The Duke and the Accidental Bride (Duchesses of Convenience #5)

Chapter 10

Chapter Ten

D uncan was just about ready to turn in for the night when he heard a knock on the door to his study. Typically, he assumed it to be a butler or servants, so he simply called out.

“It’s open,” he said without standing or looking up; too transfixed on what he was doing. He noticed the figure move through the door, and he heard the door close softly behind them.

That set him to frowning, which had him glancing up, which had him pausing on the figure as his frowned deepened.

The figure was dressed in a hooded cloak that covered them from head to toe. Standing by the closed door, they were hesitant and clearly nervous but focused on Duncan in a way that suggested their reason for being here was not one that either would enjoy.

Duncan was quick to act.

Sensing danger, he was up from his chair and throwing open the desk draw as quickly as he could move. Inside the drawer sat a loaded pistol, which he snatched up and had pointed at the figure before having taken so much as a single breath.

The pistol cocked and --

“Your Grace!” the cloaked figure cried out and threw their hands up in surrender. “Please! I did not mean to startle you! I only wished to talk! Please!”

He recognized the voice immediately. Not that this brought with it any comfort. If anything, he felt a sudden desire to turn the gun on himself.

“Miss Gouldsmith?” He could not believe it! Anger flooded Duncan, for he did not like being made to look like a fool. “I hope that you have a darn good explanation for --!”

“We need to talk,” she said again, stepping further into the room, face still covered. “And I could think of no other way.”

“Be that as it may...” The side of his mouth twitched, and he realized that he was still pointing the gun at her. He was quick to put it down on the table, holding her in his glare as he did. “This is beyond inappropriate – this is my home! Who are you here with? How did you get inside?”

“I came with my maid, Martha. She is waiting just outside for me. As to getting in...” She shrugged. “It was rather easy, to be fair.”

“I had not thought to lock it against troublesome woman intent on harassing me at all hours. I knew you to be an incorrigible sort, but this is...” He scoffed derisively. “You should not be here.”

“As I said, I had no choice.”

“Does your mother know of this?”

She shook her head. “I snuck out. Martha is the only one who knows my whereabouts, and she will not tell. You have my word.”

“Your word,” he scoffed again. “Forgive me for saying but that means little to me. I would rather trust a broke bookie than yourself.”

Duncan might have been utterly shocked to find Miss Gouldsmith in his private study at this hour of night but based on everything that he knew of the woman thus far, he probably should not have been.

In fact, this right here was perhaps the most logical transgression yet.

She had been at him these past weeks like a hound nipping an escaped hare’s tail. Needling him. Antagonizing him. Doing exactly as she had promised not to do because she thought it was her only chance to put a stop to this marriage.

She mustn’t have taken my warning seriously either. Dammit how I wish that she had... for both of our sakes.

And now she was here!

Duncan remembered too well the warning he had given her. The way he had straddled her, held her down, and whispered in her ear that she was to stop this and behave herself. Now, she either hadn’t believed him or she was doing it on purpose because she wanted what he promised --

No! Don’t even think about that...

“As I said,” Miss Gouldsmith continued. “We need to talk, and this was the only way that I could think to do it without the presence of my mother. We need to speak freely -- I need to speak freely.”

“You could have sent word and requested such a meeting.”

She shook her head. “You would have refused.”

“I would not have.”

“Or my mother would have been present – I needed to speak with you alone.” She was still wearing the hood of her cloak, making it impossible to see where she was looking.

“If you are to ambush me like this, Miss Gouldsmith, you may at least do me the service of removing your hood when you speak. One rudeness a night is enough, I would think.”

“Oh, I am sorry...” She was quick to remove the hood and the moment that she did, Duncan realized his mistake.

She looked as beautiful as ever. Her dark blond hair pulled back in a tight plait. Her big, deep brown eyes that were intelligent and rebellious, a little too clever for their own good. Soft, porcelain skin that shimmered in the lighting from the fire. And those plump, juicy lips that Duncan saw in his dreams.

