Page 36 of A Bargain with the Rakish Duke
“What are we laughing about?” Kenneth asked, his tone cool and inquiring as he scanned the room.
The laughter stopped abruptly, and the maids quickly looked down, their faces flushed with embarrassment.
Beatrice straightened up, her cheeks still warm from the laughter. “Just a bit of fun, Your Grace,” she replied, meeting his gaze with a touch of defiance.
Kenneth’s eyes flicked to the maids. “Leave us,” he commanded.
Anna and Grace curtsied hastily and scurried out of the room, leaving Beatrice alone with Kenneth.
As the door closed behind the maids, Kenneth’s expression hardened.
“You might want to be careful about mocking me in my own home,” he warned, his tone icy.
Beatrice lifted her chin defiantly. “Or you’ll do what?” she snapped back, her eyes blazing.
Kenneth leaned in, his breath warm against her ear. “You have only had a taste of what I can do to you, darling,” he murmured, his lips grazing her neck.
Beatrice shivered involuntarily, the heat of his breath sending a jolt through her. She tried to regain her composure.
“You are continually frustrating,” she retorted, her voice trembling with anger—and desire.
Kenneth’s eyes blazed with anger and raw intensity. He moved even closer, the scent of leather and something uniquely him enveloping her.
“You challenge me at every turn,” he said, his voice low and charged with tension. “Do you think I enjoy this constant battle?”
“Maybe if you weren’t so set on monitoring my every move, we wouldn’t be constantly at odds,” Beatrice spat, her chest heaving.
“This is my home, and like you pointed out so comically earlier, I demand order in it,” he responded.
“It is my home too now. I should have some degree of freedom in it.”
“I gave you all the freedom you needed when I married you, remember? Or did you prefer staying with your oppressive mother?”
Beatrice halted. “It is precisely because of her that I expect you to give me some free rein here.”
Kenneth clenched his jaw. “There are rules to be followed, Duchess. You cannot expect me to allow a stranger to do whatever they please in my home.”
Beatrice winced at his words. “A stranger?” she asked.
“Yes. We hardly know each other.”
“Is that why you deserted me on our wedding night, then?”
He furrowed his brow at her question. “There was an urgent matter I had to attend to. You remember that,” he responded.
“You could have returned after you dealt with it. But in truth, you wished to get away from me, no?” Beatrice raised an eyebrow.
“That is not true,” he snapped.
“Then why didn’t you come back?”
She expected another angry response, expected him to evade her question.
But instead, the Duke grabbed her and kissed her fiercely. The intensity of his kiss sent a wave of heat through her, and she found herself responding despite her anger.
His hand slid up her back, drawing her closer, and she almost melted into him.
Suddenly, a knock on the door shattered the moment.
