Page 15 of Bound to the Heartless Duke (Regency Beasts #4)

“ Y ou’re home late.”

The voice rang out before Lily could even cross the threshold. It started her into a clumsy halt, almost tripping as the hem of her skirt caught on the door.

She turned her head and spotted the shadowed figure, immediately recognizing who it was.

“Your Grace,” she greeted, her voice breathy with shock. “I didn’t think you would be home.”

“Why?” Magnus emerged from the shadows with a lazy smirk and leaned against the wall. “I live here now, remember?”

Her heart flipped at the reminder, and a flush crept up her neck.

Of course, she remembered. She remembered his domineering presence all too well.

“I can’t forget,” she said softly, meaning every word.

She took a moment to adjust her skirt and straighten her posture, noticing his state of undress.

He had discarded his coat and rolled his shirt sleeves just past his elbows exposing forearms with a light dusting of hair that made her mouth go dry.

She tugged at her skirts again, needing to do something to distract herself from the sight of him.

Magnus’s gaze sharpened slightly at that, but he didn’t press her on it.

He pushed off the wall and stepped toward her, dangerous in the dim lighting and in the predatory way he strided towards her.

The room which had been pleasantly warmed by the fire in the grate felt too heated now as her blood rushed to her face and neck.

At that moment, he looked disarmingly casual yet at ease in a way that unsettled her. As if this were his drawing room. As if this were his house.

Which, of course, it was.

“Where did you go?” he asked, his tone deceptively mild. “I was surprised when Summer informed me you weren’t home. I assumed you were in your chambers, sketching your next escape plan.”

“I was visiting the Gillingham sisters,” Lily replied sharply, even though she knew she did not owe him an explanation. “Ava and Eveline.”

She smoothed the edge of her gloves and lowered her hands to her sides.

“It’s been a while since I last saw them.”

“And did you enjoy your visit?” Magnus asked, stepping a fraction closer.

It was not enough to be improper, but just enough to make her back stiffen.

She nodded. “I did. I didn’t realize I missed them so terribly.”

The way her voice softened on the last words made his brow crease for the briefest moment.

“And what did you talk about?”

Lily blinked. “Is this an interrogation, Your Grace?”

Why was he suddenly so interested in her life?

She frowned and his smile widened. She wondered what about her reaction was amusing to him.

“Only if you have something to hide.”

Lily narrowed her eyes at him, but there was no heat in them. “Nothing that concerns you.”

“Oh, but everything concerns me now, does it not?” he murmured. “Given that I’m the villain in your family saga.”

“I never called you a villain.”

He tilted his head. “Not out loud.”

Lily scoffed, adjusting her gloves again before brushing past him toward the sideboard. With every step she took, her heart did that strange little skip it always did when he was too close.

“Don’t be too self-absorbed. It wasn’t about you.”

That should have been the end of it. But of course, Magnus would never let her have the last word.

He followed after her and went to lean against the back of a nearby settee, folding his arms lazily across his chest. “So you told them? About the house?”

“I did.” She let out an exasperated sigh. “I thought it was time they knew.”

He didn’t react at first, but the silence that fell over the room stretched out too long to be casual. Something was definitely going on in that head of his.

“I see,” he uttered finally.

His voice was calm, but Lily caught the strain beneath it. She looked over her shoulder to find that his smile had dimmed, replaced by something more guarded.

“And what version of the tale did you give them?”

Lily turned to face him fully now and put her hands on her hips. “The truth.”

His eyebrows rose.

“Most of it,” she amended, lifting her chin. “I told them about the debts. About my father’s… poor decisions. And Nathan’s gambling habits.”

His eyes narrowed slightly. “And me?”

“You,” she said slowly, wondering why he was so curious to know what she had told her friends about him. “I told them you won the house.” She shrugged. “That Nathan gambled it away, and you were the one who… acquired it.”

“And?” he asked, his voice quieter now.

“And nothing.”

He blinked, but she held his stare.

She knew exactly what he was thinking.

“You left out a rather interesting detail, don’t you think? The fact that your brother was gambling at my establishment?”

She gave a one-shouldered shrug. “I didn’t think that part was necessary.”

