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A soft, bitter laugh escaped him. “I was no longer simply sought as a lover, but as a weapon. Wisdom comes with age, or so our priest always told me. Too late, I realized that my reputation had become a terrible millstone around my neck.”
Disturbed by his grim tone, Mélisande tried to lighten the conversation. “It is never too late. And you speak as though you are an old man, but you are still young and handsome.”
“I sometimes feel like an old man, though am just this year turned thirty-one,” he said. “The things I have seen and done have aged my soul, and I have become hardened to the world in some respects. Like you, I know my wealth and title will guarantee a marriage, but I have no hope of marrying for love. What woman would risk her heart on a man with my past?”
His look was penetrating, and shame swept through her. “Alessandro...” She swallowed past the awkward lump in her throat. “I—I admit I chose to have an affaire with you because I knew—”
“Our situation is different,” he interrupted. “You are no jade, despite your unflattering opinion of yourself.”
“But I am!” she insisted. “I am incapable of love.”
“No, you have difficulty with trust,” he gently replied. “There is an enormous difference.”
“The result is the same,” she countered. “You cannot have love without trust.”
“I agree,” he conceded. “Therefore, I will tell you what you can trust with regards to me. I agreed to this affaire for my own very selfish reasons, and none of them had to do with material or social gain. I am a duke in my own country and have more than enough wealth of my own.”
Which is partly why I feel so comfortable with him, Mélisande realized. There was nothing she possessed that he wanted besides the pleasure of her company. Something inside her relaxed. Although she’d known it all along, hearing him say it somehow made it more of a reality.
“And I know you did not choose me merely because of my reputation,” he continued. “There is something else between us, something we both felt and recognized long ago.”
Her mouth went dry as she watched his eyes darken.
He means the undeniable attraction between us, of course. Doesn’t he?
She’d said she wanted them to become friends, but in retrospect perhaps that had been a bad idea. In truth, she hadn’t expected to like him as much as she did.
The problem lay in that the real man didn’t match up to the image she’d built in her mind, an image based on the bits and pieces she’d seen and heard in Versailles. She’d come into this arrangement expecting a callous reprobate who would gladly have his way with her and then leave without a backward glance. Now, she knew better.
It wasn’t that he was perfect, by any means—but he wasn’t anywhere near as reprehensible as he ought to be for a seasoned libertine, either. Whereas many men made her feel less than human without ever having laid a finger on her, he made her feel like a queen. He never questioned her intellect or her right to an opinion about anything. He listened to her. And he was as willing to share his thoughts with her as he was to hear what she had to say.
As though he felt she was his equal.
As though he truly cared about what she thought.
As though he cared about her.
FOOLS RUSH IN
Three weeks later
MÉLISANDE EYED THE card on her desk with ambivalence. It was an invitation to a ball next month—hosted by none other than her bête noire, Herrington. She could refuse and just have Reggie take Charlotte without her, of course. But then Herrington would think her a coward, and she’d rather be damned than allow him to think such a...
Charlotte!
The girl had become quite troublesome of late with regards to her behavior—more specifically, her attempts to attract David’s notice. While he appeared oblivious, others had begun to notice and comment. She’d tried to speak with her about it earlier this week, but to no avail.
It occurred to her that Charlotte had only heard about David’s more unsavory side from others. But what if she actually witnessed him in action?
She looked at the card again, this time with a smile. David’s uncle was the prime minister, which guaranteed he would receive an invitation to the event no matter how much Herrington loathed him. And because David never passed up a chance to irritate his enemy, he would accept.
And he would be on his absolute worst behavior.
She penned her gracious acceptance. If all went well, Charlotte would get a good look at the man she thought she wanted for a husband. Hopefully, she would then have the good sense to run the other way.
Sealing her response, Mélisande put it on the outgoing tray and went to prepare for Lady Skelton’s picnic.
“I am the envy of all men today,” Alessandro said to Charlotte in a loud whisper, eliciting a giggle. “I have the world’s two most beautiful women at my side.” He believed it, too, for one after another, heads turned as they walked across the green.
