weak.