Page 47 of Wedded to the Beastly Duke
“I see,” he said curtly. “Then I suppose there is nothing more to say on the matter.”
“Will you not join us for dinner?” Emmeline said, evidently eager to smooth over the entire business. “We have barely begun to eat.”
“I would not like to intrude on this cozy party,” Adam replied, but then relented at the brief flash of hurt that crossed Emmeline’s face.
He truly could be a brute when he let his temper get the better of him. He took her hand and raised it to his lips, kissing her knuckles a fraction longer than was strictly proper.
“I am glad to see you again,” he said, holding her gaze.
Her pupils dilated, her eyes darkening, and he thought of the last time he had been with her, the things they had done.
And oh, the things he wanted to do her now.
“Yes,” she whispered, hardly knowing what she was saying. “I am glad you have returned, Adam.”
Deciding he didn’t care they weren’t alone, he tipped her chin back and kissed her briefly before leaving the room.
* * *
Adam’s kiss utterly disarmed Emmeline. Before he had arrived, she had a collection of things planned that she was going to say to him. Including how if in the future he intended to leave her alone, he would at least grant her the opportunity to visit her family.
Instead, he had returned angry, had denied that Rickard was his friend, and he had kissed her.
He had kissed her.
Despite his clear anger, it had not been an angry kiss the way their kisses previously had been. Of course, she suspected it wasalsoa show of possessiveness. But there had been something surprisingly tender about it.
As though he truly meant what he had said about being glad to see her again.
As though he hadn’t fled the house after their solo moment of intimacy.
He was a mystery to her, and she was utterly clueless about how to interpret his actions.
“Well,” Rickard said after a moment in which she composed herself and sat back down. “That was the Duke.”
“You said you were his friend.”
“The prior Duke’s friend.” He looked genuinely pained. “I was sorry to hear about his death.”
“Yes, I think it came as a shock to my husband.” As any untimely death in the family would. “He isn’t always so rude, you know.”
“He seemed quite forbidding.”
Emmeline laughed. “Yes, I thought so at first. But really, there is nothing so very scary about him. I think his reputation is far more fearsome than he is, but don’t tell him I said that.”
Rickard’s face split into that habitual lopsided grin. “I would never dare. I was half afraid he would challenge me to a duel.”
“Leave him to me,” Emmeline said grimly. “But he was in the Navy, you know, so probably a crack shot. Never accept a duel.”
“I have no wish to die,” Rickard said, “no matter how it may appear by coming here.”
Unable to resist, Emmeline laughed. “He truly isn’t as scary as you think!”
“He could crush me, but with you as my defender, I feel perfectly safe.”
She laughed again, and they finished their meal in companionable silence. When at last she went into the drawing room, Adam joined them, and it looked as though he was making an effort to be friendlier toward the man who claimed to be his brother’s friend.
This was not the easy, charming man she had seen when she had invited the villagers over to dinner, but that was probably due to the situation he had walked in on.
