Page 51 of The Marquis' Game of Seduction
“Oh, Anna. I think I messed everything up,” Rose whispered. She poured her face into her hands and let out a shuddering sigh.
“What? How could you possibly? I know you’re overreacting,” Anna said. She gripped Rose’s hand and pried it away from her face. “It’s simply not so, Rose. The way he looks at you—it could never be refuted. He’s falling in love with you…”
“And that’s what he told me,” Rose whispered.
Anna’s face broke into a wide grin. “See! You’re creating stories that simply don’t exist, then, Rose. You’re trying to muss it up before it even properly begins…”
“Oh, but Anna. It was dreadful,” Rose continued. Her eyes welled up with tears. “You must have heard that Laurence arrived yesterday with word regarding Amelia’s illness.”
“It’s quite good news, isn’t it?” Anna said.
“Of course. It’s marvelous. I’m so grateful that Duncan’s mother will soon be well. I know it’s been dreadful for him to be away from her. And yet, there we were—all of us. Colin and Laurence and Duncan. And of course, I feel entirely strange because Colin and I… had just had our conversation. And Duncan rushed toward his father and asked if I could come with them. If I could be his governess. And Laurence asked me. Right then and there.”
“Oh, how awkward,” Anna returned. “Oh poor Duncan. He couldn’t have known the drama he was causing.”
“True. Terribly true. And it’s certainly not his fault. But I told his father I would think about it. And I could just see it, stitched across Colin’s face. What I’d said was complete betrayal.”
“You must speak to him. You and I both know that this wasn’t purposeful. You simply felt the pressure from Duncan and felt that you needed to play the part.”
“Yes,” Rose whispered. “I’m just afraid it’s too late.”
Anna assured her it wasn’t too late. She told her that the longer she waited to speak with Colin, the more tainted her words became. Rose’s eyes flickered across the books she’d collected for Anna that day, noting that they still had an hour’s lesson ahead. But Anna just flicked her finger toward the door and said, “I’d love to skip my lesson today. You know, I’m really quite tired. Perhaps I can read by myself.”
“You don’t mind?” Rose asked. Her voice felt sharp with panic. Seconds seemed to slip away willy-nilly, without pause.
“Of course not,” Anna said. “I have the rest of my life to learn to read better.”
Rose darted up from her chair, kissed Anna on the cheek, and fled the library. She scampered down the staircase, nearly fumbling at the bottom step, and reached Colin’s study in no time. In fact, once she reached it she had to take a necessary pause, a deep breath, before reaching up and rapping the door.
She felt she was flirting with disaster. She was mere steps from the lion’s den, unsure of how hungry the lion truly was.
His words rang out. It was almost as though he’d been expecting her.
“Come in.”
Rose curved the doorknob open and peeked within. This day, in incredible contrast to the previous one, was dark and dreary, and Colin had yanked the curtains closed, perhaps to allow himself to forget the dismal nature of the weather. Rose remained in the doorway, still a bit breathless, and watched as Colin brought his head up, tilting it toward her. His eyes were difficult to read: hard and cold.
Rose wished they reflected back all the emotion from the previous time they’d seen one another. She still remembered it: on her back, naked and blissful and wet, her eyes locking with his as he’d entered her.
Why did it seem as though they’d never met one another? Why did he insist to grow so cold?
“I was hoping to have a conversation with you,” she said. She wanted to sound sure and confident, rather than a meek idiot, an orphan in from the cold.
“Yes. Please, close the door and have a seat,” Colin said.
The order felt so strange and stark, like something Judith might have said. Rose did as she was told and perched in the chair. It reminded her of a time when she’d been in trouble at the orphanage, when the woman whose husband owned the orphanage calculated an appropriate punishment for her. The punishment had been a ruler, rapped across Rose’s wrists. Her eyes had stung, but she’d forced herself not to reveal any other show of fear.
“Colin,” Rose began.
Colin’s eyes darted up from the paper he was reading.
For whatever reason this forced Rose to correct herself, addressing him with more propriety. “My lord. I wanted to speak with you regarding our conversation with Lord Thornton yesterday. You see, the entire situation caught me incredibly off-guard.”
“I see,” Colin said. Still, his eyes remained hard.
“Yes. I had just awoke and—and I’m sure you must understand what that meant to me. Our…”
Colin’s face revealed no recollection of what had occurred between them. Rose’s throat felt parched. She swallowed and drew her hands together on her lap.
