Page 3 of My Blind Duke (The Twisted Dukes #5)

“ B e careful Your Grace!” The steward rushed forward and stopped William from bumping into a table that seemed to have been placed in the middle of the entrance hall.

Swearing under his breath, William Wordsworth, the new Duke of Pemberly pushed away the arm thrust in his path and steadied himself. “Let me be, Robert! I am not an invalid!”

From what he could tell, the entrance to the manor seemed littered with furniture, creating an odd maze of blockades that intercepted each route he tried to take.

“What the devil is going on in here?” His voice echoed across the empty hall.

William had hoped that things would be sorted out upon their arrival, yet it had been a few minutes since he had entered the house and he had yet to make it past the damned foyer. His muscles ached from hours of traveling, and he longed for a bed. “Where is the butler to receive us?”

Dealing with a disorganized house had been the last thing he had wanted after arriving so late. By his reckoning, it must have been just after midnight when his carriage arrived at the estate.

Clearing his throat, the steward took a step back. “There seems to have been a party of sorts, Your Grace. We will have to be careful where we step,” the man answered him with a heavy note of concern in his voice.

“Are there no servants to put everything back in place? I was told that this house was fully staffed,” William grumbled loudly before picking his way through the mess and finding the stairs.

Hurrying to keep up, the steward fell into step. “Your family solicitor did state that the house was fully staffed, Your Grace. But I suppose that cannot account for the proper management of the house.”

“I will see about that as soon as I find someone in charge.” William gritted his teeth and clenched his jaw as he found the banister to guide him up the stairs. Not wanting to waste any more time, he proceeded to explore the chambers along the corridor. All the doors that he tried yielded empty rooms with no response.

“There seems to be someone down the corridor, in the master’s bedroom, Your Grace. I see some light.” The steward rushed forward and placed his hand on the furthest door before being pushed aside.

“I think I will be going in alone, Robert. Whoever is responsible for this mess will answer to me.” William placed his hand where the steward’s had been and pushed the door open before stepping into the room.

It had been a little while since the party ended and Prudence had found out that it had not helped her relax at all.

The conversations felt stilted and tiring and many of the guests were only there either for the entertainment and drinks, or to gauge if she really did have what it took to kill her husband. She was thankful once it had ended and immediately asked her lady’s maid to draw her a bath.

She knew the warm water would do her a lot of good, and likely silence some of the bothersome thoughts and began to undress eagerly.

“I wonder what he is like,” she had mumbled quietly as she stepped out of her dress, as she suddenly recalled what her solicitor had told her.

He must be quite difficult for Mr. Henry to have sounded so worried for her well-being. Perhaps that was why he had not been close enough to her late husband – resulting in his late discovery as an heir.

Nonetheless, she would not allow him to dismiss her as one would an insignificant bother. She intended to face him directly and state as much.

Now fully stripped, Prudence walked over to the bathtub and sighed as she dipped her fingertips into the almost hot water.

“Perfect,” she smiled, preparing to settle in the water.

Her toes had barely touched the water when the door flung open and a man marched inside.

Prudence stepped back and screamed, horrified.

“Just who do you think you are?” Prudence raised her arms and covered her breasts.

The door shut behind him and a rush of cool air kissed her bare skin, sending chills down her spine as she eyed her robe a few feet hanging on a rack to the right, between them.

His broad shoulders cast a heavy shadow on the door at his back as the man took a step forward and Prudence took in a shaky breath, expecting a brute that was as unattractive as his manners.

But the first thing she noticed was his eyes – possibly the brightest shade of blue she had ever seen. As he squinted at her, Prudence recalled her current bare state and adjusted her shapely legs to hide her nakedness. Sending her maid away once her bath had been drawn, suddenly seemed like a terrible idea.

“I am the new Duke of Pemberly,” he held his strong jaw in the air while refusing to look away. “I should be the one asking you what you are doing here.”

So, this is he. The heir.

The longer she stared at his face, the harder it became to look away. His hair was shorter than she had imagined, with dark curls hanging over his forehead. She had expected someone older somehow, but his cleanly shaven face told her that he was in his thirties. As her eyes wandered down his larger form, Prudence’s heart could not help but twist in appreciation of his toned and muscular body, especially when he folded his arms.

Prudence was left with no choice but to admit that the man was handsome.

“Just what has happened in this house? Are there no servants to clean up or receive the guests?” He said when she did not utter a word, taking another step closer, further pointing out her rather serious predicament.

“D-Do not come any closer. I will scream! I swear I will. Duke or not, you have no business in my chambers!” She backed up until the back of her calves connected with the edge of her bed.

Panicking, she almost let go of her breasts before catching herself just in time and keeping her hands over her nipples. Her firm breasts bounced slightly from the movement, making her wish, for the first time in her life, that she had at least a corset on.

“That might just do the trick. I have been shouting since the moment I arrived, and I have yet to find a single servant. Or do they only answer to the mistress of the house?” The man took another step toward her, making her heart race faster when his lips curled into a teasing smirk.

Why does he keep staring at me like that?

