Page 64 of The Scarlet Lady's Duke of Desire
But eventually, they made it safely to the drawing room where she found both the duke and her father awaiting them.
Though they had both been seated on opposite sides of the table beside the fireplace, the duke jumped up the second that the door opened. As soon as he had straightened up from bowing, his gaze lifted to meet Melody’s and the whirlwind of emotion she found there took her breath away.
More slowly, her father rose from where he had been seated and offered the duke a bow. The duke barely acknowledged the fact, never taking his eyes off Melody.
Melody only managed to pull her gaze away when her father stepped before her. Before she really knew what he was doing, he gripped hold of her upper arms, leaned down and placed a kiss upon her forehead.
“We shall give you some privacy,” he announced, looking between her and the duke.
Melody’s heart leaped into her throat.
She had no idea what to say when her father leaned down and whispered into her ear, “Ultimately, the choice is yours, sweetheart. Whatever you decide, your mother and I shall support you.”
This time he kissed her cheek and Melody’s gut twisted with surprise when he whispered again, “Either way, you have my blessing.”
She could not bring herself to even dare to believe what he might mean.
“The door shall remain ajar,” her father announced and with that he and his wife were gone from the room, though Melody suspected that they would not be far. Nor would Jenkins or the other servants, not with a duke in the house.
Still, Melody remained right where she was, unable to move or speak or even blink. All she could do was watch as the duke crossed the room to stand before her.
“Miss Thornton, you have no idea how much I have missed you,” the duke proclaimed, his words causing Melody to feel flushed all over.
It was in that instant that she too realised how much she had missed him. She had thought of him often, her heart aching, but it was only at that moment that she truly knew just how much she had longed to be near him.
“Your Grace,” she said, her voice trembling as she dipped into a curtsey; her wits finally returning.
He hooked his finger beneath her chin and forced her back to her feet. Shaking his head, he growled, “You need never bow to me again. It is I who should bow before you.”
Melody was utterly gobsmacked when the duke dropped down onto his knees before her. She opened her mouth to question him but found she could not find the words as he gripped hold of her hand and held it in both of his. He squeezed for a second before he asked the fateful words, “Miss Melody Thornton, would you do me the honour of becoming my wife?”
Melody’s lips trembled. She tried to speak. Nothing would come. Her hand trembled in both of his. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. All that had happened over the last few weeks came rushing back to her, all the pain and heartache, all the uncertainty and the frustration, never sure where she might fit in.
She blinked her eyes closed and allowed herself for one moment to imagine that he was serious, that he was asking her to spend the rest of her life with him. And as she thought of it, of the wedding all dressed in white, the manor house in the countryside walking through fields of wildflowers, the children that would frolick before them, she realised that there was nothing she could possibly want more.
Eyes flying open, she responded, “Yes, yes, Your Grace! I will marry you!”
In an instant, the duke shot onto his feet, carrying her up into his arms and spinning her as though she weighed little more than a feather. Melody squealed with glee, feeling as though she was melting into him.
And not a second after her feet touched the ground once more, the duke’s lips were upon hers. It was a swift and passionate kiss that lasted only a moment, but it was enough to solidify in Melody’s mind that the duke was entirely serious even without his saying, “You have no idea how terrified I was that you would say no. I feared I might lose myself forever if you did. You have entirely changed me, Miss Thornton.”
He rested his forehead against hers as he spoke, holding her face in both of his hands.
Speaking in barely more than a whisper, he added, “I feared I might die without feeling a single real connection in my life but from the moment I first asked you to dance, I felt it. And I cannot live without it.”
Feeling the tears begin to stream down her face, Melody pushed herself up onto her tiptoes and kissed him back, whispering against his lips, “You shall never have to.”
Again, he pulled her close and kissed her. Melody felt a shockwave of emotions surging through her. Shock turned to happiness and happiness turned to overwhelming joy. Never in her life had she imagined she would ever be so happy.
Then she heard her mother clearing her throat just on the other side of the door and reality came rushing back to her.
“I have just one request,” the duke whispered even as he pulled away, clearly having heard her mother’s warning also.
“Anything,” Melody breathed.
“You must call me James.”
Melody turned her gaze up to him and smiled with tears still streaming, “Well then,James,you must call me Melody.”
