Page 38 of Her Beast of a Duke
Groggy and exhausted, Oscar dragged himself to the northern turret.
There, he had a chamber set up, a threadbare thing, really—but it was far enough away from the main castle that he knew his wife would not hear his nightly terrors. The fact that she had already heard one unsettled him.
I must protect her from the horrors I have done and witnessed, he thought, as he tried to get comfortable in the small setup he had made for himself there.
It had been some time since he had retreated to the northern turret.
There was a reason why he kept so many locked doors from his wife.
Settling down onto his pillow and bed, Oscar closed his eyes and tried to chase away the memories that still haunted him from his past. It was not a lack of care that had him pushing Isabella away, but the fact that he had done too many things he could not undo. The fact that his past was a dangerous, dark thing—that was why he chose to brood in his castle.
He could not escape it anyway; why not make everything the same?
Shadows were a comfort. He could not escape the past, and so, Isabella’s efforts were wasted on him and his abode.
Chapter Eight
“And why are we attending again?” Isabella pushed.
At her side, Oscar scoffed. “Oh, do not pretend as though you are displeased to be attending a garden party. You are the diamond of theton; you adore parties, no?”
Isabella scowled. “Iwasthe diamond.”
“Well, at least you can admit it,” Oscar muttered as they emerged from their carriage to approach the countryside residence of Lord and Lady Kirworth. “As I was telling you earlier, Lord Kirworth is a prestigious business partner of mine.”
“You did not quite say what sort of business.”
“Do you need to know?”
Isabella glared at him more deeply. “Fine, keep your secrets as usual. I suppose I should be used to such behavior by now.”
“Says the diamond ever so dramatically, so used to getting her way.”
For a moment, he sounded as sarcastic as Alicia, and Isabella lost her step as they entered the home of the Kirworths. The couple were hosting a grand garden party in honor of their youngest daughter becoming engaged, and it seemed that everybody from England’s countryside as well as London had been invited.
The guests milled through the entrance hall, expanding through the house and into the garden, where Isabella and Oscar were led. The estate was not far from Rochdale itself, so they had not traveled far at all, but somehow Isabella already felt exhausted by the whole ordeal.
She saw some familiar faces—namely, the trio of old friends she had now well and truly realized were her enemies. Her attention quickly switched away from them.
Once they emerged into the garden properly, the gossiping turned to pristinely practiced smiles, the very sort Isabella herself had perfected.
“Your Graces,” one lord greeted. “How lovely it is to see you again. It has been some time since you graced thetonwith your joint presence.”
“Indeed,” Oscar said before Isabella could take the social lead. “But when one is on a honeymoon with the diamond of her Season, who could deny us our privacy?”
It was a challenge of a response, one that nobody would truly dare argue. Isabella, at Oscar’s side, lifted her chin. Ever since the night a week ago, after she had caught him during his nightmare, he had spoken to her even less than before. She had not thought such a thing was possible, but he had proven her wrong once more.
“Of course,” the lord finally answered, looking between the two of them.
Oscar gave a curt, dismissive nod before he guided Isabella onward, deeper into the viper’s nest of the party. He leaned close to her.
“Do not listen to anything you hear,” he reminded her. “They never know your whole story, Isabella; do not forget that. If you ever do, look to me. I will always remind you.”
Surprised, she met his eyes, finding only earnest sincerity in them. He silently gave her one last nod.
“I know well enough,” he added, and she wondered what he kept hidden not only from thetonbut from her.
What secrets do you lock up in that mind of yours? What secrets have you been screaming into the night?
