Page 38 of A Duke for Stealing (The Devil’s Masquerade #4)

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

“ T hat bastard,” Everett muttered, watching Maxwell as he got into the hallway.

He didn’t take more than two steps out before Hugo and Dominic appeared on either of Maxwell’s sides.

“What do you think you are doing?” Maxwell demanded.

“We are Everett’s insurance policy,” Hugo replied, a menacing grin spreading across his face as he looked down at Maxwell.

“Can’t have you ignoring His Grace’s demands, can we?” Dominic asked, cocking his head as a devilish smirk twitched on his lips.

“I did not start the rumor, I only heard it,” Maxwell pleaded.

“Does not matter,” Hugo said with a shrug. “You were the one stupid enough to believe it. Now you will be the one to fix it.”

Dominic then snatched Maxwell by his jacket. Both of Everett’s friends looked into the room and nodded to him before proceeding to drag Maxwell away. Everett nodded back, thankful that despite his recent temper, his friends were still loyal to their brother-like bond.

“Rose,” Everett said softly, turning his full attention to her once Maxwell was gone. He caressed her cheeks, and hated that he winced when his touch met her jaw. “Are you sure you are well?”

Pure love shone in Rose’s eyes as she looked up at him, making his knees weak with joy. Then she closed her eyes and, for a moment, sagged into his touch. He let out a breath and kissed her forehead, unable to hold back such tenderness.

Then his heart wrenched painfully as she slowly raised her head and stepped back from his touch. She then took two more, wrapped her arms tightly around herself, and when she opened her eyes again, her eyes remained on the floor.

“I should like to go home now.”

Her voice was so soft, so meek, that it broke Everett’s heart further. He nodded as he reached his arms out toward her, but as he did so, Rose took another wary step back. It was then he realized. She still did not trust herself around him. She still did not know how deeply he was in love with her.

“Of course,” Everett murmured, his shoulders sagging in defeat. “We shall leave straight away.”

He then turned to Ophelia, who, for the first time, looked at him not with malice but with pity.

“Would you be so kind as to help her to the carriage?” He implored. “I shall run along and ensure that it is ready for our departure.”

“Of course,” Ophelia replied.

Everett’s heart then finally shattered as Ophelia went to his wife, and he watched as Rose willingly went into her arms instead of his.

He hurried away to fetch the carriage, not able to bear the longing to be in Ophelia’s place.

In the carriage, his heartache only worsened as Rose sat silently across him, still holding herself tightly.

He hated the red marks on her jaw. Hated that he hadn’t been there to stop Maxwell from touching her in the first place.

It would never happen again, though. Not even Rose distrusted him the rest of his life. Not even if she openly despised him or ridiculed him. He was not letting her out of his sight ever again.

“Lady Rose!” The twins greeted her in their usual manner, rushing to hug her. They both stopped short, however, as they saw the sad looks on both Rose and Everett’s faces and the bruises on Rose’s jawline.

“Lady Rose, are you injured?” Leah asked.

“Shall we nurse you back to health?” Diana added.

“I am perfectly well, my darlings,” Rose answered, her tone weaker. Everett noted how her smile was even weaker, and he moved to his knees before the girls.

“Lady Rose just needs a rest,” he told Diana and Leah. “Would you two please run along? I promise she will come to you as soon as she is able.”

The twins, usually so full of questions, only obediently nodded this time, and after saying ‘feel better, Lady Rose’ in unison, they both hurried up the stairs to their nursery.

“Rose, please,” Everett implored, rising to his feet. “Allow me to escort you to your room. I will not touch you, if that is what you wish, but I beg you to allow me this.”

Everett held his breath as he waited for her answer, and it came out as a shuddering gust of relief when she answered with a simple nod. As promised, he did not place a hand on her, but he kept his pace to hers and had a hand hovering at her back, just in case.

“Thank you,” Rose murmured when they reached her rooms, “For saving me.”

She still wouldn’t look at him.

“Do not thank me,” Everett replied, his tone thick with disgust, “It is my fault that such an opportunity was even open for Maxwell to take. I should have never given you a reason or need to leave my side.”

Rose’s brows dipped as her chin wobbled, but she did not answer.

“There is something I need to say to you, Rose,” Everett went on, “Something I have needed to confess since you returned.”

“Please,” Rose whispered, looking more weary than ever, “Can we wait until tomorrow?”

