Page 47 of A Bride for the Cruel Duke

The duke was not who she had thought he was originally. Nor were his motives ill—aligned or malevolent. She could see now that he had been nothing but truthful with her from the beginning, and this new arrangement that he had made was further proof of that.

The only downside she could see was that it would make it harder for her to resist him when the time came, which for now she still very much intended to do.At least it is easy to tell myself as such…

“I do not want anything,” she said.

“That is not true.”

“I did not win!”

“And I do not care.” He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. “Speak now, Caroline, for I am not one to have his mind changed once it has been decided. Do you wish for a puppy? A new horse? Perhaps a lock on your door to keep me out. Anything and it is yours.”

“Anything?” she asked.

“Anything,” he said.

She pushed her lips together as she considered. She had never been asked before what she wanted. She had never been offered anything out of goodwill or pure generosity. Needless to say, the whole thing was confusing.

It was as she thought through the offer, that a memory came to mind from years ago. When she was a little girl and Violet had been taking lessons on the pianoforte, Caroline had asked her mother if she might also, only to be dismissed because her mother did not wish to waste the extra money on a tutor. It was just one instance of Caroline being denied something by her mother, for no other reason than she was the middle child. But it had stung her, nonetheless.

“A pianoforte,” she said. “I would like one very much.”

“You play?”

“No,” she said with a casual shrug. “But I might learn. Unless that is a problem…”

“Not at all.” He did not even hesitate. “Consider it done.”

ChapterSixteen

It was the following morning and Anthony once again found himself waiting in the breakfast room for his wife, and after how well last night had gone, he had to admit that more than a small part of him was looking forward to seeing her.

“Good morning.” Caroline appeared in the doorway to the breakfast room.

“Good morning.” He rose when he saw her. “How did you sleep?”

“Well,” she said with a slight smile; the morning sun shone across the room, illuminating her features in a way that wasn’t at all unpleasant. “I suspect being filled with five pounds of food was the cause.”

He exhaled sharply from his nose in agreement. “As did I. Hopefully, your appetite has not vanished entirely.” He gestured to the table where a plate of food had already been set.

“So long as there isn’t any pork,” she said as she approached the table.

Anthony chuckled. “I was surprised to hear that there was anything left for us to eat at all. After how much you consumed last night. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that before.”

“Me!” she pretended to look upset. “You ate nearly twice as much as I did.”

“I am nearly twice your size, and even I was struggling toward the end.”

She looked at him flatly. “Very amusing.”

They ate in silence for a few moments, but it wasn’t tense like it might have been. The silence felt companionable, almost natural, suggesting that, finally, they were getting used to one another. And not just used to the other, but accepting of the company.Dare I say it, this is beginning to feel like a marriage.

As they ate, Anthony tried his best not to study his wife, for he found that whenever he looked at her his stomach tied itself into knots. It was strange to sit across from a person who wasn’t actively trying to leave as quickly as they could, who didn’t tremble in his presence. Who might have even enjoyed sitting across from him.

“I was hoping I might ask of you a favor,” she spoke eventually, finishing her eggs with a satisfied sigh.

“I am surprised that you are asking.”

She tittered. “I wasn’t going to, but I am trying this new thing where I at least try not to anger you with everything that I say.”

---