Page 61 of The Duke that I Lost

THE NEXT MORNING

A mbrosia stretched contentedly and burrowed deeper into the mattress, her body still humming with the memory of an intimacy so real it could never be mistaken for a dream.

And it had not been a dream.

A week ago, when she had gone to his townhouse and been told His Grace had already departed for the country, her heart had nearly broken. For a moment she believed she had lost him forever.

That was when it struck her with brutal clarity—she had spent too long waiting, too long doubting, too long letting fear rule her. Oh, what a fool she had been. Dash had gone to extraordinary lengths to prove his devotion. It had become her turn to act, to fight for him, to fight for them.

So she’d set off for Dasborough Park.

In the end, it had been he who had found her !

When she’d opened her eyes after fainting—at the Fainting Goat Inn, of all places—she had, for a moment, thought she’d gone back in time.

Thank God she hadn’t.

A most satisfied smile curved her lips as she let the certainty settle in her bones: Dash Beckman was hers.

He loved her. They were to be married. And after sharing a most romantic dinner, they’d come up to his room and he had made love to her in a most glorious fashion.

Her smile stretched even wider.

Because she had made love to him as well. She’d touched him intimately. She’d taken him into her mouth and performed the most wicked acts.

Without opening her eyes, she stretched out a searching hand, expecting to find the warmth she’d discovered in the night. Perhaps she could do so again this morning.

Her fingers brushed only cool linens.

Frowning, she reached farther across the bed. Nothing.

Alarm jolted through her, and her eyes flew open.

No.

No!

The sheets beside her were smooth, empty. Sunlight streamed through the tall windows, gilding the room with brightness—and revealing its stark vacancy.

He was gone.

Her heart lurched. The bloody man had gone.

She threw back the bedclothes and, heedless of her nakedness, stumbled to the window. Panic swelled until it brimmed over into fury. She would kill him. She would chase him to the ends of the earth and kill him for leaving her again?—

“You wear the dawn better than any silk, princesse .”

The words spun through her like fine wine, heady and intoxicating, and when she turned, her pulse leapt, fluttering wildly.

He was the man she had wanted from the very first moment she saw him—so impossibly handsome, so noble without meaning to be, so exasperatingly cocksure and yet so utterly, devastatingly loveable.

He was fully dressed, immaculate from polished boots to precise cravat, balancing a tray laden with steaming cups and covered dishes. The rich aroma of chocolate, fresh bread, and bacon drifted into the room, teasing her senses, grounding her in the absurd reality of him.

The blasted man. The impossible, wonderful, infuriating man.

Her heart thudded back into its place, though still too fast, and she had to force deep breaths before she could steady herself.

“I had thought…” Her voice cracked. “The bed was empty. Don’t do that again.”

And then, before she could stop it, tears welled, spilling hot and fast down her cheeks.

In an instant, the tray was abandoned, and warm, strong arms closed around her. He gathered her against him, protective and sure, folding her into the unshakable safety of his frame.

“ Plus jamais. Jamais. Oh, ma princesse .”

Never again .

The words were rough and certain, and she clung to him as though they were a lifeline. He steadied her, anchoring her even though everything still felt so fragile.

“I trust you. I do,” she whispered into his chest. “It’s only… I’m so happy, and when I thought—” Her breath hitched, broken.

“I know.” His hand soothed over her hair. “And my purpose, for the rest of my life, is to keep you safe in that happiness. To fight for it. For you. We are meant to be together, you and I. Destined. Nothing will tear us apart again.”

He was hers.

She believed that. She did.

“It is fate, non ? Madam Nadya promised. We endured our time apart, but now we can be together again. Forever.”

Ambrosia blinked the tears out of her eyes and pulled back to stare up at him. “Forever.”

He lowered his lips and sealed the promise with the most tender, the most loving, aching, devoted of all kisses.

When their lips parted in a sigh, Ambrosia was surprised to see Dash blinking hard.

His eyes looked suspiciously bright, and then one lone tear escaped to trail down that noble tanned cheek and disappear into the shadow of his morning stubble.

“You forgive me?” The words emerged from him along with a choking sound. “I’m so––”

But Ambrosia stopped his words with another kiss. A soft one that was meant to absolve him of this completely.

“There is nothing to forgive. Just as you said. We are fulfilling destiny now.”

She watched his throat move. In a thousand years, she would never have imagined the happiness she knew in this man’s arms. His gaze shifted to study each of her eyes, and then he exhaled and seemed to dismiss the sadness for both of them.

“There is more destiny to fulfill.” That smile of his emerged slowly. That smile that she’d seen for the first time when he’d caught her watching him from the window. It promised something wonderful and possibly scandalous, and she could hardly wait to hear what he’d come up with for their day.

“I brought you something to eat, but I find myself tempted by the sweet morsel in my arms instead.”

“Well, I’m starving.” She didn’t move, though. Because she would always be starving for him, and yet the scent of delicious culinary delights intrigued her taste buds. Perhaps she could find a way to incorporate her enjoyment of both…?

“Eat up, princesse .” His arms remained around her as well. “For we’ve a long journey ahead.”

“Together.” She nodded. “We will go to your home?”

“Yes.” His smile grew. “You will meet my sister? We will plan a wedding? And then a wedding trip? Another adventure?”

It was exactly what she wanted, to become Mrs. Dash Beckman, for real this time.

“Yes. To all of it!”

This man made everything into an adventure: food, a simple outing, a horseback ride––even the planting of a flower.

And love.

She lowered her hands to begin unfastening the buttons on his falls.

She wouldn’t have it any other way.

—The End—