Chapter 14 #2
It was true. No matter what Adrian did, Daphne knew that she’d be safe with him.
He was a terribly lonely man, but he hid it with his various activities.
She might not know exactly what they were, but she knew he was dealing with something dangerous.
Briarwood found him dangerous, and it helped her cause.
“Thank you, my lord. Thank you for sharing this with me,” she whispered, overwhelmed with emotion. “There is so much I don’t know and understand about him, but I would like to try to know him better.”
Her throat felt tight. While the Duke was good at hiding his emotions, she had learned how to put on a mask for the world to see.
The obedient daughter.
No more.
“He is a good man, although sometimes he may pretend not to be,” the Marquess said, his eyes softening, as if remembering his friend in a better light.
He sat on the edge of his chair so that he could reach for her hand to squeeze it.
“Now that you know what he is like, you can choose to break down his walls or leave him in the dark. I know I want to free the Wolf, but I also know you did not choose to be here. You did not choose to be his wife. Not in these circumstances.”
Daphne wanted to tell the Marquess that he was wrong. She did choose Adrian and she wanted him to freely be himself, but how? And what hold would she have on him?
Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of the front door slamming open. Then, it was followed by a series of heavy footfalls on the marble floor.
The Duke of Wolfcrest entered the drawing room, appearing disheveled.
It looked like he had just returned from a full night of tending to whatever business he had.
The smell of pipe smoke and whiskey followed him.
Daphne did not know what could be worse: his current state or the smell of some other woman’s perfume on his clothes.
His gaze flicked around the room before the Duke narrowed his eyes and glared at her and his dearest friend.
“Caleb.”
The way Adrian said his friend’s name with such scorn was not much of a greeting, but more like an accusation and a threat. The sound was rough like stone grating on stone.
Meanwhile, the Marquess calmly scooted forward in his chair so that he could look squarely up at the Duke.
The moment was thick with tension.
The Marquess rose to acknowledge the Duke’s presence. Daphne shakily followed.
“Excellent timing. I was simply enlightening your wife on various topics of import, such as the hidden histories of the French court as well as the benefits of having a game of whist when you do decide to host a party.”
However, Adrian’s eyes were now fixed solely on his wife. Daphne could feel him studying her, probing her secrets. She felt her cheeks burn even though she had nothing to be ashamed of.
What is he doing?
What was he doing to her? He thought that she was betraying him with his friend, even though he was the one who was out almost every night.
“Duchess,” Adrian said, saying her title like an insult for the very first time. “I believe you may have some correspondence waiting for your attention in another room.”
“I—I don’t,” she protested.
“The Marquess of Amberwell and I have many things to discuss.” The dismissal became clearer and colder. He did not expect her to remain there.
Daphne had no choice but to rise, her heart heavy in her chest. She knew that anything that came from her would be listened to at the moment, not without suspicion. Anything she said would only fuel Adrian’s paranoia.
So, she gave Amberwell a brief nod before heading for the exit.
Adrian merely waited for Daphne, his wife, to leave the room.
When he heard her footsteps fade in the distance, he lunged for Caleb’s arm.
His grip was harder than he meant, but he was too furious and out of sorts.
His fingers dug into the muscle, but his friend never fought back and didn’t say a word, either.
“We have an urgent matter to discuss, Amberwell,” Adrian growled.
Again, there was no answer, but he was not going to wait for any. He dragged Caleb out of the door and across the hall into his study.
“Wolfcrest! What in the blazes are you doing?” Caleb finally protested, as he stumbled a little on the way into the other room.
“You don’t get to ask that. I should be asking you what you were doing here.”
“I am merely looking out for your wife’s well-being. I know you’ve been frequenting The Obsidian Card lately, more than you should since Kettering can handle the place,” Caleb replied calmly.
“Oh, you were looking out for her?” Adrian asked, knowing that he was pushing their friendship too far.
“Remember not to touch her. Your hand should not be on hers. Moreover, do not fill her head with sentimental nonsense. You have no business saving me or her but at least know that is not part of my darkness.”
