Page 61 of Trapped with the Forbidden Duke
He could not bring himself to look her in the eye, too embarrassed to do it. He had not felt such things before, but he had hurt her, rejected her, and he did not quite know how to weaken his defenses to admit his guilt over his lust while dealing with everything else.
They were conveniently married, that was all. He had told her she would only bear his children if she wished, and that she would not be forced into any predicament, and he meant it.
Still, he lusted for her.Desperately.
He had begun to chase the scent of jasmine, knowing when she had bathed, for the scent would linger in the hallway even if she was not there.
Lucien had, admittedly, taken to following her footsteps at a safe distance afterward, just to catch the scent.
He considered writing to Nicholas and asking him directly about his other creditors, but he knew the Earl’s pride would likely keep him from saying the whole truth. He already knew that his friend felt guilty and embarrassed that he was handling his mess. Nicholas would not be able to endure any further embarrassment.
Lucien stood up and stepped out of his study to follow the scent of jasmine once again. Edwina had passed by recently. Had she heard his discussion with his solicitor? She already knew he was handling their finances, but didsheknow the true depths her brother had sunk to so he could appease his addiction?
The scuff of slippers caught his attention.
“Edwina?” he called out.
Nobody answered him, but he saw her skirts disappear through a doorway ahead. He did not follow her.
He stayed where he was, closing his eyes as he imagined himself dragging his nose along her neck, tasting the jasmine and rose on her skin.
Chapter Nineteen
“How strange,” Edwina muttered to herself, “to wish for it all to stop for so long, and now that it has, I find I am the one who cannot stop.”
It had barely been a week since she had settled in Stormhold Hall, and she still found herself unable to sleep well. She woke up what seemed like every hour, on high alert for her brother’s night terrors, before she realized that her brother was not there.
Yet, she had dealt with those worries for so long that she still couldn’t let go of them.
Perhaps she didn’t want to.
Perhaps she had gotten so used to handling everything that she now didn’t know hownotto listen out for any signs of distress.
Climbing out of bed, Edwina thought that a walk would help clear her mind and tire her out. In the early stages of hisaddiction, when her brother had returned home lucid enough not to pass out quickly, Edwina had tired herself out by staying awake with him until the sun crept over the rooftops of London.
Now, there was no Nicholas, and that absence dug into her like a thorn.
Tying her robe around her nightgown, she left her room. Strangely, she noticed that the Duke’s door was slightly ajar. Lifting her hand, she considered knocking, before hurrying away from the door upon hearing a creak from inside.
No, she was not quite brave enough for that encounter yet.
Navigating the hallways, Edwina found herself approaching the library. She noticed that the door was open and spotted a light coming from inside.
The floorboards creaked beneath her feet, and she winced.
Who was in there, if the Duke had been in his room? A maid, perhaps, doing some late-night cleaning?
Edwina sighed and entered the library… only to stop when the sight of the Duke stunned her.
He was dressed down in a way she had not seen since that night she found him bare-chested outside Nicholas’s rooms in Montgomery Manor. His shirt was untucked from beneath his breeches and mostly unbuttoned.
Her mouth ran dry at the sight, and she could not tear her gaze away from the expanse of muscle quickly enough.
“Edwina,” Lucien breathed, and her gaze snapped up to his piercing green eyes.
He stood, but she was already stepping away. She heard footsteps hurrying after her.
The library door clicked shut, and she spun around angrily to find her husband closer than she had realized.
