Page 18 of My Blind Duke (The Twisted Dukes #5)

“ Y ou imbecile, they are still uneven. Do it again.”

Henrietta winced and nodded, taking Clementina’s plate away to start her task of cutting the elderly woman’s food into perfect squares.

According to Prudence’s count, this was the fourth time she had been asked to start over, and usually, she would feel immensely sorry for the woman. But tonight, she could not bring herself to care.

She was filled with conflicting emotions for the duke, who sat in his usual spot, aggressively cutting into his steak as though it had offended him.

Prudence had understood his frustration and anger, but did he value his pride more than his daughter? Would it have been so difficult to explain to her the reason why it was hard for him to play with her rather than dismiss their efforts as a waste of time?

It was frustrating how he managed to rile her up so much.

“Finally, you mutton-headed ingrate. I was starting to believe you intended for me to starve. Can’t you do anything right?” Clementina hissed at her companion.

“I am sorry, my lady,” Henrietta sniffed, looking quite pathetic.

Prudence sighed and raised her glass of wine to her lips, trying to ignore how uncomfortable the dining hall felt. Clementina’s ramblings were one thing, but neither she nor William had said a word to each other all evening.

She had not even expected him to show up for dinner. Prudence tried to prevent her thoughts from straying in his direction, disturbed by how they kept switching from pity to disappointment.

Noticing her glass was empty, she beckoned a footman closer to refill it.

“Have you heard about Lady Knox’s scandal? She was caught in bed with her gardener!” Clementina announced, lifting her glass of water to her lips. “Disgraceful, truly. Apparently, he was meant to be the groundskeeper of the estate when her husband was away on business. As it turns out, he was also keeping Lord Knox’s side of the bed warm. No matter how the shameless woman begged her husband, he refused to ignore the offense. I heard she was roaming about, visiting her friends to see which one would let her stay with them in their homes. But so far, there have been no takers. I cannot say I am surprised, though.”

Prudence tried to focus on just her dinner, hoping she could quickly clear her plate and leave the dining hall, intending to visit Melanie.

The poor dear had fallen asleep after crying so much, and Prudence had carried her to her bed and tucked her in snugly. She had told Melanie’s governess to wake her up later to eat something, but she was worried that Melanie might ignore the request.

“Although she was truly an embarrassment, that and more can be said about Lady Beatrice, who was seen canoodling with a dear friend of her betrothed only the day before their wedding. From what we have heard, she had been seeing the lout even before Lord Simon had begun to court her, but she wanted to marry Lord Simon for his wealth. All these women and their needless and constant thirst for fortune they are not entitled to are a blithe upon society. Her parents have disowned her, and her family has turned against her. As to be expected because no one wants such a woman under their roof,” Clementina continued, jumping when the duke stabbed a piece of meat with such force they heard the dish crack.

Prudence merely picked her wine up again, drinking nearly half the contents of the glass, pleased with the warmth she could feel spreading to her body.

She just needed a moment. A moment where she felt unburdened and unbothered by all that was going on in her life. A lot of what was happening did not concern her directly and she felt tired that her efforts to help had been slowly building her own helplessness until it was staring her in the face.

She felt exhausted and weak at heart, and she needed a moment of reprieve to collect herself–

“Your Grace, pardon my boldness, but I believe it would be best to have this false duchess removed from this house. Her presence is not only disturbing but highly inappropriate considering her reputation,” Clementina said suddenly.

“False duchess?” Prudence laughed, perhaps longer than necessary. “That would imply that your nephew was a false duke, Lady Clementina. Do not start problems you do not have any solutions to.”

“Your threats mean nothing to me when I am well aware of who you are. Your reputation carries a stench that has spread far and wide. Everyone knows what you are. How shameless must you be to carry yourself so boldly?”

“My reputation? What about my reputation has put you in such a frenzy that you believe the best place to confront me is at dinner?” Prudence questioned, irritated beyond measure.

“Do not act like you are not aware of your sins. Everyone knows that you are a murderous woman with a plethora of lovers, like a farmer with a herd of goats. You have disrespected your late husband by engaging in immoral acts, to the point of entertaining more than one man at a time. You are precisely like your father! Incapable of loyalty and self-control. If I remember correctly, it was his skirt-chasing ways that led to his demise, was it not? I heard what people said, about how he was found dead in the bed of his mistress. I knew you would only further soil Anthony’s good name! Have you no shame–”

“Do not talk about my father!” Prudence snapped angrily, eyes filling with bitter tears. “What gives you the right to–”

“You greedy wench–”

Clementina jumped as William’s fist came down on the table, sending a loud thud echoing through the dining hall.

“Get out,” he snapped, glaring at Clementina. “Now.”

The woman quickly lost her formerly antagonizing expression.

“Your Grace, please pardon me this once. I am merely worried for your well-being and that of your little bra– I mean, your little daughter’s. I had advised my nephew several times not to marry this cunning woman, and he went against my wishes to do it. He did not even get to see the sunrise after his wedding. I merely want what is best for you. You have worked so hard to restore our home, and I know our dear Anthony would be grateful. But his gratitude is soiled by her presence, Your Grace. And I think–”

“You are somewhere between bold and daft to believe that I have any desire to listen to your thoughts. I do not care for you or whatever goes on within your head. I want you out of this room, now. Before I have someone haul you out of the house,” William told her, his voice cold and hard.