“That’s why I am here, Adrian. Your darkness has not yet reached her.”
Adrian looked left and right inside his study, as if he could not believe he had dragged his friend all the way here to talk about what he felt.
He rubbed his face with one hand and took a deep breath. He still could not believe how he had let jealousy command his actions. It made him see things more clearly, and what he saw frightened him.
Two hours later, Adrian left the townhouse, still feeling guilty at the way he had left things with Caleb. His friend had managed to go home on his own, even clapping his back before turning on his heel.
At Obsidian Card, the Duke found himself again focusing on the management of his primary gaming establishment.
As usual, the air was thick with smoke so he did not even get to wash off himself when he went home to see his friend visiting his wife while he was away. He’d come storming in after the butler told him that Amberwell was inside and that Daphne had received him.
He did not know quite what to expect. Daphne was an innocent woman, but she was also a lonely woman. His friend was loyal, but he was not happy with the Duke’s way of handling his marriage. Adrian supposed anything could happen and he might not even be able to blame anyone else for the fallout.
Inside the Obsidian Card’s private office, he spoke with Kettering. He needed someone to talk to while his mind was still reeling from the day’s events.
“Salthouse had insulted my wife, but I had to step forward and put him in his place,” Adrian reported over a glass of whiskey. He knew he didn’t have to share this anecdote with his colleague, but he felt the need to talk to someone he could trust.
After all, Kettering was on his employ and not the other way around, but he also needed someone to listen to him. Just listen.
“At this point, nobody would be brave enough to question the legitimacy of our marriage again, at least not in public.”
Kettering rarely showed emotion. That was why he was suited for his job, but this time, he raised an eyebrow.
“I’ve ‘eard of it, Your Grace. A proper flash show, that was. You let the bleedin’ vipers see too far inside yer game if you catch my drift. Yer lookin’ a wreck, beggin’ your pardon. And there’s always a rogue lookin’ to climb over a gent wot’s on ‘is knees.”
“It was necessary. I didn’t like how Salthouse thought he could insult my wife just like that. She did not deserve his ridicule or to be publicly censured in such a manner,” the Duke said coldly, now that he could feel the remnants of control being restored.
The only evidence that he was still shaken from Salthouse and from seeing Caleb with Daphne was the trembling of his hands as he lifted the glass to his mouth and finished the contents in one gulp.
Oh yes, and there’s the way that I cannot seem to keep my conflicts to myself this evening.
He had never confided much in Kettering before, but it brought Adrian a modicum of comfort to speak directly what was on his mind.
Before Kettering could say anything, someone knocked three times at the office door.
“Come inside,” Adrian commanded, making sure his voice was not too loud to be heard by anyone outside. For everyone else, he was just an important patron.
“Your Grace, I apologize for the intrusion, but Lord Briarwood is here,” the house steward said, his face drawn and pale.
Adrian knew what it meant. He had to find a way to exit the office and walk out of the establishment through the back. Just for show.
He’d done it so many times before, but this time, it felt different. Briarwood was seeking him, and he was getting nearer his secret.
“All right,” Adrian said in a low voice, meeting Kettering’s eyes before proceeding to the back.
In that quiet glance, an understanding had been passed between them. They had to be alert. The man himself was sniffing around the Obsidian Card, and that meant danger. Adrian left the room with his mask of arrogance and indifference fixed firmly in place.
When he entered the Obsidian Card from the front, he quickly spotted the Earl of Briarwood. The man was impeccably dressed as always and his smile didn’t reach his eyes. Adrian always thought he represented cultured malice.
“Your Grace,” Briarwood greeted, without rising for the Duke.
Polite interactions were not quite necessary at the Obsidian.
The only rule was to keep the peace. “Such a pleasure to see you here, in your element. The ton is yet to see what you really are like. Have you shown your wife this side of you?”
“Greetings, Briarwood,” Adrian snapped back. “My wife is aware of this side of me.” It was half a lie. She suspected, but she did not know the full extent of his darkness. “I am surprised you chose this establishment. I heard that you prefer the hospitality of other places.”