“Didn’t you?” His tone had sharpened slightly. “You’re remarkably selective with your truths.”

Her spine stiffened in response.

“Would you have preferred I revealed you own a gaming hell?” she asked, curious.

“I would have preferred honesty.”

She crossed her arms over her chest. She didn’t believe him.

Honesty? The owner of a gambling hell was actually preaching that?

“If I had told them, Eveline would have gasped, Ava would have whispered something about scandal, and then they both would have looked at me like I was drowning in sin. I don’t need their pity, and you don’t need their judgment.”

Magnus stared at her for a long moment. Then, slowly, he lowered his arms to his sides and took a step forward.

“You are sure that’s everything you told them?” He raised an eyebrow.

The words didn’t necessarily catch her off guard. She could tell there was something he was searching for. Something beneath her mask.

“I’m protecting myself,” she responded too quickly.

His mouth twitched, but there was no humor in it. “Protecting yourself? You have no idea how more dangerous that sounds.”

When he took another step closer, she felt it again.

That crackling tension in the air whenever they were alone.

It was maddening, the way their thoughts always seemed to seep into the silence, as though speaking on their behalf.

Worse still, the memory of the kiss flashed through her mind at that moment.

Magnus took another step toward her. She watched as his eyes slowly traced her face, trailing from her eyes to her mouth and back again.

Her breathing grew heavy. “Don’t.”

“Don’t what?” His voice was thick, like velvet wrapped with steel.

“Don’t look at me like that,” she whispered, trying so hard to keep her composure. “Not after what happened.”

He didn’t answer, only took a step closer like she had expected.

“You’ve been thinking about it,” he said softly.

It was a statement, not a question. As if he had read her mind all along.

“I haven’t.” She looked away defiantly.

“Liar.”

She swallowed. “You said it was a mistake.”

“I never said that.” He shook his head. “ You said it.”

She faltered because she knew she had no excuse. She could feel her pulse thundering in her ears.

“I came back from visiting friends,” she tried, her voice trembling. “Not to walk into another war.”

“Then stop fighting me,” he murmured, stepping even closer now. His tone was silky as sin, trying to lull her into thoughts she had no business thinking of yet his face remained teasing and playful, like they were just having casual discourse. “And I will ask again.”

“You left out the part about me owning a gaming hell?” he repeated slowly, cautiously.

“Like I said, I didn’t think it was necessary.” Lily hugged her middle.

“Didn’t think it was necessary,” he muttered under his breath.

Lily eyed him for a moment. “Since you are bothered about it, I guess I was wrong to think you might appreciate me not spreading scandal,” she said carefully.

“It isn’t scandal to me, Lily.” Magnus shook his head slowly. “It’s life. Survival.”

Her eyebrows drew together at his words.

Why was he suddenly making an art out of a business that stole people’s money, assets, and lives?

“You mean to call a scam the most beautiful way to survive?” she scoffed.

He didn’t answer at first. He just stood there, his jaw working, his arms folding slowly over his chest.

“Do you know what it’s like,” he said eventually, his voice rough, “to grow up with the kind of responsibility beyond your lifetime?”

Lily blinked. But before she could answer, he continued.

“Cecilia was just a child when Father died. I was a boy. There was a particular time that was rough for both of us. I had onlya title men coveted yet I was saddled with debts I had had no part in making. A pile of them. And a sister who needed shoes more than I needed pride.”

Lily softened, despite herself. “So you started the gaming hell.”

“Started?” Magnus let out a humorless laugh.

“No. I worked at someone else’s gaming hell at first. A man who would slit your throat if you failed to turn a profit by the hour.

I scrubbed floors, served drinks, and delivered threats.

Eventually, when I learned the ins and outs of the business, I built something better. Cleaner. Safer.”

“You made a fortune off other men’s vices,” Lily said.

It was not an accusation, rather an observation.

“And used it to put a roof over my sister’s head. To send her to the best schools. To keep her away from the damned world I had to crawl through.”

Lily fell quiet after that, not knowing what to say, not knowing how to articulate how she felt.

“I’m not ashamed of what I built,” Magnus continued, the muscle in his jaw ticking. “But sometimes I forget that your kind prefers sin to come dressed in silk and jewels.”