The cloak was loose and full-covering, and he had that to be thankful for, at least.

“Better?” she asked with a cocked eyebrow.

Duncan swallowed. “Much better. Although the fact that you are here at all severely undercuts that fact.”

“You cannot marry me,” she said suddenly.

Duncan sighed. “This again? We have spoken of it already. You have asked and I have --”

“I have been trying to trick you.” She spoke over him, desperate to make her point. “I have been trying to rattle you, to annoy you, to make it clear that I should be the last person you would wish to marry. I have done everything that I can think to force you to concede!”

“I am aware, Miss Gouldsmith.” He crossed his arms and looked at her. “Which surprised me. I had thought that you and I had come to an understanding.” He made sure to be looking right at her, and that she was looking at him. “Our discussion in the back of my carriage two weeks ago, Surely, you have not forgotten.”

Isabella breathed in sharply, and then swallowed. “You -- you cannot marry me,” she said again, taking a step into the room. And then another. “Please.”

Duncan’s eyes flicked over the cloak and despite himself, he wondered what she might be wearing underneath... if anything at all. That was assuming that she had come here because of his warning. Because she wished to put it to the test, thinking that was the way to end this?

Would she really do such a thing? Surely, even she is not so desperate as that?

“Miss Gouldsmith, I suggest that you leave now.” He forced himself not to take a step toward her. To keep his distance. “Do not make me say it again.”

“Please!”

“What we spoke of last week.” He licked his lips, eyes dancing over the cloak. “That was not an idle threat. You promised me that you would...” He swallowed. “Behave. This is as far removed from what you promised as could exist. Now, leave and pray that I forget this ever occurred.”

Please leave. For the love of God, go.

“I know what I promised,” she said stubbornly. “And for how I have behaved last week, I wish to apologize.”

“Apologize?” Duncan repeated. “Apologize for what?”

“This past week. It was wrong of me,” she said, bowing her head. “And immature. I thought I could annoy you into wanting to leave me.” She chuckled at the notion. “Now, I know that was never going to work. You are set on this marriage and your mind will not be changed.”

He hesitated, certain it was another trap. “I am glad that you finally understand. It will make things going forward a lot easier.”

“That is why I am here.” She took another step closer, less than five feet now separating them. “No more tricks. No more games. Just me, standing before you, asking that you... that you look inside your heart and understand that this marriage -- that us! That we cannot work. And despite what may happen if you renounce me, it will pale in comparison to what will happen if it do not.”

“And what will happen exactly?”

She bowed her head. “I cannot say for sure but knowing me, nothing good. That much I do know.”

It was, perhaps, the first honest thing that Miss Gouldsmith had ever said to Duncan. The first time that she had not been trying to annoy him, or anger him, or trick him into saying something. It was, in every sense, the truth.

She really was desperate.

It gave Duncan pause as he considered the situation more fully. Trying, perhaps for the first time, to see things from her point of view. And where he could now understand her plight a little more clearly, sadly, it changed nothing.

“It is not as easy as you wish it,” he sighed, the anger he had been feeling at Miss Gouldsmith having broken in like this fading. Turned now to pity.

“But it is!”

“No, it is not. Miss Gouldsmith...” He took a step toward her, feeling a desire to embrace her but resisting that urge. “I do not wish to marry you either, as I have told you a dozen times. I, as is the same for you, have no choice.”

“You didn’t give me a choice!” she cried.

“Nor did you give me one,” he shot back with a hint of frustration. “All I asked of you was to be my guest at dinner and you took that simple request and brought this calamity upon both our heads. Leaving me to clean up the mess.”

“But it was an accident.”

“Even accidents have consequences. All we can do now is face them, head on.”

She shook her head. “I... I don’t accept that. There must be a way --”

“There isn’t.”

“You can --”

“I cannot.”

“Then I --”

“Will do nothing,” he cut her off with a snarl, for even Duncan’s patience had its limits. “You have done enough already.”

