How was it that the Duke made her feel so comfortable with such ease?
He held her like that for a long moment, unwilling to let go until she was okay again.
“There,” he said, finally removing his hand from her mouth. “I knew that would make it better.”
Sophia looked at him with utter surprise. She had experienced episodes like this before, but they would always last much longer.
“How did you know what to do?” she questioned, wondering what sort of magic he had just worked on her that no one in her life previously had figured out.
“I have seen it before and recognized the signs. My brother, Jacob, reacted the same way when he learned about our father’s passing,” he replied. “I had to calm him down the same way.”
Sophia’s mind was a mess. Too much had happened in the last ten minutes for her to even begin processing it.
But right now, she became aware of the fact that she was still very close to the Duke. He had dropped his hand from her mouth, but his grip on her waist remained.
When she locked eyes with him again, she felt his fingers begin to stroke her back gently. A feeling of warmth flooded Sophia that she had never experienced before.
“Thank you,” she managed to sputter out. “I really needed that.”
He nodded. Their faces were really close now, and his eyes dipped down to her lips which were jutting out from the pout that had formed on them.
Before either of them realized what was even happening, the Duke closed the distance between them, and Sophia was met with the sensation of his soft lips moving against hers.
Sophia kissed him back as if it was the most natural thing in the world. He held her close to him, keeping his hand on the small of her back.
For a moment, it felt as though time had stopped, and nothing else mattered in the entire world except what was happening between them at this moment.
But as they kissed, Duncan accidentally knocked his book off the table, and it served as a rude awakening, transporting Sophia back to reality.
She pulled away abruptly, the sides of her cheeks burning as she shuffled away from him.
“I really must go and sleep now, Your Grace.” Her words came out rushed, and she felt too shy to meet his gaze.
“I…” the Duke sputtered.
“I am sorry,” she said with a blush. “It really is getting so late, and I should not take any more of your time than I already have.”
If the Duke was disappointed with her answer, he did not let it show and instead nodded in her direction. Sophia darted out of the library, her chest rising and falling rapidly as she realized what had just happened between the two of them.
Sophia’s heart was still thumping loudly in her chest when she returned to her room.
“Oh God, how did that even happen?” she asked herself.
She and the Duke had justkissed.Just the thought alone sent butterflies down her stomach, but she knew that she had to pull herself together.
After all, Sophia had no business kissing the Duke that way. This was never a part of the original plan.
She touched her lips with her fingers and swore that she could still feel his touch lingering on top of her lips. Sophia had never kissed a man before this, but now that she had finally gotten the experience, she understood why it was such a big deal.
For one thing, her heart felt like it had grown three sizes, and she yearned for it to happen again. Sophia knew that this would not lead to any good.
If anything, it would just make her develop feelings for the Duke, and that was the last thing that she wanted to happen right now.
“Remember why you came here,” she told herself, gripping the side of her bedsheets. “You cannot drag him into the mess that is your life. He needs to remain protected from the curse, and kissing him certainly will not help.”
When she slipped back into her bed, all her previous thoughts about her nightmares had dissipated. All she could think about was the kiss, and a part of her badly wanted it to happen again.
Sophia could not take that risk. She knew that she needed to distance herself from the Duke. It was the only way that she could protect him.
