Page 26 of Bound to the Heartless Duke (Regency Beasts #4)

T he first sign of trouble was the thunder of hooves.

Lily looked up from her writing desk, startled by the unmistakable sound of a carriage trundling furiously through the grounds. It was early, too early for callers and visitors. Especially those who come in a dramatic rush.

And there was only one person who dramatically entered her life in such a manner.

She quickly rose to her feet and crossed to the window just in time to see a blur of ivory and navy blue coming to a halt before the front door.

“Oh no,” she whispered, her eyes widening.

Before she could even think to warn anyone or her maid, the carriage door flew open. Almost immediately, a familiar voice rent the morning air.

“Magnus bloody Wyndham!”

Lily jumped at the sound, before bolting from her room and stepping out into the hallway. But she was too late; the damage had already been done.

Cecilia.

She was dressed in a traveling cloak that looked far too fine, seeing her disheveled appearance. With energetic feet, she marched across the foyer, her husband trailing behind her with a sheepish expression that indicated he had tried and failed to slow her down.

“You didn’t tell me in the letter it was Lily!” Cecilia cried the moment she laid eyes on her brother, waving a crumpled paper in the air. “I thought it was some terrible joke!”

Magnus, who had been reading a book in the front parlor, now stood stiffly by the fireplace, his book still clutched in his hand, while he raised the other one in a silent plea for his sister to calm down.

“Cecilia.”

“No. No, you don’t get to Cecilia me right now,” she snapped, turning on her heel, apparently looking for someone.

And when Lily stepped in the room, she perked up as though she had found the person.

“ You !” She said, pointing an accusatory finger at Lily.

Lily blinked, stopping dead in her tracks. “Good morning?”

Cecilia gasped, clasping a hand to her chest as if the mere sight of her friend had confirmed the greatest betrayal. “You’re marrying my brother.”

“I am,” Lily said calmly, though her toes trembled in her shoes.

“How could you?!” Cecilia cried.

At that moment, Theo caught up with the three and took Cecilia’s arm, trying to calm her down.

He dragged a hand over his face. “She’s been like this for the last thirty miles.”

“You lied to me,” Cecilia said dramatically, spinning back toward Magnus, who looked like he was calculating the odds of survival. “In this… this pathetic little letter, you wrote: Thought I should inform you that I’ll be marrying Lily Starks. The house is settled. Regards .”

She waved the letter again.

“What is this?” She spread out her arms. “A grocery list? A note to your tailor? You’re marrying my best friend, and all I get is a sentence ?!”

Magnus cleared his throat. “It was two sentences.”

That earned him a glare. “Don’t.”

“I thought you’d prefer the news in writing,” Magnus tried, raising his hands in surrender.

“I almost set the letter on fire,” Cecilia snapped.

“You still might,” Theo piped up with his signature smirk, folding his arms across his chest.

Cecilia looked between them, her brow creasing with a mix of confusion and outrage.

“I need tea,” she stated. “ And answers. Not in that order.”

Lily cleared her throat. “The drawing room is ready.”

“Oh, good. The setting for a formal interrogation. Lovely.”

Within minutes, the four of them were seated in the western drawing room. Cecilia was still clutching the letter as if it might self-destruct, and the air was thick with anticipation, the sort that precedes a play.

Lily and Magnus sat together on one settee while Cecilia and Theo sat across from them.

Tea was served, though only Theo had touched his cup. He sipped at it with the calmness of a man who understood the importance of staying hydrated during battle.

Cecilia picked up her teacup for a sip, only to rethink her decision and set it down with a click. “Explain.”

Lily sighed. “It’s not as dramatic as it sounds?—”

“You’re marrying my brother,” Cecilia interrupted, her brow furrowing.

“Yes,” Lily said. “That part is dramatic,” she conceded.

Magnus coughed into his fist to hide a smile, and she shot him a look.

“We’re betrothed as of this week,” he explained evenly. “The announcement hasn’t been made public, and it was all rather… quick.”

“Quick?” Cecilia scoffed. “The last time I left the country, Lily hated you.”

“I didn’t hate him,” Lily interjected.

Cecilia almost gasped at the sudden change in attitude.

“You threw a spoon at his head,” she pointed out, watching her with disbelief.

“It was a small spoon,” Lily muttered, looking away.

“And now you’re engaged?!”

Lily cleared her throat before letting out a deep sigh. “Things changed.”

Magnus remained silent throughout, his expression unreadable.

Cecilia looked between them, suspicion flickering behind her eyes. “So, tell me. What exactly changed between hatred and lifelong vows?”

Magnus raised his eyebrows. “The usual things. Circumstance. Conversations. Tense moments.”

