Page 24 of Bound to the Heartless Duke (Regency Beasts #4)

“ Y ou did what?”

Lily closed the door gently behind her, her fingers still curled around the brass knob.

Her heart lurched at her brother’s tone, but she refused to show it, keeping her expression calm and handling the furniture calmly.

Nathan stood with his back turned to her, and she could see the tension in his entire frame. His shoulders were tight, his fists clenched tightly as if he were trying hard to tamp down his rage.

When he finally turned around, her heart almost sank to the floor. His face was flushed with a mixture of rage and disbelief.

“I asked you a question,” he growled, a deadly edge to his voice. “Tell me I didn’t just hear what I think I did.”

Under different circumstances, Lily would have surrendered, wishing to please her brother because she believed family came first, even before personal sentiments.

This time, she lifted her chin before moving further into the room as if she hadn’t spent the last hour trembling in her chambers, trying to convince herself that she had made the right decision.

The decision to get married to Magnus.

“You heard correctly, Nathan,” she stated evenly, smoothing the bodice of her gown. “Magnus and I are getting married.”

It seemed that the worst sounded even more ludicrous the second time of hearing it, for Nathan opened his mouth and let out a breathless laugh.

“Married,” he spat out. “You’re marrying him ?”

She released a deep sigh. “I am.”

“You’re marrying the man who took our house—” He broke off at the look she shot him.

Lily couldn’t comprehend her brother’s end goal. He kept playing the victim, as though he had not been the one who visited Magnus’s gaming hell of his own accord.

But rather than pointing that out, she settled for something else.

“And who gave us time we never deserved,” she reminded, the reprimand in her tone obvious. “Time you were gambling away, Nathan.”

His face paled, but only slightly.

“You had no right,” he hissed.

“Oh, now you’re an authority on rights?” she scoffed, stepping toward him. “You weren’t willing to face him. You weren’t willing to save this family. I did what needed to be done.”

“I gave my word to Bailey!” Nathan barked, unable to contain his rage anymore.

She paused, his words slowly registering, before barking out a laugh.

It wasn’t a light, girlish laugh. It was something darker and harsher. The kind that mocked his audacity, that ridiculed the fact that he seemed to believe that Ronald Bailey mattered.

How ridiculous.

Eventually, her laughter tapered off, yet her shoulders vibrated slightly with mirth. “And what exactly is the value of your word these days?”

Nathan stiffened, his eyebrows rising slightly at her confidence.

“I’ve spent the past month cleaning up after you,” she continued with another dry chuckle.

“Lying to our friends, managing the staff, watching everything Father built disappear piece by piece. I’ve defended your name, Nathan— our name—while all you have done is go back to gambling dens and striking shady deals.

And now you come here, crying betrayal?”

“You’ve ruined everything,” he said in a bitter tone. “I had a plan. To take back the estate and to build our fortune,” he added, trying to sound convincing.

Her eyebrows knitted slightly, her gaze cooling as it met his.

She shook her head. “No, Nathan. You had a delusion.”

For a moment, Nathan just stared at his sister.

“Delusion?” His jaw clenched. “You say that to me, Lily?”

She simply looked at him, offering no response.

Eventually, he spun around and stormed towards the door.

“We will fix this. We will call off this wedding,” he muttered, before grabbing the doorknob.

Lily gave a quiet laugh. “I’d love to see you try.”

Nathan stepped out of the room and slammed the door shut. The bang echoed through the room, but when it faded, Lily realized one thing.

For once, she wasn’t afraid.

Magnus was sitting in his study when Edwin came to pay a visit two days after he and Lily had signed the marriage contract. They sat across from each other, an unopened bottle of wine and a basket of fruits set on the table between them.

“It seems I have come at a bad time.” Edwin mused stepping into the door, Timothy coming in beside him bearing a bottle of wine.

“Not at all, Gillingham.” Magnus answered. “It is always a pleasure to have you. I wasn’t expecting you today.”

“I happened to have secured a few bottles of exquisite wine in my latest shipment and wanted to share some with you.”

“Indeed? It is indeed most fortituous that you have come.”

“Indeed.” Edwin answered.

They waited till Timothy had poured the wine and left them before speaking.

“What seems to have set such a gruelling frown on your face?” Edwin asked sipping at his wine. “I don’t know if I’ve just made the most brilliant decision of my life,” Magnus said, picking up his glas and taking a sip as well, “or the most suicidal one.”

