Page 23 of A Duke for Hire (The Devil’s Masquerade #1)
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
“ T here you are,” Seraphina said, smiling as she finally found Hugo.
Though she was a tad disheartened by waking up alone, she had put it behind her and dressed quickly. She wanted nothing more than to get back to their life in Merrivale.
Hugo turned away from the hearth upon hearing her voice, giving her a straight-faced look that instantly made her panic.
“I am glad to see you are ready to go as I am,” she ventured, nodding toward the gray dawn light from the window. “I know it is early but I thought we could skip breakfast and leave straight away. I already have maids wrapping up some ham and bread for our ride.”
A look of pain passed along Hugo’s face before he turned away from her again, making her heart stop. Something was definitely wrong.
“I’m not going,” he murmured, keeping his eyes focused on the fire.
Seraphina staggered as she took a step forward, confusion and hurt hurdling through her.
“What? Do not be silly. Of course you are going. You want to be back in Merrivale just as much as I do.”
“I will stay here,” Hugo replied, his tone growing insistent. “You may stay at Merrivale as long as you wish. It is your home now. I want you where are you happy.”
Seraphina hurried toward him, but when she tried to put a hand on Hugo’s shoulder he stepped away, putting the space of the room between them.
“I owe you an apology, Seraphina.” Hugo stated, avoiding her gaze. “It was never right for me to pursue you. To change you. You had a clear path to what you wanted and in my selfishness I took you from that.”
“I do not understand this,” Seraphina whispered, feeling a pain slice through her chest. “What are you speaking of? We have already discussed this, you are whom I wanted!”
“And you have now had me,” he snarled, making her flinch. “You are established as my wife with our consummation and you are now free to live as you please. Away from London and everything else that surrounds your past. That is what I promised and that is what I have given. A life without anyone pressuring you.”
Seraphina’s mind tumbled back to the night she accepted his proposal. Yes, that was all had promised her. Not love, not romance. But freedom from her old life. From society.
“I thought there was more,” she whispered, pressing her hand to stomach.
It roiled angrily, and she suddenly felt as if she were going to retch.
“Obviously there was,” Hugo retorted coldly. “There was no doubt of the desire between us.”
“Was?” She echoed.
“Desire can be taught by many a man, Seraphina,” he went on, “Don’t allow your education to stop simply because I no longer want to teach you.”
Seraphina felt her throat close up as tears welled in her eyes.
“You don’t…you don’t want me anymore? Now that you- now that we have— why ?” She demanded, tears trekking down her cheeks. “Why did you do this? Any of this, if you did not want me?”
A look of remorse flickered through Hugo’s eyes before he cleared his throat and looked away.
“You said it yourself, Seraphina. I have an urge to protect the weak. The helpless. This time I simply took it too far.”
Her very breath felt stolen from her as she opened her mouth. She couldn’t inhale, couldn’t exhale. Just tremble as her legs threatened to buckle beneath her.
“That’s all I was? A project you took too far?”
Hugo said nothing as he kept his eyes on the flames.
“Answer me!” She screamed.
“Yes.” He grit out, his eyes snapping back to her. “Much too far. But I need to do the right thing now and back away.”
Something between a humorless laugh and a heart-wrenching sob tumbled from her chest. How? How, after all they had revealed last night, could this be true?
“I guess the rumors were true,” she said in a shuddering breath. “You do destroy women. I just did not think it would be this way.”
A horrid, aching sound came from Hugo as she turned her back to him, and though her entire being begged her to stop, Seraphina pushed herself forward out of the room and all but ran to the carriage.
“Your Grace,” the carriage driver said, his tone full of worry as he saw her hurrying outside.
“Get me away from here this instant!” Seraphina demanded, fighting to find breath.
The driver reached toward her shoulder, but seemed to think better of it, and took a step back. His mistress was usually a kind, even tempered woman, but this- this was someone else.
“Are you all right?” He asked, “Where is His Grace? Is he not coming back with you to Merrivale?”
“No he is not,” Seraphina sobbed, covering her face as best as she could with her kerchief. “And neither am I.”
Even if it was hers now, she could not go back. Not without Hugo. Even if it had become her home. There was no way she could enter any room and not look for him. She gave the driver Theo’s house number as the footman helped her into the carriage.
The moment the door closed, Seraphina doubled over, and a brutal, guttural cry poured from her. And it did not stop, even well after she reached Theo’s home and was pulled, with utter confusion into the collective embrace of her friends’ arms.