Page 15 of Conquered By the Ravishing Duke

With him next to her, Belle felt as if she could talk for hours.

So, she did. About senseless things, about things she’d never thought of before. Her mind drifted from topic to topic and she said them aloud without a second thought, mentioning how the shadows in the corner of the ceiling moved whenever she blinked. How easy it was for her to picture the face of her mother as if she was standing right there with her. Stephen told her to keep speaking and so she didn’t allow herself to stop, not even to consider her words before saying them.

And he stayed by her side just as he said he would, going through the monotonous process of cooling her down. After a while, Belle was no longer speaking, and she could no longer see the shadows on the ceiling. Stephen disappeared, his voice fading into silence and the dark wave she had been fighting took control and overcame her senses.

When she opened her eyes next, there was a hulking form next to the couch. Belle blinked a few times, clearing the haze from her eyes, until she recognized the head of brown hair by her arm.

“Stephen?” she croaked.

He jerked at the sound of her voice and looked up, squinting at her through the morning light shining in through the windows. He ran a hand through his hair and Belle didn’t fail to notice how devilishly handsome he looked with those tousled locks and his unruly beard.

Her eyes widened when she it dawned on her. “Did you stay by my side all night?”

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