Page 73 of Trapped with the Beastly Duke

Rose’s eyes widened. “Are youtryingto drive me into the arms of another man?”

“I am sure Lord Verimoor would be only too happy to console you,” Alexander spat. “You two seemed very well-acquainted last night.”

“Lord Verimoor is the last person on Earth I would want to spend my time with.” Rose scowled.

“Then why were you dancing with him?” Alexander clenched his jaw. “You hardly looked uncomfortable when I saw you.”

“You were the one who left to tend to some urgent business that you refused to share with me. And I only danced with him because he asked andyouwere not there.” Rose threw up her hands in exasperation.

“It is comforting to know that you find me so easy to replace.” Alexander knew he was being ridiculous but found he did not care.

“How dare you? Do you truly think so little of me?” Rose moved towards him, her entire body shaking.

“What?” Alexander asked, confusion trying to break through his anger.

“You seem to be under the impression that I am some wanton woman who would be only too willing to throw myself at the first man who came my way.” Rose’s voice was cold.

“What? I did not say that.” Alexander frowned.

“Then you think I care so little for my marriage vows, for my duty, that I would commit adultery.” Rose’s voice could have cut glass. “You think I care so little for my family, for propriety. You think my heart is so easily won that all it would take to woo me would be a few minutes of your absence and a pretty face?”

“I never said that.” Alexander knew he sounded defensive.

“Then why are you treating me like this?” The words echoed through the room, not quite a shout but not far from it.

“Because I do not deserve you!” he roared, turning towards her as the shame finally washed over him. “How could I? You are lovely beyond compare. You are loyal and kind and clever. You should have had your pick of any man in the land.”

He then turned away from her shocked face, unable to face her. He gritted his teeth, desperate to stop speaking, but the words spilled out of him.

“I saw you with Lord Verimoor. Saw the way the ton regarded you with warmth. I saw the way that his beauty seemed to only highlight your own. The way you two moved seemed to bring the entire world to life. And I heard people admire you. And at that moment, I realized how selfish I had been. How could I, the disfigured coward that I am, hope to compete with someone like Lord Verimoor? In another life, if circumstance had not forced us together, he would have been your husband. And you would have been happy.”

The words tasted like bitter poison in his mouth.

“When I saw you two dance, it was a reminder of the future I have robbed you of. And I knew that I had been wrong to indulge myself these past weeks. Wrong to seek to keep you.” Sadness crept through him, and his shoulders dropped. “So I pushed you away. Or I tried to. All I bring is ruin and destruction. I do not deserve love. And I do not deserve you.”

Silence stretched between them, broken only by Rose’s soft footsteps. Alexander waited for the sound of the door to open and close. For her to finally leave. But it never came.

Instead, he felt her warm hand on his shoulder. He did not turn to face her.

I cannot bear to see the pity in her eyes.

“You are a fool, Alexander Rokesby.” Rose’s voice was soft but firm. “You bring so much good to the world. Circumstances may have forced us together, but you have not robbed me of anything. You have saved me.”

Alexander shook his head. “You do not need to lie to me, I know the truth. I have doomed you.”

“If you say that one more time, I shall slap you.” Rose cupped his face and turned it towards her.

Their eyes met, and Alexander saw the blazing fire he had seen when she had told him they would remain at the castle. He swallowed but did not look away.

“Marrying you saved me. I had lost sight of who I am and what I want. I was consumed by duty and my need to do what was right by my family.” Rose smiled sadly. “I was lost, but these last months, I have remembered who I am. You saw me for who I am, even before I had remembered, and did not flee.”

“How could anyone who knows you flee from you?” Alexander shook his head in wonder. “Knowing you, spending time with you, it is a gift unlike any I have ever known.”

“And the same is true about you.” Rose’s eyes met his own, an earnestness in them that captivated him. “Being married to you,knowing you, and being with you is a gift. You have given me the gift of myself, of understanding who I am, and what I want.”

“What do you want?” Alexander’s voice was barely above a whisper.

“You.” The word hung between them, fragile and beautiful. “I want you, Alexander Rokesby.”