Lily frowned. “That isn’t fair.”

“No?” Magnus challenged, taking one last step closer, the firelight catching the gold flecks in his eyes. “Would you have still come to my house if you knew the truth from the start? Would have still befriended my sister if you knew about the dirty work her brother had to do?”

“I did come,” Lily whispered. “And I remained, even after I knew.”

That seemed to silence him for a second. For a moment, he did nothing but stare into her eyes, searching for something.

“And yet,” he said after a beat, “you still told your friends the… neater version.”

“I didn’t lie,” she insisted. “I just?—”

“Omitted,” he cut in, his lips quirking into a sarcastic smirk. “Brushed the dirt from the roots, so no one would question why the flowers are blooming in winter.”

She exhaled, frustrated. “Why are we fighting over this?”

“Because you matter,” he said without thinking.

The silence that followed was sudden and absolute.

For the first time, Lily failed to hide her shock.

Her breath caught. “What did you just say?”

Magnus’s expression hardened. “Forget it.”

“No.” she answered, meeting his eyes with her own, ensuring her tone spelled all the defiance she had summoned to say the word.

At her nearness, his gaze flicked to her lips, then back up.

“I said,” he rasped, “you matter. And maybe I hate that. Maybe I hate how much.”

Her throat worked as she swallowed. “You shouldn’t say things like that.”

“You kissed me back,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “Or did I dream that?”

Her lips parted, stunned by the memory of the kiss. “That was… that was…”

“A mistake?” he finished. A ghost of a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “Because it didn’t feel accidental to me.”

“I wasn’t thinking,” she insisted, her argumentative spirit resurfacing. “I was angry.”

“You still are,” he noted quietly.

Like always, he read her easily like an open book.

“And you’re still impossible,” she bit back, her eyes narrowing slightly.

“I warned you about me, Lily. Long before any of this happened. Since you befriended my sister,” he murmured. “Long before the kiss.”

“I’m still trying to forget that,” she muttered.

“You don’t look like you’re trying very hard.” His voice was soft and low now, far too intimate.

When he leaned in, she didn’t retreat. She couldn’t. There was hardly an inch of space between them now, barely a breath. Her fingers curled at her sides, her breathing growing shallower by the second.

“Do you regret it?” he asked.

She paused, before letting out a shaky breath.

“No,” she said. “Yes,” she quickly added. “I… I don’t know.”

His eyes dropped to her mouth again, but this time, they lingered, tracing the seam of her lips.

“Would you stop me if I did it again?” His eyes flicked back to her own.

Lily’s chest rose sharply in response.

“Would you?” Magnus asked, his tone more serious now.

“I should,” she whispered.

“But you won’t,” he pointed out, lips only a scant distance from hers.

If she were to tilt her head only a little, they would be kissing yet she couldn’t.

Her heart rate quickened. She should move. She should?—

Step back, Lily! a voice at the back of her head screamed.

Magnus didn’t kiss her. Not yet. He just stood there, letting his proximity speak for him.

“I can’t afford another mistake,” Lily said softly.

Magnus lowered his head, and his warm breath fanned her cheek. “Then don’t make one.”

She blinked up at him. “I don’t trust you.”

Magnus’s smirk returned, barely. “Good. I’m not the sort of man you should trust.”

Even though he was slightly bent, his tall frame still loomed above her shorter one. Their noses brushed for a split second, their foreheads almost touching.

Everything was too still. Too heavy.

When she thought he was going to lean even closer, footsteps sounded down the hall, sharp enough to interrupt them.

Lily stepped back immediately as if burned. And although Magnus’s expression didn’t change, the heat in his gaze simmered lower.

“You’re safe, Lily,” he said quietly. “But I won’t pretend around you. Not anymore.”

She didn’t even know what to say. So all she gave was a faint nod before turning around and walking away from him.

At the door, she looked over her shoulder at him. “I didn’t tell them about the gaming hell because it’s none of their business.”

He looked up.

“And because,” she added, “part of me didn’t want to share that part of you. Not yet.”

Then, she stepped out of the room, leaving Magnus standing there for a long moment, his hands in his pockets as a strange ache twisted in his chest.