Edwin leaned back in his chair and crossed a dark brown boot over his knee. “Depends.” He shrugged. “Why did you make such a decision? Out of affection?”

Magnus gave him a warning look. “That’s obviously not it.”

“Ah.” Edwin grinned as he reclined further in his chair. The man’s penchant for enjoying others’ misery annoyed him. “So the lady marries you, secures her future and takes your name, but gets no warmth. How very gallant of you.”

Magnus took a slow sip. The port burned just enough to remind him of the heat that rushed through him when Lily signed the marriage contract the previous day.

“It was the only way,” he answered finally, but it seemed more like he was assuring himself.

“To keep her out of Bailey’s arms, or out of yours?” Edwin questioned, studying him closely.

Magnus didn’t answer.

Silence settled over them, punctuated by the crackling of the fire in the hearth. The two men sipped their drinks in silence and Magnus was once agaian lost in his thoughts about his current predicament.

He had seen Lily’s countenance fall when he had handled the matter of their marriage with the same efficiency with which he did his usualy business dealings but while he had been plagued by guilt all the while, he didn’t want to give her the impression that their marriage was anything more than that.

He enjoyed her presence and theirs could be a union full of passion filled nights but Lily was not a woman that would be comfortable with just that. She would begin to desire things he couldn’t give her and end up more miserable than he would have liked.

Suddenly, the door burst open, drawing their attention instantly.

Magnus looked up, his eyebrows knitting together.

Nathan stormed in, his face red and his eyes wild, as though he had walked straight from a storm.

“I demand satisfaction,” he declared.

Magnus turned slightly in his chair. “Pardon?”

“You heard me.” Nathan’s eyes flicked over him, flashing with resentment.” I challenge you. To a duel.”

Edwin blinked once and set down his wine glass. “Well, that escalated quickly.”

Magnus rose slowly from his chair, his wine glass still in hand, his expression unreadable. “A duel?” he repeated, like he was tasting the absurdity of the word. “And on what grounds, exactly?”

Nathan hesitated, letting out a dry chuckle. “I—You compromised my sister?—”

“She’s your sister,” Magnus said coldly, “not your property.”

Nathan laughed again, and it was more natural this time. “Oh, so now you know that? Don’t act as though you weren’t a menace to Cecilia and Theo.”

Magnus clenched his jaw. “Well, the experience taught me something, didn’t it? That sisters aren’t property. Women are not property.”

“They are also not for you to ruin!” Nathan exclaimed. “Because this marriage will ruin my sister, you selfish bastard.”

That did it.

Magnus set down his glass with a deliberate calmness that scared Edwin himself. Then, he turned around and stepped forward, his expression cold and detached.

“You have already done that,” he said, his voice low. “Every time you picked up a deck of cards and pretended it was a solution. Every time you drank away her options. Every time she had to beg for help on your behalf. You ruined her, Medlin.”

Nathan swallowed hard. He opened his mouth to respond, but no sound came.

“So, let’s not pretend,” Magnus continued, stepping closer. “Let’s not pretend that this is about honor. This is about pride. Yours. Your bruised ego.”

He fixed Nathan with a hard look. “And whatever plan you had with Bailey, whatever you promised him, ends now. Do you understand?”

Nathan didn’t reply. Obviously he had common sense to keep whatever protests he had to himself.His displeasure was evident in the way his jaw was clenched so tight that the veins at his temples throbbed but it was also clear that his bravado was dissolving like ink in water.

Eventually, when there wasn’t much to say left, he jutted his chin. “I will ruin you,” he threatened.

“You already tried,” Magnus drawled. “You just lost.”

Nathan’s breath hitched. He glared at Magnus for a few more seconds before turning on his heel and hurrying out of the room.

The ensuing silence was absolute.

Edwin let out a low whistle. He had been quietly sipping his drink throughout.

“Well,” he muttered, eyeing Magnus carefully, “you’ve truly gone and done it now.”

Magnus didn’t respond. He wanted to ask what he had done, yet he stood still, staring at the door.

“Not to be a bore,” Edwin added casually, “but you’re already losing your grip, old friend.”

“Meaning?” Magnus turned back to him.

Edwin smiled into his glass. “You told me this was strictly business. That you could keep your hands to yourself.”

Magnus’s jaw tightened. “And?” he prompted, averting his gaze.

“You can’t,” Edwin stated simply, downing his drink.

Magnus wished he could say his friend was wrong but he knew the man was right as he usualy was but he would be damned before he admitted it to the smug man.