Page 79 of A Game with the Rakish Duke
She bit her lip, battling her feelings, trying to make sense of them all. One of them was lying. But Patrick was her friend—he was one of her oldest friends. What motive could he have for lying to her about her husband having an affair, other than to try to prove himself right?
She blinked. Thomas was a known rake, and she did not know him as well as Patrick. How could she? They had been married for only two short weeks.
Her heart flipped. But oh, what weeks they had been.
And did the brief time she had known Thomas mean that he wasn’t trustworthy? Why couldn’t he be genuine and mean what he said when he told her he had turned over a new leaf?
Catherine dropped her head in her hands. Her mind was whirling again. She was so confused that she couldn’t think straight…
Abruptly, she heard the snapping of a twig. She looked up, and color drained from her face when the gentleman suddenly appeared in front of her.
She felt outraged at the invasion of her privacy. What was hedoinghere?
Chapter Thirty-Seven
“There you are.” Patrick smiled faintly as he took a step closer to her. “I was worried about you when you ran away like that.”
Catherine stood up, sighing heavily, staring at him. She fought the instant irritation that was overwhelming her at the sight of him. Clearly, she wanted to be alone, and yet he had followed her into the maze.
Stop it. He is being protective. He has always been protective. He is just trying to be a good friend.
“I am fine,” she gritted out. “It is sweet of you to worry about me, Patrick, but I just want to be alone to think about a few things. That is all.”
“I just want to help and comfort you, Cathy,” he said, taking another step closer to her, his expression ardent. “I cannot bear it when you are upset or unhappy.”
She felt another flash of irritation. “And yetyouare the one who has upset me, Patrick!”
His eyes flickered. “I am sorry,” he said in a curt voice. “I did not mean to upset you, only for you to see the truth.” He paused, staring at her intently. “I only want the best for you, Cathy. It is all that I think about. You are all I think about.”
“What?” Catherine took a step back, gazing at him, mystified. “What do you mean?”
His face contorted. “I love you, Cathy. I havealwaysloved you.” He reached out a hand towards her. “Please, leave that rake of a husband of yours and run away with me. Start afresh with me. We can go wherever you want. All I want is you by my side.”
Catherine’s jaw dropped. She was so stunned that for a moment, she thought she had misheard him.
“We can both get divorced,” he continued in an excited voice, his eyes gleaming almost manically. “Or, if that is not possible, we can simply run away together. Society be damned.”
He took another step closer to her as he spoke. Catherine felt a wild urge to push him away from her, to stop him, before he went any further. She restrained herself with difficulty.
“This is ridiculous, Patrick,” she scoffed, her heart racing, feeling sick. “What you are suggesting is scandalous.”
“Who cares?” He stared at her. “What does any of it matter if we can be together at long last?”
Catherine let out a bark of incredulous laughter. “I donotwant to be with you, Patrick! I do not love you in that way. The idea of it is simply ludicrous.” She shook her head, unable to believe that she was actually listening to this, that he was actually confessing this to her. “You have always been my friend, but that is all! And we are both married, anyway…”
“We belong together, Cathy,” he interjected, as if she hadn’t even spoken, tripping over his words in his haste to speak. “We have always belonged together. But my mother insisted that I marry Edith instead of you. I was going to ask for your hand, but my mother forced me not to do it.” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “I was young, and I regret it now. The next thing I knew, she had arranged the match with Edith, and I had no choice but to marry her.”
Catherine took another step back. “Lady Afferton is lovely and charming,” she pointed out, glaring at him, her heart thumping hard in her chest. “You should be honored to have her as your wife.”
“She does not hold a candle to you, Cathy,” he declared in a fervent voice. “She cannot compare to your beauty and spirit and intelligence. Why, it is like comparing a single flame to a full-blown fire.”
“Stop it, Patrick,” she hissed, her eyes narrowing. “Just stop it.”
“Edith knows I can never love her,” he said, his eyes shining. “She knows that you are the only woman I can ever love.”
Catherine gasped, feeling sick. Her head was spinning. No wonder Edith always avoided her and was noticeably cold towards her. Everyone had always denied it, but she had known. What an awful thing to know that your husband was in love with another woman. Why had Patrick even told her, or had Edith suspected it from the start?
Catherine was just about to tell Patrick that it was a disgrace, that he needed to leave her alone, when he suddenly lunged at her, grabbing her tightly and kissing her on the lips.
