Page 62 of The Duchess and the Beast

“Oh, this is for me,” he assured her. “I was getting tired.”

She looked at him flatly and he winked.

Despite her frustrations, Virtue was not one to look a gift horse in the mouth either. This version of Sebastian might not be the fiery, intense man she had fallen for, but his tenderness in these trying times only deepened her appreciation for him. She recalled the loneliness and fear she had felt during the incident, and the clarity it had brought about her feelings. This beast of a man, fierce as a tempest yet gentle as a breeze, had utterly captured her heart.

She loved him. She knew that now. And where she yearned to tell him so... she held back, not wanting to confess her true feelings while she was in this dire state. What if he thought she was only saying it because of how sick she was? What if he only said it back because he pitied her? No... best to wait.

As they sat there, however, her on his lap, watching one another, a new desire suddenly rose inside of Virtue. One that had lain dormant for a while now, on account of her lack of energy. But she was feeling better, she was wrapped around her husband, and she was very grateful for how he had been treating her... so why not show him?

She flashed her eyes at Sebastian and he frowned. “What’s that look?”

“What do you think?” she giggled and leaned in, kissing him.

As expected, he returned it fully. A passionate kiss that awoke something inside of her. She twisted her body and wrapped herlegs tightly about his waist. She drew him in, one hand grabbing him by the back of the head, and—

“Wait.” He pulled back and leaned away. “Virtue... I think we should wait.”

“What? What for?”

“You are not well – you can barely cross the garden.”

“So?!”

“So...” He grimaced. “I do not want you to strain yourself... if anything should happen—”

“It won’t!” Virtue interjected sharply, her patience thinning.

“It might,” he countered rightly, saw the pout on her face, and smiled softly. “Just a few more days,” he then assured her, touching gently under her chin. “Just until you have your strength back.”

She pouted more deeply, yet his next action—a gentle kiss on her lips—softened her resistance.

“You promise?” she asked.

“You think I want to wait?” he chuckled. “Now, come on.” With a tremendous groan and an amazing showing of strength,Sebastian rose from the ground, lifting Virtue with him. “Let us walk back. If you think yourself capable?”

She glared at him. “Not funny.”

He beamed. “I beg to differ.”

They made their way back to the castle together, Sebastian bracing her body the whole way and Virtue pretending she did not need his support, all the while inwardly cursing the illness for what it did to her and was stopping her from doing. As if marriage wasn’t hard enough.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

Sebastian had planned to leave Virtue’s side once she fell asleep, a simple decision that strangely weighed heavily on his heart. The promise he had made to never leave her side haunted him, making the mere act of even stepping into the next chamber feel like an immense betrayal.

He blamed himself for what had happened to her. Had he been here, or had he allowed her to accompany him as she had so desperately wanted, perhaps none of this would have happened—and that realization was not lost on Sebastian.

And so, he waited and watched as she drifted off to sleep. Lying in bed beside her, he lay perfectly still as her eyelids gently fluttered and her breathing steadied. It happened quickly, for she was still sick and weak from the poisoning. If this past week was any indication, she would not wake until mid-morning tomorrow. A sleep that was close to death, one that unnerved him and often had him checking her breathing in the night to make sure it wasn’t the case. Now, he watched her, a sense ofpeace settling over her features, wishing nothing more than to remain by her side.

But he also knew that he could not rest until he found the culprit responsible for what had happened, and there was no chance of him doing so if he stayed here all night. Additionally, someone was waiting for him, someone who might help him find justice—or more fittingly, vengeance.

With a heavy heart, he leaned down and gently kissed her lips, a kiss which had her smiling even in her sleep. With that bittersweet image imprinted in his mind’s eye, Sebastian forced himself to stand and leave the room.

From there, he stalked the halls of his castle, his destination his study located in the northern tower. The night was silent and dark, so much so that even the howling of the wind was but a whisper beyond the walls of the keep. He climbed the steps of the tower briskly, taking them two at a time, conscious of his tardiness. Upon reaching the top, he noticed the study door already ajar, a sliver of light spilling into the dark hallway.

“You are late, Your Grace,” came a rugged voice with a thick accent from within the dimly lit room as Sebastian entered.

“And you are early,” Sebastian grumbled as he swept toward his desk, sparing a glance for the man sitting in the chair opposite his own.