Chapter 29
Twenty-Nine
“Where is she?” Austin had worn a path into the carpet.
He paced back and forth across the drawing room with restless precision, his hands clasped behind his back, only to fall loose again moments later. Dominic stood near the window, arms crossed, watching the street below with a tension that mirrored Austin’s own.
“You are sure that that bastard did not follow her?” Dominic snarled somewhere behind him.
“I stalled him long enough after she had left. But…she should have returned by now,” Austin muttered.
Dominic did not answer. He had already said everything there was to say. Deena was capable. She was clever. She would not place herself in danger without reason. But none of it eased the tightness in Austin’s chest.
The door to the drawing room swung open, and Selina entered. Austin was hopeful that she had some good news, but one look at her face said otherwise.
He stopped short. “Any news?”
Selina shook her head. “She did not go to the country house. Nor to Greystone.”
Austin felt the floor spin beneath his feet.
How could he let her go?
“What do you mean she did not go?” Dominic demanded. “Those are the only places she could go to. Surely, she would not have headed back to Paris.”
“I sent word ahead to Greystone,” Selina said, wringing her hands. “They were expecting her, but she never arrived.”
Austin sank into his seat, weighed down. When Leonard left, and Deena failed to come back in the evening, he called for Dominic, but panic overtook him when he learned that Deena was not with them either.
“How long ago did you send word, Selina?” Dominic asked, barely hiding the rising panic in his voice, too.
“Hours,” Selina whispered, but they heard her loud and clear.
Silence fell around them. Austin imagined Leonard finding Deena and—
“We should send riders,” Dominic said under his breath.
“We already have,” Selina said. “And I sent word to Penelope as well. But we will not hear back until morning at the earliest.”
Austin dragged a hand through his hair. His thoughts raced, dark and relentless. He just wanted to know that she was safe.
“She should not have gone alone. I should have stopped her. I should have followed her.”
“This is not your fault, Austin,” Selina said gently.
“Deena would not abandon us,” Dominic said firmly. “Nor you, Austin.”
Austin did not answer. Fear had lodged too deeply in his chest to be soothed by reason and his friend’s kind words. Time stretched painfully, and there were no signs of her return. The candles burned low as the moon rose higher and the stars began to gather.
Dominic left a glass of brandy in front of Austin, but he did not reach for it. He could not get the image of Deena, leaving him, out of his head.
God help me.
If she did not return, her departure would stay with him forever, haunting his dreams and every waking moment. What scarred him the most was that he let her go. It was for her own safety, but he still could have tried harder. He should have stopped her, yet he watched her leave.
“I see a carriage,” Dominic said from the window.
The sound of wheels on gravel made Austin freeze. Dominic turned sharply to him, and their eyes met.
“Go,” Dominic said.
Austin did not hesitate. He jolted from the settee and ran down the steps. The carriage came into view, and he sprinted to it. When the door opened, and Deena stepped down, relief crashed through him so violently his knees nearly buckled.
“Deena!” He reached her in three strides and pulled her into his arms, holding her as though she might vanish if he loosened his grip. “Do not ever do that again,” he said hoarsely.
Deena clutched his coat. “Austin? What do you mean?”
“I thought—” His voice broke. He pressed his forehead to her hair, breathing her in, grounding himself in the reality of her. “I was worried sick.”
“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I am so sorry. But I needed to go to your estate, and I knew you would stop me.”
“You know it is not safe, Deena.” He pulled away from her and scolded her softly.
Deena looked up at him, flushed and breathless from her journey. “I know, but—I must speak to you. Alone.”
He was about to argue further with her, but her eyes glistened with hope and excitement. Austin nodded, and they entered the house together. He looked around the street before he shut and locked the door.
“You had us all worried.” Austin placed his hand on the small of her back as they climbed the stairs.
“Us?” Deena looked at him, but before he could explain, Selina rushed forward and embraced Deena tightly.
“Do not frighten us like that again,” Selina said fiercely.
Dominic followed, relief giving way to anger. “Do you have any idea how worried we were?”
