For a moment, she feared he would kiss her right there and then in front of their guests. And in the next moment, she realized that she hoped he would.
But she had quickly learned that nothing would work her way when her husband was involved because his expression lost its soft edges, and he leaned away from her.
“We are dancing now, so you needn’t worry with whom I might have conversed anymore,” he stated, his voice just as empty as it had been before.
Nancy felt her heart sink, and she raised her gaze to look at him, dismayed to find out that he was looking over her shoulder instead of at her.
Was it such a bad thing to be with her and give her some attention?
“M-My mother said she had gotten to thank you for your kind gesture. And I would like to do so again. You really did save my family,” she earnestly told him.
Richard kept his gaze off her as he spoke, completely unaware of the loneliness blooming within her.
“I did what any responsible man would. Think nothing of it.”
The dance ended, and he bowed low, barely sparing her a second glance before he walked away.
Nancy stood where she was, alone and confused, startled when a whisper reached her ears.
“I suppose the rumors were wrong.”
“They look better together than I would’ve imagined.”
“Perhaps their marriage has some legitimacy to it.”
Oh,he did it for them, she realized.
Just like everything else he had been doing since she met him, this was just another stunt to appease the public and keep their prying eyes away from his affairs.
Stifling the urge to cry, Nancy took a moment to step away from the crowd and the noise, needing a moment to collect herself lest she fell apart.
* * *
Richard sighed with relief as his home regained the peace and quiet he valued within the castle walls, thankful that, at last, the long night had come to an end.
He had retired to his room shortly after the guests left, lingering long enough to watch Nancy say her goodbyes to her family, unable to stay by her side for a moment longer than he needed to.
“Do you need anything else, Your Grace? Shall I fetch your valet to ready you for bed?” Ernest asked.
With a groan, Richard waved him away, speaking up reluctantly due to his exhaustion. “I can manage without him. I’ll be fine.”
Ernest bowed and said, “Then I shall leave you to rest. Good night, Your Grace,” before he took his leave.
The silence was almost deafening to the Duke when he had been left alone, and he welcomed it gladly, drained completely by all the pointless conversations and needless interactions he had to endure. He had put up with it all because of Nancy.
Now, his name belonged to them both as did his title. He could not risk the likelihood of anyone besmirching her name as they freely did with his.
He stared down at his hands, recalling how warm she felt beneath them while they danced. She had been utterly gorgeous up close, and it had been all he could do not to bury his face in the crook of her neck until he was dizzy with her soft floral scent. He had barely resisted the urge to kiss her again, their guests be damned.
Whenever he was around her, his self-control withered away to nothing, leaving him to struggle to keep himself together like a sinking boat in the middle of the ocean.
The Duke stood up and began to rid himself of the stuffy attire he had donned for the night, only managing to shrug off his jacket before a knock at his door took his attention away from the task at hand.
Feeling annoyed that someone had decided to interrupt what was meant to be a quiet, peaceful rest of the night, he marched to the door with a reproach already flying off his tongue.
“I thought I said I—oh. Nancy.”
It wasn’t a staff member who had come to speak with him.
