Page 42 of A Duke in Pursuit of Passion
When Nate finally spoke, Ella could never have been prepared for what he might say. “When we return to London, I shall ask your father for your hand.”
Utterly shocked by his words, Ella immediately pushed herself onto her elbow to look down at him.
“Why would you do that?” she asked, her heart racing. She wanted so desperately to hear the correct answer, to hear that it was something he had always wanted ever since they had been children, to hear that she hadn’t felt heartbreak and abandonment at his leaving all for nothing.
But instead, he told her, “I have taken your virtue. It is the right thing to do.”
His words twisted like a knife in Ella’s heart. And it was at that moment that she realised she had allowed herself to go too far. She had well and truly fallen in love with him without any thought to the consequences. She had allowed him to have her not once but multiple times, and all because she loved him more than she had ever loved anyone in her life.
And here he was, talking about doing the right thing. Was that truly the only reason he would ask her father for her hand?
Throat constricted and suddenly feeling as though she could not breathe, Ella pushed herself into a sitting position and turned her gaze away from him.
Gripping hold of the bedsheets to pull them up to her chin, her knees pressed up to her chest, she played with a thread upon the sheet as she told him, “There is no need.”
“Excuse me?”
Nate rolled onto his side and propped himself on his elbow to look at her.
“I don’t want to be theright thing to do,” she told him, still not able to look him in the eye. Instead, she stared at the thread she was winding around and around her finger. “There is no need to ask my father for my hand when nobody shall ever know about this … this thing between us. Whateverthisis.”
She could feel the heat rising in her cheeks, and all she could do was hope that he would not be able to see it in the near darkness of the room.
Clearly disturbed by her words, Nate sat bolt upright beside her and seemed to try to meet her gaze. Unable to allow him to do so, she turned her face away from him, her hands tightening in the sheets.
“It is my responsibility now more than ever to see that you are protected from anything that might bring a scandal to your family,” Nate protested, “even if that thing is me.”
“I do not need protecting from you,” Ella protested though something in her gut told her that might not be entirely true. Her heart was already breaking at his words. “Besides, there can be no scandal when nobody will learn of this.”
For a second, she turned to look at him, glaring in a challenging manner to see if he meant to tell anyone about what had come between them.
“And seeing as I do not intend to marry at all, it need not cause any problem,” Ella continued when he looked as though he would offer some kind of protest.
“You do not intend to marry?” Nate asked, sounding more than a little confused. “When we were children, all you ever used to go on and on about was getting married and having children and being the grand lady of a big house.”
At his words, Ella felt the embarrassment flushing her face and right down her neck.
“I was a child then,” Ella protested. “I have learned the true meaning of marriage since then, and if it is out of mere obligation, I do not desire it.”
“Ella, I …” Nate started to protest all over again, but at that very moment, there was a knock on the door.
Heart leaping into her throat, Ella couldn’t help looking at Nate, her eyes wide with concern. “Who … who could that be?” she hissed under her breath.
“This is your room,” Nate pointed out, his own voice low. “Ask?”
“Who … who is it?” Ella asked, struggling to speak up.
“It is Mac … Mr Murphy, My Lady.”
Again, the two of them looked at each other, slightly started.
“He must have information,” Nate said, and before Ella could even think of what to do, he called more loudly, “Get in here!”
Shocked beyond belief, Ella pulled the bedsheets up even higher. Only the easygoing and aloof expression upon Mr Murphy's face when he entered the room eased Ella's anxiety over his finding them in bed together.
He must have already known, or why would he have come to report to Nate here?she realised, and somehow the thought that the nobleman was unbothered helped to ease her own concerns.
"Forgive the interruption, My Lord, My Lady," Mr Murphy said. Though he had always had a slight hint of a Scottish accent, the longer they were there, the stronger it grew. Ella wondered whether one day she would struggle to understand him, but for now she could. "But I have information that could lead to Lady Louisa's whereabouts."
