Page 110 of The Duke's Jilted Bride

Near the southeast corner, she spotted a bench tucked between a stand of trees where it was quiet but not completely out of sight. She made her way over and sat down with a tired sigh.

“Mary, would you mind giving me a few minutes?” she asked gently. “You can wait by those trees. I just need a moment to myself.”

Mary hesitated. “Are you sure, Your Grace? Her Grace asked me to stay close.”

“You’ll still see me. I’m not going anywhere.”

Mary gave a small nod. “All right then. I’ll be just over there if you need anything.”

As soon as she was alone, Selina let go. The calm mask she’d been wearing cracked. Tears welled up fast, hot and blinding, spilling over before she could stop them. She pressed her hands to her face, trying to keep the sobs in, but they came anyway, sharp and silent, breaking through the quiet like something torn loose.

Everything she had lost crashed over her in waves. Her mother’s gentle presence, taken too soon. Her father’s approval, which she had never truly possessed. The security of her first marriage, modest though it had been. And now Rowan’s love, which she had held so briefly before it was snatched away.

How many times could one heart break before it stopped functioning entirely? How many losses could one person endure before they simply gave up hoping for better?

The worst part was knowing that Rowan suffered, too. She had seen the pain in his eyes when he pushed her away, the way his hands had trembled when he forced himself not to touch her. He was destroying them both in the name of protection, and she was powerless to stop him.

A sound made her look up through her tears. A thud like something heavy had fallen nearby. She wiped her eyes, peering through the trees toward where Mary waited.

“Mary?” she called softly, standing to get a better view.

The maid was nowhere to be seen.

Selina took a step forward, concern replacing her sadness. “Mary, where are you?”

A twig snapped behind her. She spun around, but she saw only an empty park. Something was wrong. The air felt different, charged with a tension that made her skin prickle.

She opened her mouth to call for help, but before any sound could emerge, pain exploded through her skull. The world tilted violently, then faded to black as she collapsed to the ground.

CHAPTER 36

“Good God, Rowan, what have you done to yourself?”

Rowan blinked up from the ledger in front of him, eyes bleary. The numbers had blurred hours ago. Felix walked into the study without knocking, taking in the mess with a quick glance. The decanter beside Rowan was nearly empty, and papers were scattered across the floor, most of them knocked over during the night when he’d stopped caring.

“Get out,” Rowan mumbled, turning back to the illegible scrawl on the page. “I’m busy.”

“Busy destroying yourself, by the look of it.” Felix surveyed the chaos with disgust. “When did you last eat? Sleep? Bathe?”

“Don’t remember. Don’t care.” Rowan squinted at another entry, the letters blurring together. “Need to find him. Need to find Edward Bentern.”

Felix picked up the empty brandy bottle and examined it with raised eyebrows. “This was full yesterday, wasn’t it? Simmons is worried sick about you.”

“Simmons can mind his own business.”

“As can you, apparently.” Felix dropped into the chair across from the desk. “Where’s Selina?”

Rowan’s hand stilled on the page. “Safe.”

“That’s not what I asked. Where is your wife?”

“Staying with friends. Away from here. Away from me.” Each word felt like swallowing broken glass.

“You sent her away.”

“I protected her.”

Felix leaned in, all the warmth gone from his voice. “You let go of the best thing that ever happened to you because you were too scared to fight for it.”

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