Page 49 of My Blind Duke
Why was he asking about her and thinking about her when he had barely spoken to her outside their interactions whenever they were around Melanie? She did not understand what he was thinking and why he behaved as though she was a mere toy he could tease and play with whenever he felt like it.
His to touch when he wants. His to discard when he does not.
His actions confused her and she was not sure how much longer she could put up with it without getting hurt.
“The Rogers has requested an audience with you, Your Grace.”
William groaned, wondering not for the first time if he was truly cut out for this life.
Things used to be easier, so long ago when he thrived on passion. It was always enough for him somehow, fueling him to push through the hardest of storms, and his love for his music helped him rise each time he felt as though he did not want to.
But this – business and unnecessary affairs of meet-and-greets and estate duties were draining the life out of him. It was getting harder every day to care about any of this, but he could not let Melanie down.
Or the duchess.
The household might as well perish, for all he cared, but he wanted to keep his daughter comfortable for the rest of her life. And the duchess who had made no move to demand anything other than the right to remain in the house she had been in since she had gotten married seemed to deserve all William could give.
So, he sat in the study he abhorred and did his best to make sense of all that was going on – half of it being gossip from the ton that he did not care for – day after day.
“When?” he asked finally.
“Whenever is convenient for you, Your Grace. They want you to pick the time and are happy to host,” Robert replied.
“Fine. Let us give them a two-week notice. That way, they have enough time to prepare.”
“Very well, Your Grace.”
There was a knock at the door and William waved Robert to answer it. Moments later, the steward said, “It is Lady Melanie, Your Grace.”
William sat up immediately.
“Melanie? What brings you here? Are you all right?” he exhaled, blinking severely in hopes of catching a glimpse of her shadow.
But because it was evening, he had no natural light showing him the edges and shapes of things and people. All he could see were dark forms dancing across his vision.
“Oh, I am all right, Papa. Do not worry. I only came to put some more butterflies into your bowl. These ones are the prettiest I have made, and I was very proud of them. So, I thought I should give them to you,” Melanie said.
She made it sound so easy, parting away with such important relics and his guilt over how he had treated her in the past intensified.
How was she so forgiving and magnanimous when all I had done was disappoint her?
“You do not have to. The bowl has plenty already. I doubt it needs any more,” he stated.
However, he intended to get her to keep them for herself since they were prettier than the others. As usual, his words did not come out right.
He winced, noting that she had fallen silent.
“Melanie–”
“I will give them to Prudence then. She was the one who suggested I share them with you since I thought they were the best I had made.”
William blinked, surprised. He had known Prudence was invested in his and Melanie’s relationship but he thought her involvement would only go as far as to invite him to join her and Melanie in spending time together. He did not expect that she would send Melanie to him.
“She… she did that?”
“Yes, Papa,” Melanie told him, a pout evident in her tone. “She likes you a lot, Papa, and she says she wants you to have nice things. So, she asked if I could give you my butterflies since they came out really nice. But it is fine if you do not want them. The duchess would be more than happy to keep them all for me.”
That… that vixen had no idea who she was messing with.
