Page 17 of An Accidental Bride for the Duke
The problem, he was now beginning to realize, was his wife. Worse than that, it was how hefeltabout his wife.
He had never meant to be so attracted to her—dammit, this whole thing would be easier if he weren’t. But it was no good denying the obvious. Physically, he found her dark green eyes and pouty lips mesmerizing. He loved the way her porcelain skin clashed with her dark brown hair. And he worshipped her soft curves, his mind constantly going back to the sight of her in that light shift…
But he found too that her fiery temperament and bold personality were just as tantalizing. She was meek and easily cowered, but there was a fire inside of her that roared to life when she didn’t get her way. Like a petulant child on the constant verge of throwing a tantrum, Philip relished the idea of putting her in her place and reminding her who exactly was in control here.
Even now… Philip tried to focus again on what he had been doing but his heart continued to pump red hot blood through his veins so that his legs shook and his crotch hardened.
Dammit! I’m the one who is meant to be in control here, but she has me. Oh, how she does…
That kiss had been an accident. What he was supposed to do was lean in close, have her moving for his lips, and then pull away at the last minute. Again, to show her that he was in control.
Alas, no sooner had he started moving for her did he give in because he wanted to taste her. And the effort it took to pull away was beyond what he thought himself capable. She was so innocent. So naive. And so in need of his guidance. What was more, shewantedit. That was undeniable.
Not thinking, Philip rose suddenly and strode across the room. His thoughts on his wife, his need to see her again. She would be eating supper right now and it would be so much fun to join her and tease her again.
Philip forced himself to stop short of the door. He cursed himself and turned around, back to his desk where he could not bring himself to sit.
He was a man of two minds.
One wanted nothing to do with Iris. To keep as he had been and double down on his express decision that this marriage be one of convenience only. He never wanted to marry. He certainly didn’t want to fall in love. And he hated the idea of being besotted by someone so that he had no control over his actions.
The other mind wanted to test the limits of this control. Not because he wanted to make this marriage work, but because he wanted to prove that he had the power here. To bait his wife, to punish her further, to see just how far he could push it…
In the end, Philip forced himself to sit down. Just as he forced his mind to stop focusing on the physical and think about the practical. At the end of the day he was married to Iris, theywould live together for the rest of their lives, and such a state of living could not work if he couldn’t control himself around her.
Tomorrow… I need to prove that I have what it takes to control myself. That I am the one in control and not her.
He came to a decision then. Trying to avoid Iris simply wouldn’t work. It would only frustrate her. It would lead to another incident like this one. And when it did, Philip couldn’t say if he had what it took to deny himself a second time.
What he needed to do was create boundaries. Better than that, he needed to remind Iris that this was a marriage of convenience only. That she had no reason to hate him. That she and he could live together peacefully. And most importantly, that what happened between them moments ago would never happen again.
Was Philip capable of such a thing? He liked to think that he was. But he supposed that tomorrow would prove that for fact. A day that he was both dreading and excited for in equal measure.
My wife… whatever comes of this, our marriage promises to be anything but boring. Not what I wished for from this marriage but what I have got from it. For better or for worse.
Chapter Seven
“What are you doing here?” Iris asked rudely before she could stop herself.
“Excuse me?” Philip asked her, a smirk on his lips that told he saw how put out she was… and how much he enjoyed it.
“I did not mean it like that.” She took a deep breath. “I just did not think to see you here, is all.”
“Where else would I break my fast?”
“I was told you liked to eat in your office.”
“Often, that is the case,” he agreed, still with a sense of humor. “But this morning, I thought I might do the more traditional thing and eat at a table. Wicked of me, I know.”
Iris had not been expecting to see her husband today. In fact, she did not think she would see him again for some time. After what had happened the previous evening, she had determined that unless he came to her, she would not go to him.
For my own safety, if nothing else. I lost control last night, and it was all I could do not to give in completely… which I likely would have done, had he not stopped me.
She had done much thinking since then and as strange as it sounded, she was forced to admit that the duke was right. This marriage was not a normal thing, they had agreed on that, just as they had agreed not to pretend otherwise. She did not want to spend any more time with him than she had to, and he was of the exact same mind. Or so she thought…
It was thus that when she came to break her fast this morning the last thing she had expected was to find Philip sitting at the table waiting for her. Hence, her confusion.
“Is there a problem?” Philip asked coyly, noting the way that she hovered in the doorway. It was a sunny morning and for the first time since they had married, the light radiated around him so he seemed to glow.
