Page 106 of Bound By the Duke
“I’ll be leaving now,” Aurelia whispered, her lungs burning.
“Are you sure about his?” he asked suddenly.
That was the crack in his armor. A question laced with something akin to desperation. His voice was quieter, lower, as though he didn’t trust himself to speak any louder.
Her lips trembled. She wanted to scream, No! I’m not sure. I don’t want to leave. I want you to want me. To claim me.
But her pride was stronger, her wounds too fresh.
“I am,” she whispered, each word slicing her chest open.
Percival’s jaw clenched, and for the briefest moment, he looked as though he might break. His fingers flexed once, twice. He swallowed hard, then asked carefully, “How did Lottie take it?”
That question broke her more than anything else. Her anger melted into sorrow.
“She cried.” Her voice hitched slightly. “She cried, Percival. But I promised her that Sir Whiskerton would keep her company.”
An image of Lottie’s tear-streaked face flashed before her, making her heart twist.
Percival’s eyes darkened, and he gave a slow nod. “If that is what you wish.”
Her breath caught.
That’s it? That’s all?
Her blood boiled as her hope was shattered into tiny pieces.
Bowing stiffly, she whispered, “Very well.”
Then, she turned away and walked out the front doors of Whitmore Estate, each step feeling like knives were stabbing through her chest.
By the time the carriage reached her parents’ house, Aurelia’s throat still burned with unspoken words.
The wheels stopped, and then she saw her family waiting outside. They had received her letter, of course.
Her mother stood with her arms folded, her father was eyeing her narrowly, while Nora and Louis stood beside them, their faces contorted with worry.
The moment Aurelia stepped out of the carriage, her mother’s voice rang out. “Aurelia, what is the meaning of this?”
Her father’s voice followed, firmer and deeper. “Did you quarrel with the duke?”
Her stomach knotted.
Of course. That is what they fear most—that I have ruined everything.
Aurelia schooled her features into calm and forced a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “I came to help Nora with her debut.”
The twins looked unconvinced. Nora’s wide eyes softened, worry etched on her brow. Louis shifted uncomfortably, clutching his hat in his hands.
“Are you certain that is all, Aurelia?” Lady Scovell pressed.
Aurelia forced herself to stand straighter, though her throat still burned with everything she had left unsaid back at Whitmore. “Yes, that is all. I simply… needed to be here.”
Her voice cracked slightly at the end, but she lowered her head before they could press further. Before they could see the tears at the corners of her eyes.
“I’m tired,” she croaked. “I’ll rest now.”
She walked past them, feeling their gazes on her back. Yet the heaviest was Nora’s. Her sister’s soft, knowing eyes that saw too much.