For a moment, Everett considered agreeing. Then his memory flashed back to the ball. To the look of utter terror on Rose’s face as she was being dragged into that darkened room. No. He could not wait a moment more.

“I’m sorry, Rose, but no,” he apologized, “I am afraid I cannot.”

Even as Rose finally looked up at him with a pleading look, Everett shook his head and guided her toward the couch in her sitting room. Her brows rose slightly with surprise as he then got down on his knees before her and took her hands into his.

“I cannot tell you how happy I am that you are safe,” he rasped, rubbing his hands over hers, “But as I said earlier, I need to apologize for putting you in harm’s way.”

Rose cast her eyes down again and shook her head.

“It was not your fault,” she replied. “The blame lies with whoever started these awful rumors.”

Everett felt another flash of anger as he recalled his conversation with Ophelia.

“There is blame to be had there, yes,” Everett agreed, “And you and I will get to that shortly. “For now, though, I need to claim my part in today’s tragedy. I hurt you, Rose, and for that I am deeply, deeply sorry.”

“It was I who misunderstood what our marriage was,” Rose replied.

“No, you did not misunderstand anything,” Everett adamantly replied, his grip on her hands tightening.

Rose finally met his eyes again, her brows drawn in confusion.

Everett pulled in a steadying breath, gathering his courage and his thoughts.

“The day you left, you demanded the truth of me,” he began, “You were brave enough to meet my eye and ask me to speak my feelings, and I-I was a coward that day and lied to you.”

Rose went still before him, save for the subtle shake of her head.

“I lied and said I did not love you,” he went on, taking a shuddering breath, “Because the truth was too terrifying for me to accept. That a man like me could be so infatuated with a single person-well, it seemed impossible after the selfishness of life I had otherwise lived.”

“When my brother died and left me my niblings,” he surged on, “I knew I had to provide as normal a life for them as possible. It was the only reason I accepted that I needed to marry. They needed a mother figure as well as a father figure to look after them after all they’d lost. I had foolishly thought that the season’s diamond was the best choice, but I was wrong.

And Rose, you saved me from that. You saved my niblings from that. ”

“I love Leah and Diana dearly,” Rose replied, her tone achingly soft.

“I know you do,” Everett quickly assured.

“And it was you who showed me that I could love them, too. I must confess that, before we married, I saw only duty when it came to my nieces. The duty to raise them, protect them. However, I had not yet formed a bond of love for them. You did that, Rose. You showed me that I could do more than that. That I could also cherish and love them as if they were my own.”

“Stop,” Rose begged, attempting to slide her hands from his, “Stop making this so difficult for me. You do not need to create such follies so that I will stay and care for the girls. I told you already that I would not leave them.”

“It is no folly,” he hastily replied, refusing to let go of her hands.

“That I did not love you was the folly, for I love you, Rose. I love you for the way you care so deeply for my niblings, and I love you even more for the way you care for me. You saw through my tricks and called me out on them. You demanded better of me because you knew I was more than what I was used to.”

Rose parted her lips as if to speak, but Everett rushed on.

“You did not try to force me from my world, but instead chose to trust me to lead you into mind and Rose, when we went to the Devil’s Masquerade, when we shared what we did, it was as if every single thing I had ever wanted, ever dared not even dreamed for, was within you.

Just you. Not in the arms of many but a single, impossibly amazing person.

Do you not see that there is not a single thing you have left undone?

“You have healed my nieces. You have risen to the stature of Duchess with grace, and you have looked into the very core of my rather dark needs. Instead of finding me too difficult, you simply opened your arms and welcomed them all. You are everything, Rose. Everything.”

Rose’s chin began to wobble again as her eyes began to water. She tried to look away, but Everett leaned forward and gently pressed his forehead to hers.

“I love you, Rose,” he whispered reverently.

“And I will never stop apologizing for what my lie did to your precious heart. You never deserved such pain. Not after everything you have done to bring out the best in me, but in my nieces. They are laughing again, hugging again, because of you. We love you. So very much.”

A sob broke from Rose’s lips as she leaned heavily against him, and Everett could not hold himself back anymore. He let go of her hands and wrapped his arms around her waist, lowering his head into her lap in a forfeiture of power.

“Forgive me, Rose,” he begged, holding her tightly. “Forgive me.”