Page 10 of His Grace, the Duke
She smiled sadly. “You may not have a choice. You would marry her to protect James—”
“No,” he growled, forcing her to look at him. “It will never happen. Do you hear me? I willnevermarry her.”
“You cannot lose your position because of me. I will not shoulder that burden.” Her eyes closed as she fought back tears. “Oh god, I should go,” she whispered. “I told James I would go. I have done nothing but disrupt all your lives. I will keep hurting you if I stay—”
“No.” His hands were impossibly gentle as they cupped her face. “Leave, and I will follow. Have I not proved that already?”
The words broke her heart, even as they shored it up again. “Burke, stop letting me in,” she whispered. “I’m no good at this. Needing someone and being needed. I’ll hurt you, and I couldn’t bear it. Please... just push me away. Save yourself—”
“Never,” he replied. “What did you say to me last night?”
His smile made her melt. The grey in his eyes was a storm she wanted to get lost in. “We said many things—”
“You are my siren,” he murmured. “I hear only your call. This thing with Lady Olivia will get sorted one way or another. I really don’t care. I only care about this.” He kissed her again, his lips soft and seeking. “I care about you. Aboutus. I make you this vow: I will marry you, or no one.”
6
Burke
Rosalie’s surprised littlegasp sent Burke’s heart racing faster. He meant every word. He would marry this woman today if she’d let him. This very hour. From the moment they met all those weeks ago, he couldn’t be near her and not want to look at her... to touch, to worship, toclaim.
She consumed him... or he ached to be consumed. Either way, it didn’t matter.
She blushed, trying to lean away. She was nervous. Retreating. Building her walls. He saw the way her heart fluttered. He felt it rising and falling between them as he pressed in slightly.
“Heavens,” she said on a breath. “So now you want to marry me?”
He raised a hand and let his fingers trail along her jaw, down the line of her neck. He didn’t bother to hide his smile as he felt her lean into his touch. This little siren was always hungry for more. “Would you ever let me?”
She sighed, closing her eyes tight, before she whispered, “No.”
It shouldn’t have hurt him to hear her say it aloud... but it did. The twinge was most definitely there. And she knew it too.
She leaned in. “Burke, I love you. But—”
“But no cages,” he replied, placing two fingers over her parted lips to quiet her. “I know. I respect your choices, I do. I just... please don’t explain it again. I don’t think I can bear to hear you deny me twice in the same breath.”
“But do you believe me?” she pressed. “You believe I have no intention to marry your friends either? I like my life. I like making my own decisions, being my own mistress—”
“I know,” he repeated, more firmly this time. She quieted with a nod.
Looking at her made his heart ache. The long hours he’d just spent thinking she’d left him for James were a torture. He’d been a madman. A man possessed with a single purpose: getting to Rosalie. Following Rosalie. Holding Rosalie again.
Was it possible to still miss a person when they were right before you? When you actually had your hands on them, feeling their warmth against your skin?
“You are so beautiful,” he murmured. “I want to feel you everywhere. Every moment, I want you. I want your skin against mine. Married... unmarried... I just want to be yours.”
She closed her eyes again, shaking her head with a soft whimper. “Burke, this is madness. How can this be real?”
He cupped her cheek with a gentle hand. “You know you feel it too. You’ve felt it from the beginning.”
“I don’t even know your name,” she whispered, opening her eyes. “You won’t tell me.”
He grinned. “And if I tell you, you’ll marry me? Is that your condition? I accept—”
“There should be no conditions between us,” she replied with exasperation. “You shouldwantto tell me. You should want me to know everything about you. No secrets. No hiding. I couldn’t bear it.”
His smile widened. There was no great mystery to his name. Indeed, if she was really interested, she could have asked any of a dozen people at Alcott to reveal the secret. Hell, even Blanche Oswald knew it. But he was willing to play along. Let this be his great sacrifice for his unpardonable behavior in the morning room.