Not wanting to get caught in the middle of this as she was last time, Prudence emptied her glass and rose to her feet to leave.

William immediately turned in her direction. “No. You should stay.”

The frustration that had been brewing within Prudence finally morphed into anger, and she could not help but snap,

“Why? Do you wish to question me about the rumors? To hear my side of the countless affairs I have been having? Was this the reason you approached me in the first place? To hear the story straight from the horse’s mouth?”

William was on his feet before she could blink, and he marched toward her, grabbing her arm before he dragged her out of the dining room.

“Let me… let me go!” she protested but he did not stop or falter.

Soon, she recognized the direction they were going in as the path to his study, and she huffed, falling silent. When they arrived, the duke dragged her inside the room, shut the door, and pressed her against it.

“You are the most infuriating woman I have ever met,” he stated bluntly.

“You did not need to bring me all this way to tell me this. Why did you not join Clementina on her quest to humiliate me? It might have saved you so much trouble, and you would have given her the validation she has desperately sought from you since you first arrived,” Prudence mumbled, trying to push him away.

Only for him to reinforce his efforts to keep her trapped between his arms, with nowhere to run to.

“I do not wish to talk about another woman – much less an old crone so dissatisfied with her life, she is just full of spite. No, I want to talk about you. You mentioned my arrival. It is somewhat ironic of you to do that, seeing as you have done your very best to drive me mad ever since I set foot in this house. You confuse me, you provoke me. Every day, all day, I am torn between so many thoughts of you. I want to kiss you, to choke the light from your eyes, to protect you from all those who have sought to rip you apart like vultures,” he lowered his voice, adding softly. “I want to send you away in hopes that it will provide me with some peace of mind. And yet… I do not know what to do with you, Prudence.”

The sound of her name from his lips lifted the fog of anger from her mind and something in her ached to bend to his will.

“Do you believe them?” she asked instead, unable to look away from his eyes, noting how dark they looked in that moment. “The rumors about me. Do you believe I am a woman of loose morals after… after what has transpired between us?”

“No,” the shake of his head was immediate and insistent. “If anyone was immoral, it was me, for putting my desires onto you. At the very least, it was ungentlemanly. And I–”

“Do not. Do not feel burdened to do right by me or to take responsibility for me. I do not expect anything from you, neither do I deserve it. But you owe it to Melanie to do right by her. She deserves better from you.”

The frown on his face told her he was confused by the sudden change in the trajectory of their conversation. So much so he lowered his arms and stepped back.

“She feels rejected by your behavior. She loves you so much and aches to be a part of your world – someone that you acknowledge and give your attention to. But the way you treat her makes her believe that you do not love her,” Prudence explained carefully.

“That is ridiculous. I would give my life for her. I want to try and do better, but I doubt I can. Not when I have been so set in my ways. I do not know what to do, what to say–”

“Do you not understand?” she interrupted him gently. “Melanie has already made all the necessary first steps toward you. She has worked so hard, time and time again, to give you both common ground to meet on. You do not need to do much more than meet her halfway. I know you are scared and worried, but I also know that if you try, you can do this. Because what she does not understand is that she makes up a large part of your world and you would not be able to live if you did not have her by your side.”

William nodded. “You are… you are right. I will do better. Try harder.”

Prudence smiled at him and reached for his hand, giving it a little comforting squeeze.

“That is all she asks.”

The duke nodded again, then he dropped his gaze down to where their hands were interlocked. Prudence inhaled sharply as she noticed that they had somehow managed to draw closer once more.

Prudence could not remember who took the first step. Perhaps they had met each other halfway. Perhaps he made the leap for them.

All she knew was his lips were suddenly on hers and she was melting in his arms. William tugged her impossibly closer, his hands roaming over her body, tracing the contour of her flesh, kneading and groping as his mouth moved against hers hotly.

All the need Prudence had managed to stifle, every bit of want she had managed to bury, came pooling at the surface, pulling her beneath the currents of desire. She clung to his shirt as he teased her lips apart with his tongue, the taste of whiskey on his lips making her feel hot.

She squealed indignantly when he picked her up and carried her to his desk, his lips still attached to hers. A small moment of clarity appeared within Prudence’s mind and she pulled back, putting her hand over his mouth when he tried to kiss her again.

“We…” she panted and swallowed hard. “We should not do this, Your Grace. All it does is confuse us because it never leads anywhere. Perhaps it would be best to exercise–”

William pulled her hand off his lips and surged forward to kiss her, smiling at the way she leaned into the kiss before he pulled back.

“You are… you are right. This will be the last time.”

Prudence felt her resolve weaken at his words, realizing that this man before her was far more dangerous to her than she had thought. Still, she licked her lips and let him pull her closer by her waist as she muttered,

“One last time.”