“Forgive me, Dom. But I had to do something. I could not just sit by like I always do.” Deena’s gaze dropped; she looked like a child that was in trouble, and Austin would not stand by and watch.
“Dominic,” Austin said sharply. “Deena has something to say; you may berate her after she is done.”
Dominic sighed loudly. “What is it then, Dee?”
She stepped back, her expression steady despite the exhaustion etched into her features. “I did not mean to frighten anyone or cause any distress. But when the blackmailer made an appearance, I just…had to do something.” She turned to Austin and smiled. “Austin…you are not illegitimate.”
The words echoed through the room. Everyone remained silent and confused.
“How do you know?” Selina breathed.
Deena reached into her cloak and withdrew a folded letter, yellowed with age. “I found proof.”
She handed it to Austin, and he took it with steady hands. He held his breath as he unfolded the page. The handwriting was elegant, familiar in a way that made his chest ache.
“This is—”
“Your mother’s handwriting.” Deena finished for him.
Austin felt his heart race as he read the letter.
My dearest Duke,
My love for you has deepened since last night. I can only explain this feeling as a deeply sated ache. I long for you even when you are near, but when you are afar and I find myself smiling at nothing, thinking of the way you looked at me as dawn broke after our wedding night.
But this is not about me; it is about your son.
He came into this world last night, strong and perfect.
His cries filled the room as though he already knew he was loved.
I held him and saw you in him at once. Your eyes.
Your strong chin. I was in love with you when we first laid eyes on each other, but my love is abundant even more so now as I hold our child.
We miss you dearly, and I swear this with every breath I take. I would endure any hardship for you, for him, for us. Even through the distance, my devotion has never wavered, and it never shall.
Yours, always and entirely,
Your Duchess and your beloved son, Austin Delves.
“Your mother wrote this to your father, after their marriage,” Deena spoke softly. “You are not illegitimate, Austin. You are the true Duke of Windemere. Your mother never had an affair; she loved your father and only him.”
Austin could not see the page anymore. Tears blurred his vision, spilling freely down his face, and he did not bother to wipe them away.
“Thank you, Dee.” He looked at his wife who was crying silently.
“There is no need to thank me,” she said unsteadily.
“She loved him,” he whispered. “She loved him so much even when he betrayed her.”
“We will give you a moment,” Selina said gently.
Dominic placed a comforting hand on his shoulder before they withdrew silently, leaving Austin and Deena alone.
His eyes could not leave her; he was too afraid that if he blinked, she would vanish. Emotions choked his voice. “Deena, when I saw you leave and when you did not return… I thought you were abandoning me.”
Her eyes filled. “I would never do that. I made a vow, Austin.”
“Why did you do it?” he asked. “Why did you risk yourself? Leonard could have tracked you; he could have found you—”
“But he did not.” She cut him off.
“Yes, but why, Dee?”
“Because, Austin,” her soft smile mesmerized him, “when you love someone, you find your happiness in helping them.”
Austin realized the words she spoke. He closed the gap between them and reached for her. Deena’s skin felt alive against his touch. He held her hand and grazed her shoulder until she shivered and blushed.
Austin cupped her face and smiled down at her as he wiped her tears away. “You saved me, Dee. No one has ever done that before.”
“You can thank me later,” she said, attempting to flirt, but she choked on her emotions.
Austin laughed lightly. “I will, my duchess. But first, promise one thing?”
“What will that be?” She tilted her head in that familiar way he loved.
“No more sneaking around and no more secrets.”
Deena was quiet for a minute, pretending she was deep in thought. Austin shook his head and chuckled.
She beamed up at him. “I promise.”
He pinned one of her loose curls behind her ear and gazed at her.
“I love you, Deena.” The words tore free at last, and he felt liberated.
Deena’s smile faded into something sweeter, and her eyes teared up again.
“I love you too, Austin.”
Austin could not wait any longer. He pulled her towards him, and Deena gasped.
Austin swallowed the sound easily with a deep kiss.
He poured every fear, every hope, and every promise into that single moment, and Deena reciprocated.
The world, the scandals, and even Leonard began to crumble away as he held his wife in his arms and allowed her sweetness to take over him.