Page 66 of The Insufferable Duke
She led the way to the door, hurrying through it with him trailing behind. He was careful to glance over his shoulder, to ensure none of the family followed. He supposed he could have explained away their isolation, saying they were talking about the wedding, but without a chaperone, it still would have been suspicious.
“We do not have long, Your Grace,” Helena said, turning to face him as she stopped on the rug in the middle of the room. “For one, our families will notice our absence. I also fear how long this peace between them will last.”
“As do I. My great-uncle tried to cause some trouble this week by suggesting to a few of the guests that the location for the wedding had changed.”
“He did what!?” she asked, instantly riled with her hands moving to her hips.
“All is in hand; I fixed it,” he assured her, calming her with his hands outstretched. “You have this habit of looking formidable when you place your hands on your hips; did you know that?”
“Me? Formidable? Ha! Never have I been called that in my life before. I feel more sometimes as if I am playing at having strength, acting a part, rather than having it.”
“Isn’t that how we all really feel?” he asked, moving closer toward her.
“Perhaps it is.”
They were sharing secrets again, indulgences. Yet she was right. They didn’t have long, and if he was going to reveal what he so desired to speak to her about, then he had to be quick.
“Helena.” He reached for her hand and took it gently in his own. She flinched, startled, yet did not pull back.
“Your Grace.”
“Pray, do not call me that,” he begged.
“Why not?” she asked, looking up at him and away from the hold he had on her.
“Because then I am just a duke to you.”
“You are a duke,” she reminded him with a playful smirk.
“Maybe I want to be something more than that to you.” His words had that smile fading. His courage failed him. Any words he wished to utter died in his throat. There was something about the event that was abruptly daunting. Telling Helena how much he cared for her, when they were still under pressure to ensure this wedding went off without a hitch, was a lot to bear with.
Instead of saying any words, he shifted his focus to their touches. He raised the hand that he was holding and moved it slowly to his lips, wary of her pulling away. She didn’t shift away from him once, and if anything, she took a small step toward him. He mirrored that movement, just as he placed the back of her hand to his lips and kissed it.
He held that kiss, peering at her over the bend of her wrist. Her lips were parted, and those cheeks had blushed a deep shade of red.
“What do all these kisses mean, Your Grace?” she whispered.
“Christopher. My name is Christopher.”
“Very well,” she murmured breathily. “What do all these kisses mean, Christopher?”
A smash broke them apart. It was as if some vast vase had toppled over, and the crash emanated around the house. Shouts followed. Christopher released Helena entirely and hurried to the nearest door, following the sound.
More shouts followed.
He and Helena emerged in a garden room where their two families had been hastily ushered. In the middle of the space, Lord Gibbs and Isaac were glaring at one another. A potted plant was on its side, the pot that had once held the fern in place now smashed into pieces.
“You did that on purpose!” Lord Gibbs raged loudly. “You have destroyed something of ours, something that does not belong to you. I knew no good could come from the Moores. None at all.”
“No good from the Carters, you mean.” Isaac thrust his cane down onto the floor. “Christopher.” His gaze flicked toward Christopher and Helena in the doorway. “It is time to call an end to this. The families cannot see eye to eye. Stop this wedding.”
CHAPTERTWENTY-ONE
Helena ran to the double doors that adjoined the garden room to the main ballroom where their guests were gathered. She shut them as hurriedly as she could, praying it would somehow block out the awful noise, and the guests would not hear them.
Close by to her, Anna held a hand to her mouth, so embarrassed by the turn of events and the fact her guests would have seen something of the argument, she struggled to move at all.
“This is ridiculous,” Benjamin marched forward and took his brother’s shoulder, pulling him away from Lord Isaac. “No more of this.”