Her calm facade was fading. She had come here with her hat in her hand, prepared to drop to her knees and beg if she had thought it would change his mind. For how much she seemed to think she knew about him, she should have known that such weakness shown would never work on somebody like Duncan.

Finally, having come to understand how hopeless the situation was, the change was taking her. And because of that, Duncan felt an express desire to be anywhere but in the same room as Miss Gouldsmith. The man only had so much self-control, after all.

“You should leave...” He swept past her and made for the door. “Your point has been heard but it was for nothing. I am sorry.”

“I hate you,” she said, not moving to follow him.

“Excuse me?” He turned around furrowed his brow, as if he had not heard her.

“I said that I hate you.” She stormed across the room, coming right for him. “You asked what is in store if we marry, well now I will tell you. Hate. Antipathy. You wish for a subservient, obedient wife? Ha! I vow, Your Grace, that I will be anything but!”

Duncan felt a pang radiate in his stomach. Like a match being lit, it flooded him and warmed him and had his inner urges peaking to the fore in ways he knew to be dangerous. Legs shaking. Sweat beading. He took a deep and calming breath...

“Be that as it may,” he said as he continued toward the door, reaching for the handle to open it. “This is a conversation best saved for --”

“For now!” She walked around him and cut him off from opening the door. “You will not throw me out – when we are wed, you will not be able to. So, best that you understand fully what it is that you are signing up for!”

Duncan’s body was shaking. The anger was rising. That desire to put Miss Gouldsmith in her place was building. But he knew he could not do it. It was a side of himself that once let out from its cage was nearly impossible to put back in.

“I understand too well...” He spoke slowly, refusing to look at Miss Gouldsmith. “Now, if you do not mind, I ask that you leave. I will see you again --”

“I am not going anywhere,” she cut him off with a snarl. “Is this how you plan on treating me when we are married? If I upset you, you will throw me out? Or better, run and hide!”

His body turned stiff at the insult. “You do not wish to play this game.”

“This is not a game, You Grace. This is my life! Now, either treat me with respect – as you would your wife! Or admit that this is folly and cancel the engagement!”

She was standing up to him. Either because she had not taken his warning seriously or because...

Duncan dared meet her eyes and he saw the fire in them. The way that she shook while fighting it off because she had to stand up to him. Because she wanted to be reprimanded. Was it possible that she knew what he would do and wanted it?

“You wish to be treated as my wife?” he said carefully. “You might not enjoy that.”

“I know for a fact that I will not. Just as I know you will not enjoy being my husband.”

“I do not know about that.”

She took a step closer, less than a foot away, her face right in his. “Cancel our engagement.”

“I told you, no.”

“And I told you, I will not marry – woah!” she yelped as Duncan grabbed her by the arm, stepping into her quickly and taking her by the waist, lifting her as if she weighed nothing, and then pushing her against the wall.

He stood over her. One hand on her hip, the other still holding her arm pinned to the wall. She was so small and fragile when compared to him, so delicate that he felt as if he could break her in half if he so pleased. The shock of him lifting her had her gasping, eyes closing shut and body trembling.

She turned her head away from him and exposed her neck...

“You seem to forget how we found ourselves in this situation in the first place,” Duncan growled in a whisper as he hovered his lips over her neck. “And I am speaking of before you made the foolish decision to announce our engagement.”

Miss Gouldsmith had her eyes closed, refusing to look at him. “You – you threatened –”

“I did no such thing,” he cut her off, his voice still a whisper, his lips lingering above her neck. “You uncle was the one who brought us together and I know how disappointed he will be if this marriage does not happen. Would you not agree?”

Her eyes shot open, and he could see the realization in them.

“Now, tell me truly, is that something you will be able to…” A hand graved her waist. “… stomach. If I was to do as you have begged me, to cancel this wedding, how will that look? What will happen to you and your family?”

“Is that a threat?”

He chuckled deeply, intoxicated by the fight in her voice. “An observation. I know your uncle as well as you and I know he will not be happy. Not one little bit.”