Was he so accustomed to walking in on naked ladies, that he hardly batted an eye when he saw one?

His indifference to her compromising and vulnerable appearance made her slightly uneasy as her chest began to rise and fall with every breath. The friction on her nipples made them harden as she squeezed her breasts a little tighter.

The door suddenly opened again, revealing a tall, thin man with greying hair and distinguished features. “Your Grace, I merely wanted to check and see if…” His eyes widened in shock as they fell on Prudence’s naked form in front of the tub.

“Get out!” She screamed at the top of her lungs and attempted to cover her thighs while reaching for a bar of soap and hurling it across the room.

The man slammed the door shut, but not before Prudence had stumbled forward, landing in the arms of the duke.

His hands moved to steady her but then lingered on her back, feeling her skin with the tips of his fingers before reaching the top of her buttocks. “What… Why in God’s name are you naked?!” His voice was steeped in disbelief as he held her up straight, gripping her waist firmly.

Her nipples brushed against the steel muscles of his chest as she braced herself against his body, sending a jolt of something hot down her spine.

She tried pulling away from his touch as she sputtered. “I have been naked this entire time! How are you just realizing this now? I was preparing for a bath when you so rudely barged into my chambers!”

“Then why did you not say so when I walked in?”

“Why did I–” Prudence stuttered, confused, irritated and embarrassed. “I would not have needed to if only you had knocked! With all due respect, Your Grace – if you really are who you claim to be – the one in the wrong here, is you. It is common courtesy and a sign of good manners to knock before entering a closed room. You did not do that and you have now put me in this rather humiliating predicament. This is not my fault. Unhand me. Now.”

The duke stood his ground silently for a moment, looking as though he was staring right through her with his brilliant blue eyes, lips pulling into a smirk.

“That was never my intention. What would I derive from intruding in on a woman in such a compromising state?”

His assumption was preposterous and just as her lips parted to let him know as much, Prudence came to an odd realization.

It was not as though the room were dimly lit. She could see him clearly enough, and he had been looking right at her the entire time. So why had he been so surprised that she was naked?

“Could it be… Did you really not see that I was naked?” she said out loud without thought.

Prudence inhaled deeply as she examined the brilliance of his blue eyes. The centers of his irises were crystal clear, while the outer edges were dulled with a milky hue.

He was blind.

As a twinge of pity pierced her heart, the smirk on his lips suddenly gave way to a dark look of disdain.

Perhaps he does not like it when people mention his lack of sight.

“Your Grace, I apologize for overstepping, I–”

With an angry look in his eyes, he reached out and held her chin, his voice dark and low as he stated, “I do not need to be able to see to feel you squirming in my arms, Duchess.”

A strange feeling came over her, leaving Prudence breathless and confused.

Why am I feeling like this?

“Are you nervous, Your Grace?” His mocking tone caressed her ears when she did not respond, his lips parted into a mischievous grin.

“Yes... I mean no, I am not.” Her breaths came in sharp bursts as he used the back of his fingers to trace a path up her side, stopping just shy of her breast.

“I am warning you. I am not sure what has happened in my absence, but I run a tight ship. Things are about to change around here.”

Her eyes locked on his as she attempted to cleanse her mind of the illicit thoughts gathering within. “Forgive me, Your Grace, but you do not seem like a sailor to me. Do you have pirating abilities that I should be aware of?”

The corner of his mouth twitched ever so slightly as he leaned in closer, his lips lightly brushing against her ear. “That smart mouth of yours is going get you into trouble someday, Your Grace. I have heard all kinds of things about you, so I suggest you do your best to remain on your best behavior, while I am here.” He lifted his hand and touched her lower lip with his thumb, gently tugging it down.

Swallowing nervously, she nodded slowly. “I shall keep that in mind… Your Grace.”

“I will be taking these chambers for my own. If you are going to stay in my house, you had better ensure you are properly attired in the future. I cannot promise that I will let you go if I find you naked in my chambers again. As I have established, I am the new duke and henceforth, my word is law in this house,” he stated firmly, finally releasing his hold on her and stepping back.

The feelings of exhilaration that flowed through her body mingled with fear and uncertainty as the duke backed away.

“You may get dressed and get out.” He spared her a final glance before striding from the room, making Prudence wonder just how much he could see.

Her legs finally buckled as she gave into the emotions that had caught her off guard. Shaking her head, she stared at the closed door that hid her naked body from the new Duke of Pemberly.

What was that?

Her body had never reacted this way to a man before. Not even her husband had made her shiver with a simple sentence.

“What am I thinking?” She whispered angrily to the room at large before falling back on the bed and covering her face with a pillow. There were many things she had pictured when she had thought of the new heir. Even a distant relation to Scotland perhaps with a balding old man boasting a toothy smile. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined the strappingly handsome duke and his piercing gaze.

Those eyes…

She grumbled into the pillow and removed it from her face as she stared at the ceiling. The confident way that he carried himself had been misleading to her. She would never have known that he was blind if it had not been for the tips of his fingers moving over her body.

What will he even think of me now?