She knew it.And she wanted to cheer because of it.Astara knew that the duke looked at her as more than another mission he must complete.He wouldn’t have been so open and forthcoming with her as he had earlier if he did not.He might fight and rail against any sort of connection between them, but his subconscious was willing to admit the truth even if his heart was not yet ready to do so.
She turned the tables on him again and said boldly, “Have you ever been in love, Your Grace?”
His expression shuttered and she could tell he was engaging in a fierce battle with himself.“That is not your concern.”
“I am going to guess that you have not.”She smiled slightly.“I was once, or rather, I thought I was.”She let her hand slip away and moved away from him, giving him the chance to leave if he so chose.
But when she turned away from him and walked over to one of the windows to peer out into the street, his deep voice spoke up behind her, “You do not seem old enough to have allowed your heart to become engaged so easily.”
“It was not easy, I assure you.”She sighed lightly, her breath fogging on the glass pane.“I was not yet sixteen and this gentleman was charming and handsome and smelled divine, perfect for a youthful engagement and bad decisions.”
“What happened?”
She swallowed hard, past the lump of discontent clogging her throat.It had not been a time in her life she ever wanted to revisit, but she knew this was the only way she could earn the duke’s trust in return—to show him that she was vulnerable too.With a shrug, she turned back to face him.“It is the same story for many, I fear.We were just not meant to be.”
“He left you without any just cause?”
She laughed.“Do not appear so shocked.It is not as though I had anything to offer except my love.For a poor, orphan woman, that does not get one very far.”
“He was a fool for letting you go.”The animosity that tinged his voice made her stomach do a strange flip.Her breath caught as he slowly walked closer to her.“I would not have allowed you to go so easily.”
It would be so simple to fall into the power of his words, to believe that things would be different if she allowed her emotions to become entangled with his, but she knew how the world worked.“It is nice in theory, Your Grace, but we both know an association between us can go no further than this house.”
She wanted him to deny her claim, to curse society and all the strictures that were involved, but in the end, he just clenched his jaw and said nothing.
“I promised you that I would do whatever was in the power of the Watch to discover your lineage and I intend to do just that.For now, that is all I can definitively offer you.”
“Of course.”Astara swallowed down the bitter regret that wanted to rise up and choke her.But she supposed knowing that he could feel something for her was a slight victory.After such a short association, what else could she expect?And did she actually want more from him?She knew nothing of being a duchess and just the hint of such a prospect was more than a little daunting.
She adopted a bright smile and did her best to hide the shimmer of tears that threatened to waver her vision.“I suppose I should retire for a time.It was to be a musicale this evening, was it not?No doubt it will be a late performance?—”
Astara’s arm was caught as she started to move past the duke.He spun her around and captured her within the circle of his embrace, his mouth a whisper away from hers.“If I asked to kiss you, Astara, what would you say?”
Her focus immediately went to the chiseled lines of his masculine mouth.“I might be inclined to accept, Your Grace.”
“My name is Knox,” he murmured, the husky whisper causing a delicious shiver to travel down her spine.
Her tongue darted out to moisten her lips.“Knox…”
ChapterEight
He was losing his mind.There was no other explanation for it.How had he gone from hardened spy for the Lion’s Watch, sensible in every aspect of his life as the Duke of Hampton, and yet, he seemed to lose all semblance of sane thinking when in the proximity as Miss Smith?
Astara…
She was truly as enchanting as the stars her name would indicate.
And likely just as deadly as one that fell from the sky to torch the earth.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t thinking of the danger when he touched his lips to hers, only the sheer desire that coursed through him the moment their mouths fused together.It was as if lightning had struck between them, the charge that shot through his entire body to center on his cock the most enticing of all.He’d had several mistresses in the past who, with all their expertise and willingness to please, had not come close to causing such a strong reaction in him.It truly was as if Astara had the power of the universe wrapped up in her presence as she wound a spell around him.If he believed in witches, he might imagine that was the cause, that he’d fallen prey to some sort of love potion, but he knew it was nothing more than her essence, her feminine charm that both frustrated and intoxicated him.She was better than the smoothest brandy, more potent than wolfsbane—and likely just as toxic.
He pulled back as she started to melt into his embrace.He had to put some distance between them or he might recall exactly the sort of torrid affairs he’d conducted under this very roof.That somehow sullied whatever magic had erupted between them.
Her eyes were heavy lidded, her lips parted slightly, as if in silent plea to continue the devastating kiss.
“I will see you this evening.”
With that, he took his leave and did not dare to hesitate in his departure, or glance back at her, for fear that he would be tempted to linger after all.