She bit into her lip, a sense of hope building behind her eyes, only to be dashed as she considered the situation further. For all the fighting and scheming she had been doing lately, Duncan knew that she hadn’t considered the reality of this situation as much as she should have.

They would marry. There was no other choice. Miss Gouldsmith was just a little slower to realize that then he would have liked.

“This isn’t fair,” she said, almost a snarl.

He chuckled deeply, again grazing his lips over the soft skin of her neck, wanting so badly to bite down but keeping himself from doing so. “Now you are beginning to see.”

“I will never love you.”

“Do I care?”

“I will hate every minute of it!”

“That is fine. I only ask one thing…” His tongue ran up her neck and he relished the taste of her. Nearly as much as he relished the way that she shuddered. “Are you going to behave yourself?”

He waited for a response, but she gave none.

“Answer me!”

“I -- I am sorry,” she stammered.

“Sorry for what?”

“For... for... for misbehaving.”

“Good...” He purred, his hand tightening around her waist. “I am sorry for what has happened, Miss Gouldsmith, I am. But know this, I will not be spoken to like that again. Is that understood?”

“I --”

“That is not an answer."

“I am sorry.”

“This wedding is happening in two days' time and I expect you to be on your best behavior. Do I make myself clear?”

He wanted her to say no. To argue with him. To push him just a little bit more. That was what he liked, after all. A sexual partner who fought him and demanded punishment.

“You --” She hesitated and for a moment, he thought she was going to fight him. She clenched her jaw and scrunched her face and he held out hope...

“You do,” she said instead, eyes still closed, even if her body no longer shook. Her breathing became firm and steady as if she was starting to relax. Even enjoy it. “I will behave. I... I promise.”

He moaned at the words.

Still holding her, he eyed her exposed neck. He knew he should stop.... step back... leave now! But that neck... before Duncan knew what he was doing he was leaning in, wrapping his lips around the soft, moist skin of Miss Gouldsmith, and sucking on it ever so gently.

“Ah...” she moaned. “What are you.... urgh...” She moaned further as his teeth bit in gently. “Your Grace...” He felt her body relax further, her breathing steady, and her heart rate quicken.

He pulled his lips free. “Do you promise to behave for me?”

“I...” She licked her lips, eyes dancing wildly. “I promise.”

Duncan let go of her arm. Then he released her waist, giving her room to step forward from the wall. She held his eyes as she did, a sense that she was beginning to understand what was happening.

Duncan reached one finger out and held it under her chin, raising it as he looked down on her. “Good girl,” he growled and stepped in quickly, dropping his finger, wrapping a hand around her throat and squeezing as he pulled Miss Gouldsmith in to kiss him.

Their lips met in a fiery, heated clash. Isabella gasped and Duncan moaned as he opened her mouth with his lips and dove his tongue inside, exploring every inch of her that he could. Tasting her in ways that had him turning hard and his breathing becoming staggered.

And she kissed him back! He thought she would fight him but the second their lips met she accepted it as if it was oxygen. Her mouth latched onto his, their tongues wrestled, saliva dripped down their chins as he devoured her, already thinking about what he would do next --

No! What are you doing?!

Duncan wrenched himself free and Miss Gouldsmith gasped and stumbled back. The look in her eyes was confused, caught between fear and arousal the likes of which she had probably never known.

“I should go,” Duncan said quickly, filled with shame as he pried the door open behind her.

“Wh -- what?” Miss Gouldsmith stammered as if coming out of a dream.

“I take it you are able to find your own way home?” he asked without looking at her.

“Yes, I can but --”

“Good. That will be all, Miss Gouldsmith.” He took a step forward, out the door, and then paused, still looking ahead. “I will see you at the wedding.” He spoke shortly, quick to leave the second the final word was out of his mouth.

Duncan’s mind raced. His heart pounded. His body rebelled. And the excitement he felt within as he raced down the hallway as if fleeing a crime scene... that scared him more than anything.

Miss Gouldsmith was right. This marriage could not work. Only not for the reasons that she thought.