Chapter 6 #2
“You did,” he continued hotly. “It might have seemed like just a dance to you but that is precisely how rumors and scandal start. It was stupid of you.”
Celestine scowled angrily. “And who are you to speak of scandal? As if they do not follow you everywhere that you go. All I did was dance, but what people say of you…” She scoffed. “I wish it was something so simple as dancing with another.”
She had meant the comment to be defensive because she did not appreciate being chastised or spoken to like that. But as soon as the words left her lips, she saw the effect it had on the Duke… anger passed behind his eyes, followed by something else that she could not quite ascertain.
“I do not know why I bother,” he said darkly. “You wish to embarrass yourself? And me, for that matter? Go right ahead.” With that, he turned and walked away.
Celestine gaped in surprise at the Duke’s reaction.
And it wasn’t just that he appeared angry at her. Rather, if she did not miss her guess, it looked as if her words had struck at something personal. She had hurt the Duke deeply.
I did not know that such a thing was possible.
All this time, Celestine had wondered if there was a line that she might cross in her antagonism. She had tried to cross it several times already, always rebuffed and dismissed with humor. This was the first time that she had managed to pierce through the Duke’s shell.
This was not a game. This was not just for fun. Finally, Celestine saw the Duke for who he really was and not who he pretended to be. And she felt untold amounts of guilt because of it.
For that reason, Celestine hurried through the ball room and after the Duke. She found him on the balcony, hidden in the darkness.
When she stepped outside, he looked coldly at her before turning his back on her.
“Do not tell me that you are worried,” he asked her. “I assure you, I am not worth such a feeling as that.”
“Ought I be?”
“I needed some fresh air,” he sighed. “That is all. And while I do so enjoy our banter, it had taken on a rather unappealing taste. Forgive me for not wishing to stick about while you forced it further down my throat.”
Celestine hesitated, seeing through his apathetic dismissal of her as his words touched on something far more personal.
“I did not mean to,” she said as she started towards him. “I… I was only making a joke.”
“Is that what it was?” he said. “Is it a joke if you believe what you say, just as you believe what people say of me.”
“Can you blame me?” she said, still approaching him slowly. “We might be engaged but I know nothing about you. And every time we speak it is filled with falsities so that every word you speak comes across as a lie or an exaggeration.”
“Is that not the point,” he sighed. “You said yourself that you did not wish to get to know me. Or have you changed your mind?”
She reached where he stood, less than a foot away, and paused.
The Duke was right in what he said. Celestine had made it clear that she did not want to get to know the Duke better, just as she did not want him to know her. Once that happened, this false engagement would become real, and that brought with it dangers that she did not wish to comprehend.
But can we go on like this? How can I pretend to love this man if I know nothing about him?
“Perhaps there is a middle ground,” she offered softly as she stepped in beside him. He stood at the railing, overlooking the back garden. It was too dark to see clearly, and the blackness of the night made it stretch endlessly. “Lord Grundon just now… you and he do not like one another.”
He scoffed. “Was it that obvious?”
“Might you tell me why? Clearly, I have found myself in the middle of whatever this is, and I have a right to know.”
She stood facing the garden, but she caught him glancing down at her. They stood so close that their elbows touched, while their hands on the railing were mere inches apart…
“Lord Grundon is not a good man,” the Duke began, his voice low.
“He has a habit of preying after young ladies who he knows he will be able to take advantage of. The way he is perceived in the ton, the perfect gentlemen…” He scoffed.
“It is an act so he can do as he pleases without raising alarm or questions.”
“You know this for a fact?”
“He has my niece, Millicent, in his sights,” the Duke growled. “Just as he knows that I am aware of it. But to him, it is a game, one he intends to win. And tonight, by dancing with you, he tried to prove to me that there is nothing I can do to stop him from taking what he wants.”
“I… I had no idea.”
“I know our engagement in not real, Celestine. I know that I often exaggerate myself and say things I might never usually say. But know that despite the falsities, I will never let any harm come to you. Just as I will do everything I must to protect you from those like Lord Grundon.” He turned to look at her.
“To ask that you trust me might be hopeful, but please know that you can trust me.”
She turned and looked at him, and Celestine realized with a start that this man was the true Duke Blackthorne. Gone were the theatrics. Gone was the pandering. And gone were the lies.
His dark eyes met her own. They bore through her defenses. They forced her to admit finally that the Duke was not a monster, that he was not wicked, and that he meant every word that he said.
“I believe you,” she found herself saying. “Just as I trust you.”
“Good…” His hand moved onto her own and she did not pull back. Rather, she found herself stepping forward as if drawn into him. “For this to work, we need to trust one another. It is the only way.”
“But how will I know…” she said, her voice cracking. “… when you are… what is real and what is not?”
“That I cannot answer.” His other hand moved suddenly so that it was on her waist. She gasped but did not push it away.
Their eyes were still locked. Their bodies were close.
And Celestine felt a sensation ripple through her limbs that she recognized…
“As in all things, we will simply have to find out the hard way.”
“The…” She swallowed. “The hard way?”
“Yes,” he beathed as he slowly pulled her toward him. “Or the fun way, depending on how you see it.”
“What does that –”
He moved on her before she had a chance to stop him. With one hand holding her waist, he pulled her forward, leaned down, and planted his lips on her own. It caught her by complete surprise, and Celestine very nearly shoved the Duke away…
She did not, however. The second his lips found her mouth, the fight within stopped. Even as stubborn as she was. Even as naturally argumentative. Even telling herself that she did not want this… Celestine was only so strong.
They stood on that balcony, bathed in darkness, and kissed as if they truly were engaged and in love.
It was a kiss that felt a little too natural and right.
It was a kiss that spread from Celestine’s lips and throughout her body so that she grew warm and hot like she might explode.
And it was a kiss that dashed apart all her preconceived notions of what she had told herself she felt for the Duke.
It was a kiss that changed everything.
The Duke pulled away, a small and satisfied smile on his lips. “We best be getting back inside, I think.”
“I…” She stammered, her heart racing. “I will be right behind you.”
“I am sure that you will be.” He held her eyes for a final moment, as if wanting her to know that he could see what was on her mind. Then he chuckled lightly, turned, and walked away.
There Celestine stood, her heart racing, her body shaking, and her mind fractured into a million little pieces that she might never be able to put back together.
This engagement was fake. Her feelings for the Duke were not real. Yet, if that kiss was to be believed, everything that she thought she knew about herself was a lie, and Celestine was forced to admit finally that this ploy of hers had suddenly become infinitely more dangerous.