Page 24 of Her Runaway Duke
“Before we begin, I must apologize,” he said. “The way I spoke to you this afternoon was not acceptable and I am sorry for it.”
Siena found the intensity of his blue eye too much to bear and she looked down at her hands, which were currently twisted in her pale blue gown. Well, Eliza’s pale blue gown that was one of the few she had packed for her.
“Thank you,” she murmured. “I also apologize for entering and seeing you… unclothed.” She had to choke out the word as heat rushed into her cheeks once more at the reminder of seeing him completely bare before her.
“I realize how shocking it must have been,” he said, his voice rough, uneven.
“You are correct,” she said, finally meeting his gaze despite how it caused the flush to rush from her cheeks throughout the rest of her body. His frown deepened at her words, pain slicing over his face. “I have never seen a man’s body before,” shewhispered, biting her lip as she did, noting the surprise on his face.
“Thatis what shocked you?” he said, losing the awkwardness.
“Yes,” she said with a frown. “Of course it did. Why else do you think I was so startled?”
He was silent for a moment before he finally answered her. “My body is… significantly scarred,” he said. “I could understand how seeing its ugliness would have affected you.”
Her brow furrowed. “It saddens me to think how much pain you must have felt,” she said. “If anything, I was surprised at how well you move considering what it must feel like to do so.”
He grunted as the soup course was brought in, his gaze down upon the bowl, frowning at it as though it had done him some disservice.
“Is something the matter?” Siena asked, leaning forward.
“I do not usually eat in company,” he muttered.
“Pretend I am not here.”
“That’s not it.”
“Then what is the problem?”
He lifted his hands to the table, and it was only then that she realized she had never seen him without gloves before – save for the incident earlier today, but with all of his manliness before her, she hadn’t been paying much attention to his hands.
Now she saw that his left hand was not unscathed.
“Can you move it?” she asked, gesturing toward it.
“I can move it some,” he said. “The scar tissue restricts the movement, however. It is the same with my jaw.”
“Do what you need to enjoy your meal,” she said. “I will pass no judgment.”
“I eat slowly.”
“I have all the time in the world.”
They were both silent for a time, the only sound the clinking of their soup spoons against their bowls, and Siena found that there was truly nothing unpleasant about eating with him, besides her slight concern that his anger might flare up again.
He did eat slowly, carefully, but it rather relaxed her.
“Thank you for allowing me to stay,” she said quietly, striving for a way to convince him to talk. “I can hardly imagine being in London married to Lord Mulberry right now.”
He had just taken a sip of his wine and choked, nearly spitting out the liquid.
“Lord Mulberry?” he said, his fingers tightening on his wine glass. “Thatis who you were going to marry?”
“Yes,” she said. “Do you know him?”
“I knowofhim,” he said, his entire body shivering in obvious disgust. “My God, but it is fortunate you escaped him.”
“Because he is so much older than me?”
