Page 19 of Her Rogue of a Duke

He was caught off guard by her question. “What?”

She raised the paper. “You seem to be looking for someone. This letter is inquiring about an update on your search. Who are you looking for?”

Joshua released a heavy sigh. He must have been mistaken.

Shaking his head, he strode toward her. Snatching the letter from her hand, he folded it up before stuffing it into his back pocket.

“It is nothing,” he quickly told her. “How about a drink? It will help you warm up.”

Francesca studied him for a moment and he could see she wanted to ask him more about the letter. Nevertheless, she kept whatever curiosities she might have held at bay and nodded, accepting his offer of a drink. “Yes, thank you.”

Joshua moved to the whisky decanter and poured two glasses. Turning back to her, he handed her one. She accepted it, putting it to her slightly pale lips and wincing at the first taste, but continuing to sip it like a feline taking its water as she drifted toward a nearby table. She set something down on the table’s surface and then moved away. Intrigued, Joshua approached the table to examine what the object was. It appeared to be a necklace with a green stone pendant, visibly cracked and scratched.

He looked up at Francesca who was perusing a shelf of books, her drink still in hand.

“Why do you keep this?” he asked. “It is damaged, after all.”

She glanced back at him over her shoulder and shrugged. “It was broken a long time ago, but it was my mother’s. It is one of the only things I have of hers and I could not bear to part with it.”

As she returned her attention to the bookshelf, Joshua looked back down at the pendant. He ran a finger along the crack and felt a strange sensation in the pit of his stomach. It was a… longing that he could not quite explain. Withdrawing his hand from the pendant, he walked away from the table, pushing that sense of longing away and focusing back on Francesca.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Joshua watched as Francesca continued to explore the bookshelves, taking in his collection of books. He found himself somewhat anxious to hear her opinion of his collection, which surprised him. He was not certain why he cared what she thought all of a sudden.

Taking a sip of his drink, he asked, “So tell me, are you fond of reading, my lady?”

She glanced back at him and nodded. “Very much so, Your Grace. It appears that you share in the same interest too.”

“Indeed,” he smiled.

“This library is quite remarkable,” she commented, her tone a touch awe-filled. “I have never seen a personal collection so expansive.”

Joshua chuckled. “I can hardly take all the credit. My predecessors began the compilation and collection process long before I was born.”

That earned him a grin over her shoulder. “Still, it is evident which are your favorites.”

“Oh?” That intrigued him. “Which ones would those be, and how can you tell?”

She gestured towards a section of shelves, wearing a confident smirk.

“These are the most prominently displayed,” she explained. “And they are noticeably less dusty compared to some of the tomes in the harder-to-reach places.”

He raised his brows, impressed. “Rather observant of you. Perhaps you are more astute thanI gave you credit for.”

She scoffed and rolled her eyes before sarcastically replying, “Oh, bless you, Your Grace, for such lavish praise.”

Joshua's grin broadened as he observed Francesca delicately tracing her fingers along the spines of his favorite books. Her hand paused, and she carefully extracted a book out from the row it was tucked in before examining its cover more closely.

“I love this book,” she murmured before turning her eyes up at him. “You like it as well?”

She held up the book so he could see which it was. It was a romance novel rich with emotional depth, but perhaps more significantly, a vividly depicted battle that Joshua found rather captivating.

“Yes,” he nodded. “It is one of my absolute favorites.”

Francesca looked surprised at that. “I would not have guessed you would enjoy such books, given your rather notorious reputation.”

Amused, Joshua probed, “Oh? And what, precisely, is the nature of said reputation?”