Page 47 of My Beastly Duke
Adam’s brow now creased into a frown as he licked over his lips. “But wouldn’t you want the child to grow up with its father?”
“I may not be a monster like our father was, but I am one in appearance. It is far more loving for a father to take a step back and allow his child to thrive, than let them grow up under the shadow of cruelty.” His chest felt hollow as he said the words, making him wish that things could have been different.
The moment dragged on between them as the men sat in silence, each realizing the gravity of the legacy their father had left them. They may have managed to build a bridge between them, but that did not mean that their father had not left them with invisible scars.
“Whore!”
Both men jumped when Henry VIII suddenly screeched from his cage.
“I am sorry Aaron, but the bird has a mind of its own. I spent all bloody morning trying to teach it how to say ‘pretty bird’ and ‘hello’. The bloody bastard never uttered so much as a word until he overheard me teasing one of your footmen about a brothel. I swear he is doing it on purpose. The bird is malicious.”
“Bloody brothel!” Henry announced quite gleefully.
“You see! He is entirely out of control!” Adam gestured toward the closed cage in exasperation.
Shaking his head, Aaron shut his eyes. “He may as well stay where he is, it is not like we will be expecting much company now that Marina is not here.”
Adam’s face fell as the look of exasperation faded from his eyes. “You know I never meant to hurt her, or you, Aaron. Marina is a good woman, I left her at the altar because… let’s just say that you are a far worthier man than I am.” His voice trailed off on a sad note.
Looking at his younger brother, Aaron felt as if he were seeing him for the very first time. “Why did you decide to jilt her at the altar? There were more reasonable ways to call off the wedding.”
Placing his hands on the armrests of the chair, Adam pushed himself up while avoiding his brother’s gaze. “That is nothing that you need to concern yourself with. My reasons were my own and I stick by them, no matter how selfish they may have been.” He lingered for a second as if he wanted to say something but shook his head instead.
“I will say this, Aaron. Marina is good for you. I have seen a change in you since she came into your life. Do not let her slip through your fingers, no matter how noble you think you are being.”
Chapter 19
She is better off without me…
Aaron stared blankly at the pieces of parchment in front of him on the desk. He had been trying all morning to focus, yet he could not bring himself to think of anything other than Marina and his unborn child.
A week had passed since she had gone back to her mother and felt the need to remind himself every day that she was better off than she was at his side.
“Your Grace, there is a Miss Prudence Wallace to see you.” The butler’s voice interrupted his thoughts as Aaron blinked a few times and looked up. Out of all the people he had thought would come to see him, Marina’s mother included, Aaron had never expected Prudence.
The butler came back in no time at all, emerging from the hallways with a stern-faced Prudence behind him.
The girl seemed to have shot up a few inches since the last time he had seen her, yet that was normal for someone of her age. He bitterly wondered how often he would see his child; even if it was from a distance, the child needed to know who he was, but that did not mean that he intended to see them very often.
“Are you done being stubborn?” Prudence asked him without so much as a ‘How have you been?’ Her little cherubic face somehow seemed more mature as she glared at him from across the room.
“You may leave us.” Aaron dismissed the butler who left and shut the door behind him.
Prudence rolled her eyes before shaking her head in disapproval. “You can spare me the lecture, Your Grace. I have ventured across London without a chaperone in secret. Considering the fact that you are my brother-in-law, I doubt that my presence in your house can cause much of a scandal.”
Sitting back in his chair, Aaron frowned and looked the girl in the eyes. She seemed to be on a mission, and he was not about to stop her until he knew what it was.
“Before you go ahead and ask any questions such as why I am here. I would like to know why you have abandoned my sister?” The stubbornness in her eyes was all too apparent and shestomped her foot on the carpet and placed her hands on her hips.
Humoring her, Aaron sat forward again and interlaced his fingers in front of him with his elbows on the desk. “And what business is it of yours? You are a child.”
Her green eyes narrowed angrily at him as they flashed with indignation. “I will be fifteen next month. I hardly think that makes me a child; in two more years I will be a debutant.”
Aaron nodded in amusement, enjoying the way she was carrying herself despite her meddling. He briefly hoped that if he was blessed with a daughter, she would have the gumption to stand up to any man like Prudence was doing. “Go on then, state your case.”
Prudence jutted her small chin in the air before continuing. “I may be considered a child in your eyes, Your Grace, but I am old enough to know that my sister is not happy. I have spent the last week lying awake at night while she cries herself to sleep. She is unhappy, despite what she may tell our mother every morning.”
The amusement suddenly left his body as Aaron thought of his wife crying herself to sleep at night. He had wanted a better life for her, not this.