Page 41 of A Duke Under Her Spell
“I shall return to the forest immediately to look for her,” Felix promised. “I am truly sorry, Mother.” He left the manor house running for the stables. Jumping back into the saddle he raced off toward the forest where he had last seen Lord Enfield. He hoped to be able to find his trail from there.
* * *
Marybeth retraced Lord Enfield’s steps back toward Arkley Hall. Darkness began to fall as a summer storm moved in over the land. When she realized she would not be able to make it back to Arkley Hall in time before the rain, Marybeth changed course toward the croft. By the time she reached the croft, large flashes of lightening had begun to streak across the sky as the thunder shook the ground beneath her feet.
As she stumbled through her front door, a sense of relief washed over her that comes only to those that have finally arrived home after a long journey. She felt as if it had been months and not merely a matter of days since she last stepped foot in her beloved home. Evidence of the lord’s efforts to find the supplies she had requested were made clear by the state of disarray. Sighing, Marybeth moved about the croft, putting things to rights before she allowed herself to lie down upon the bed to rest.
When the knock came on her door she very nearly jumped out of her skin. “Marybeth!” Felix’s voice called from the other side of the wooden portal. “Marybeth!”
Marybeth arose and went to lift the latch, allowing the Duke to enter. “I am exceedingly glad to see that you are safe and sound. Mother told me what had transpired between you and Lord Enfield. I am terribly sorry, Marybeth.”
“The truth was bound to be revealed eventually, was it not?” she answered. She still felt shaken even after several hours had passed. “I cannot fathom having such an evil man for a father.”
“Nor should you be forced to do so. He is not your father in any way that matters. He is a criminal most foul and should be arrested forthwith. Unfortunately, that will never happen as the only witness to his crime is dead.”
“Yes, my father is a rapist and a murderer. He may not have held the knife that killed her in his hands, but he might as well have done so for his part in the entire ordeal.”
“Is there anything I can do to aid you during this troubled time?”
“You could take me back to Oliver so that I might see to his care.”
“Regretfully, I cannot do so in this storm, but I would be glad to do so in the morning after it has passed. I cannot risk your life, or my own for that matter, by riding at night in a storm such as this.”
“No, of course not. I understand. It was merely wishful thinking on my part.”
“Not at all. It was the very reason I came out to find you. I wished to bring you home safe and sound, but that will have to wait. At least you were able to get yourself safely to the comfort of your own croft. I might never have found you if you had been lost out there in that storm. I just barely found your footprints as it was. I feared the worst when I arrived home and heard of your being forcefully taken from Arkley Hall against your will.”
“Did you know I have eight brothers? Eight! They all have grey eyes just like mine, only colder somehow. It is unbelievable.”
“Yes, I knew of Enfield’s sons, but I did not know that they were your brothers. How does it feel to believe that you had no family left in this world and then to find that you have a father and brothers so near?”
“It is unbelievable,” she whispered shaking her head. “And terrible,” she admitted frowning. “He is a truly terrible man. I could have lived my entire life not knowing of his existence and been better for the lack of knowledge.”
“I am sorry, Marybeth. Truly, I am. I cannot imagine a greater disappointment for a father than that. You deserved much better than a man such as Lord Enfield. As soon as the storm passes, I will return you to Arkley Hall and you will never have to see him again if you do not wish to do so.”
“I threatened to kill him, to murder him with my own hands,” she admitted shaking, “but when I saw my brother lying on the ground, his life slowly bleeding away on the forest floor, I couldn’t do it. Deep down, my need to heal another overpowered my need for revenge.”
“And that is what makes you the most beautiful soul I have ever known,” Felix breathed, coming forward to take her into his arms. “You are of stunning beauty and intellect. I cannot resist you no matter how hard I try,” he whispered into her hair. “If you do not feel the same please tell me so now and I will walk away, but if perchance you share my feelings, I ask that you only indulge me this moment, to hold you in my arms so that I might carry the feel of you with me always.”
Stunned, Marybeth felt something within herself come alive that she had never felt before. It was frightening and yet exhilarating. Wrapping her arms around Felix’s middle she returned his embrace. She knew he was promised to Lady Cordelia Weatherton, but in that moment she did not care. In that moment, all that mattered was the feel of his arms around her. Lifting her head up to his face she gazed longingly into his eyes and found her own emotions mirrored back at her.
Leaning his head down, Felix brushed his lips ever so gently against hers. The sensation spread like wildfire through her body, igniting flames all along her senses. Leaning up on tip toe, Marybeth received his second kiss with passionate fervor. She knew it was unwise to kiss a man so, alone in a croft out in the middle of the woods. Her reputation would be compromised, but in that moment she did not care. In that moment all she could think about was the feel of his lips upon hers.
“Oh, Marybeth,” he whispered, leaning his forehead against hers. His breath brushed her lips with the tiniest sweetest caresses causing shivers of delight up and down her spine. The way he whispered her name made her mind go fuzzy and her body come alive. For the first time in her life, she understood what it meant to desire a man. She had heard her grandmother describe such sensations in an effort to prepare her for marriage someday, but she had never believed it possible. Now she knew it to be true.
Tangling her fingers in his hair she brought her lips up to his once more. She kissed him with a passion so intense that before either of them knew what was happening, Felix had picked her up and carried her over to the bed in the corner. Laying her down upon its brightly colored quilt made from Marybeth’s old dresses, Felix groaned as his good sense overcame his desire and he backed away before either of them could do anything else to compromise themselves.
“Marybeth, I want you more than I have ever wanted another living soul in all of my life, but I am not free to be with you. My heart may belong to you, but my troth belongs to another.”
“Lady Cordelia,” Marybeth murmured closing her eyes tight against the reality of their situation. She was ashamed of herself for allowing her emotions to get the better of her. She had known he belonged to another and yet she had practically thrown herself at him. In her heightened emotional state, she had reacted to his innocent sweet kiss like a spark to kindling.
“Yes,” he nodded sorrowfully. He raked his hands through his hair as he took another step back. “I am sorry,” he whispered, his own agony evident with every syllable he uttered. “Words cannot begin to express how much I desire you right now in this moment. If I am being honest, I have desired you thus from the start, and I suspect that I will go on doing so until the day I am planted in the ground.”
“Oh, Felix,” she whispered tears streaming down her cheeks. “It is I who am sorry. I knew better and yet I allowed myself to get carried away in the moment.”
“Ah, but what a beautiful moment it was,” he murmured, his eyes alight with his feelings for her.
“Yes, it was,” she smiled, blushing ever so slightly. “It is a moment I will carry with me always.”
