Page 98 of Claimed By the Beastly Duke

With that, he breezed out of the room.

Magnus followed him and waved grimly as he climbed into his carriage. He knew what he must do. Ava must stay within sight at all times—at least until the danger was weeded out of Society.

Protecting his wife at the estate would be an easy task. However, he already knew that she would not take too kindly to being told not to leave the house, especially not with her sister’s impending nuptials.

CHAPTER 23

Ava was still dazed when she entered the drawing room and sat down on one of the sofas. She ran her hand over the soft cushion beneath her and managed a smile.

It was one of the sofas she had imported from France, and even now, despite her dejection, it still brought her some comfort. It was far softer than the ones she had removed.

She looked around the drawing room and nodded. She could not help but be proud of the effort she had put into making the house more homely one room at a time. And yet, despite being surrounded by such beauty, she was still disturbed.

Any woman would be if her husband walked out on her right when they were about to make love.

Instinctively, Ava wrapped her arms around herself. If there was a sign that she had been abandoned by her husband, it was thefact that she was all alone in his rather huge house, safe for the servants.

The previous day had passed in a daze. One moment her husband had been all too eager to make love to her, and the next he had all but run out of the room just because she reached for his mask.

She hated to admit it, but she felt rather lonely.

She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes, but she quickly blinked them away.

Ava rose to her feet and looked around, hoping to find something she could busy herself with.

For a moment, she wished she were back in Notley Manor, unpleasant as her father was. If she were back in her childhood home, she would at least have novels to while away the time.

However, here, all she could do was manage the household and take walks through the grounds. And now that her husband had all but disappeared, the estate seemed rather dull, as much as she hated to admit it.

She was stepping out of the drawing room to inspect the garden when she heard a carriage roll up the drive. Her heart leaped with joy.

Without giving it a second thought, she ran to the front door. She was eager to see if it was her husband. She had not even gotten to the foyer when he strode in.

Edwin looked rather disheveled. The dark circles under his eyes told her that he had not had much sleep. His hair was mussed, and she could not help but notice that he had missed a button on his shirt.

Her heart went out to him.

“Welcome,” Ava greeted as she approached him.

His eyes widened when he saw her, and then they softened. He looked almost relieved to see her.

“Ava,” he said, stepping towards her.

When they finally stopped before each other, Ava reached out her arms to hug him. She had missed him terribly.

He, on the other hand, was peering closely at her, as though he wanted to make sure that she was safe.

She realized then that he had not been trying to hug her. Therefore, she lowered her arms awkwardly to her sides, disappointed.

She waited, expecting him to say something, to acknowledge what he had done the previous night. Perhaps even apologize. However, he did nothing of the sort. He simply continued peering at her.

“You look tired,” she noted.

It was true. Upon closer inspection, she even noted the heaviness of his eyelids.

“I did not sleep well,” he said simply.

Ava nodded. “Are you back to… stay, or will you be returning to…”

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