“Not helpful.” Cecilia pursed her lips.

Magnus leaned back in his chair, looking entirely too amused. “She asked, I said yes.”

Lily’s eyes widened, and she elbowed him. “That’s not what happened!”

“Well, it was a little bit like that,” Theo chimed in, as though he had been there when everything happened.

Lily shot him a glare, and he hid a smile behind his mug.

Cecilia was watching the three of them like a hawk. Then, after a moment, she asked, “Does this have anything to do with Nathan?”

Tense silence ensued. Probably because of the look Lily and Magnus exchanged.

“In part,” Lily finally replied.

“What part, exactly?” Cecila’s voice softened.

Magnus exhaled slowly and rested his hands on his knees. “There were certain… arrangements.” He paused, carefully choosing his words. “Nathan had made some questionable ones regarding Lily’s future, so I offered an alternative.”

Cecilia frowned in confusion. “What kind of arrangements?”

“An engagement to someone else,” Lily replied. “Someone I could never possibly?—”

Suddenly, a new voice sounded from the doorway. “Ronald Bailey.”

They turned their heads in the direction of the voice.

Nathan was standing at the door, still groggy from sleep. He stepped into the room with a yawn and absolutely no sense of timing.

“You’re all up terribly early. Was someone shouting earlier, or was that just a dream?”

Magnus’s unreadable expression turned into one of anger once he saw her brother.. “Nathan?—”

Nathan blinked, before taking in the seating arrangement. “Oh, are we talking about the marriage?” He let out a dry laugh. “Yes, well. Quite the thing, isn’t it, dear sister? Can’t believe Magnus agreed to marry you after winning the house.” He stepped closer to the group of four.

Cecilia blinked twice. “Excuse me?”

Even Theo set down his teacup, looking up at Nathan for more information.

Oblivious to the fact that he was making things even worse, Nathan continued, “Especially since I bet our house at his?—”

Magnus stood up at this point. “Nathan.”

His fists clenched at his sides. But it was too late.

“Gaming hell,” Nathan drawled.

The truth of his words fell heavily on Cecilia like a boulder.

She slowly turned her head towards Magnus, her expression shifting from confusion to shock to barely contained horror.

“You what?”

Lily stood up, too.

The damage was already done. However, Magnus moved fast, crossing the room in two long strides. He glared at Nathan with enough force to silence him and while Lily wished to throttle him, she didn’t want the duke doing so.

Nathan did keep quiet, but not because he was intimidated. She knew he only did so because he was sure he had already spilled what he had intended to,

“Get out,” Magnus bit out, clearly struggling to keep his temper even.

“You don’t want your in-laws to be present in your wedding preparations?—”

“Now.”

Nathan’s mouth opened. He had more to say. However, he closed his mouth, before turning around and leaving.

He had barely disappeared into the hallway when Cecilia marched towards her brother, still reeling from the revelation.

“He gambled the house?”

Lily winced at the fury evident on Cecilia’s face, guilt eating at her that her brother had caused such a disaster. The gambling hell was a side to him Magnus never wished for Cecilia to see.

“And he gambled it at your hell,” Cecilia emphasized, shaking her head in disapproval. “Do you—do you really own a gaming hell?”

Magnus stared at his sister for a moment without answering and in that moment, Lily pitied him. It was clear he was haunted by the truth he had wished to keep hidden from everyone, especially Cecilia.yet he squared his shoulders as if preparing for battle.

“Yes,” he said evenly.

Cecilia turned to Lily, a dozen questions flashing in her eyes, along with a maelstrom of emotion. Confusion, betrayal, even a touch of judgment.

“You knew?”

“I did,” Lily breathed.

“And you still agreed to marry him?”

“I did,” she repeated, her voice firmer.

The silence between them grew brittle despite the distance between them.

Until Lily stood straighter and spoke again, her tone not so soft this time around. “He took care of you.”

Cecilia blinked, before giving her a quizzical look.

Lily lifted her chin. “That gaming hell you’re so quick to judge? That fortune you think tainted? It gave you shoes, Ceci. Books. Music lessons. A future. He bled for it.”

Magnus fixed his gaze on her, clearly caught off guard by her words.

Although she knew he was looking, she didn’t turn to him. Rather, she continued.

“He made something out of nothing,” she said. “So, if you’re looking for reasons why I said yes, you can start there.”

A beat passed. The two women stared at each other for a long moment.

Until Magnus spoke, his voice lower. “Would you excuse us?”

Lily and Theo looked at him, but he was watching Cecilia, the look in his eyes gentle.

“Can I speak with my sister alone?” he asked.

Without hesitation, Lily nodded.