Page 36 of Claimed By the Beastly Duke

“What has Edwin done?” a gruff voice suddenly asked.

Ava looked up to see her husband standing in the doorway, his broad shoulders completely filling the frame. Beads of sweat clung to his face, and he looked like he had spent the entire morning riding his horse. He was dreadfully handsome, and she simply did not know how she was going to avoid him when the mere sight of him made her want to run into his arms.

Her heart skipped a beat as she gazed upon him.

“Uh… you are… you’re… back…” she stammered, fidgeting with her hair as she realized that he had caught her talking about him.

“Duke,” Eveline greeted, smiling at him.

“Why, Ava did not inform me that you would be visiting today,” Edwin said as he approached.

He held out his arms towards the little boy, who immediately reached for him.

“Now, Henry, you have grown delightfully bigger since the last time I saw you,” he cooed.

“Oo-oo-oo!” The little boy clapped his hands and laughed.

Edwin then turned to Ava and flashed her a mischievous smile that told her he had something up his sleeve.

“Would it not be lovely if we also tried for a baby?” he said. “We may name him Harry if it is a boy or Alice if it is a girl. The baby and Henry would be the best of friends. What do you say, Ava?”

Ava sighed, and for the first time in a long while, she was not quite certain what to say.

“Ah!” Edwin suddenly feigned realization. “I totally forgot about your terms.”

“You know that you did not forget,” Ava huffed.

Edwin shrugged. “How can you be so sure? Anyway, I shall leave you lovely ladies to it.”

With that, he relinquished Henry to his mother and left the drawing room.

Ava finally drew in a deep breath.

“Ava, you claim you do not wish to share his bed, yet the way you stare at him says otherwise,” Stella pointed out.

“No!” Ava shook her head in protest.

“I thought I was the only one who had noticed,” Eveline piped up.

Ava groaned as her sisters continued to taunt her. If Stella and Eveline, who had only spent a few hours in the house, could see that she wished to share her husband’s bed, did this mean Edwin himself had been aware all along?

CHAPTER 10

Edwin had barely sat down for dinner when his wife entered, wearing a red dress that complemented her freckles.

Their eyes met, but she quickly looked away. She made her way to her seat at the other end of the table, and they both tucked into their food.

At first, he had been disturbed by her strange behavior at dinner. She would finish her food within the blink of an eye and then rush out of the dining room before he could start on the main course. However, he soon realized it was a bid to keep control around him.

It was clear that she was trying to avoid him. Now, as he watched her eat intently, he simply wondered how long it would take for her to finally give in.

He was therefore surprised that, long after the third course was served, she was still sitting across from him, eating. And now she was speaking to him, a pleasant smile on her face.

“The estate would benefit from some renovations, don’t you agree?” she asked, looking at him expectantly.

Edwin was familiar with that look. She wanted something from him.

He raised an eyebrow. “You are speaking to me?”

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