And yet, she dropped the gloves as if they meant nothing, turning her palms out and lifting them toward his face.
“May I?” she asked. Alex bit the inside of his cheek. Was this some kind of trick? Some foolish prank in order to get him back for the deceit he had played upon her?
The softness in her gaze told him not but still, he could not speak. He grunted with a curt nod.
And when she stepped forward, lifting both her palms to his face, he instinctively breathed a sigh and closed his eyes at the warmth of her touch.
Her skin was as soft as it looked. Her delicate fingertips traced over the lines of his scars. They marked the place where his eyebrow had once been, now half gone and the rest too wispy to be considered a brow any longer. They danced over the scars on his cheek before tracing over the pursed line of his lips.
Then, she moved to the good side of his face, doing the same.
“I see you, Alexander,” she whispered soft as a summer breeze and Alex could not help himself.
He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her to him.
He was just considering kissing her when she spoke up, “The deceitful wedding I understand now, but why this?”
Alex glanced down to see her holding up the ribbon that tied his devil's mask loosely around his neck. Having worn it in order to escort her from the lair, he had only pulled it down and shoved it over his shoulder in order to be rid of it once they were in the carriage.
“Why the devil?” she questioned him. “You did not strike me as such when we first met, before I knew of your identity, or should I say your disguise? For that is what this is, isn't it? This is not the real you.”
Again, Alex closed his eyes, this time only long enough to take a deep breath.
“In truth, lady Emmaline, I have been playing a character for so long, sometimes I am barely aware which person is the duke and which the devil.”
“Then why?” she asked, inching just a little closer as if she did not wish to just get to know him personally but physically too.
“I have a reputation to uphold,” he explained through gritted teeth. “It is not something that I am proud of, but it is a necessary evil, one that my father and uncle created and one that I must uphold in order to protect and care for those whom I am responsible for. And now, that includes you and your family.”
She cocked a brow, dropping her hands to rest her palms upon his chest. “How so?”
Alex bit back laughter. “I am sure you have heard the tales of the devil, My Lady. Does the myth not speak for itself?”
The two remained there in silence for several moments. Staring into each other's eyes, they each appeared to be judging the best course of action. But the longer time went on, the more uncertain Alex became.
This was the most candid conversation he had ever participated in and a part of him had expected her to run from him, to run from all the responsibilities and deceit.
But instead, she looked at him with sympathy and said, “I understand.”
Alex's mouth dropped open. “You do?”
“I shall not pretend to understand everything, but I do understand what it means to feel responsible for those you love.”
Tears pricked behind Alex’s eyes. This woman was not merely beautiful. She had a beautiful and courageous soul too. How had he ever become so lucky?
“It appears that the monster has finally found his maiden,” he sighed, thinking on the many tales he had read during his recovery period, the stories in which he had found hope that someday life would give him a reprieve from his loneliness. He had never believed that day would come, until today.
He was surprised when Emmaline reached up to cup his cheeks once more. She looked him dead in the eye and said clearly, “I see no monster, Alex, merely my husband.”
And with that, she leaned up on her tiptoes to kiss him.
It was entirely unlike their kiss at the club in which they had fulfilled their vows and yet, it was just as marvelous.
Alex felt as if the floor was disappearing out from beneath his feet. At yet, there was no panic, only peace. He cradled his wife’s head in his hands, hooking his fingers in the thick roots of her glossy hair, and kissed her with such passion he made his own head spin.
It was devilish the things he wished to do to her, simply sinful. And yet, he could not stop himself from just thinking on it. His fingers left her hair and traced down the bare flesh of her neck, traveling over the silky skin between her shoulder blades before they finally reached the lacings of her gown.
He paused there a moment, considering it before he traveled lower.
