What Desire Demands, My Duke: A Steamy Historical Regency Romance Novel

by Olivia T. Bennet

  He didn’t turn, not willing to weaken his resolve when he said, “That might be the stupidest thing you have ever done.”

  “You often called me stupid in the past,” she murmured.

  “Do not speak of the past. It will not help you here. I have told you what you should do and if you do not think to heed my advice, then that is your prerogative.”

  She said nothing for a moment and then, in a small voice, whispered, “I won’t give up on you, William. If you walk away from me, I will only find you again.”

  So darned stubborn. William gritted his teeth. Without saying another word, he began making his way back to the tavern. She gasped behind him and it took all he could do not to turn back.

  She’ll surely return home. She cannot be so foolish as to remain in this place after what nearly happened.

  He didn’t feel very confident about it, but he wouldn’t turn. That day seven years ago, he’d made a vow. The life he’d once lived would be no more. The people he’d once known would be dead to him. And the girl he’d once loved…it would be like she’d never existed. He’d gone through much to ensure that he was never found, that it would be like he’d died. It wasn’t fair for her to show up so unexpectedly and stir things in him like this. Not after the terrible week he’d had, not after he’d finally shed the dead weight of a man he was so unfortunate to call a father.

  He wouldn’t turn. He couldn’t. He’d promised to leave Elizabeth in the past and so that was what he should do.

  After walking for about a minute, William couldn’t resist the urge any longer. He glanced over his shoulder for a brief moment, expecting to see her standing in the same spot staring after him. Or perhaps making good on her promise to find the inn on her own. But she was following him, a few feet behind, and when their eyes met, she came to a stop.

  William let out a breath of frustration. “Have you gone mad?”

  “Many years ago,” she said instantly, her voice strong enough to cross the distance between them. “You had disappeared by then, so I am afraid you missed it.”

  His frustration mounted. “What do you intend to do? Follow me all the way home?”

  William watched her shoulders lift slightly, her eyes filling with interest. “Now that is an idea. It will surely be better than laying my head in an inn tonight.”

  He wouldn’t grace that with a response. To show that he was serious about leaving her behind, he simply kept silent and kept walking. It bothered him to know that she was following him once again, even as they grew closer to the tavern.

  Surely, she means to stop? Surely, she isn’t so foolhardy as to walk back to such a dangerous area?

  But when he glanced over his shoulder again, he saw that she was still trailing behind him. She looked afraid, tentative, and her focus was on the man who’d just stumbled drunkenly out of the tavern slurring all manners of profanities. But she was following.

  Annoyed with himself, William came to a halt and faced her. They were almost near the entrance, close enough that those who lingered outside noticed a lady in their midst. He could almost feel their leering gazes, taking in the woman who was so obviously not a part of their world.

  Elizabeth came to a stop, her eyes meeting his once more. She didn’t look back at the tavern and whatever trepidation he’d spotted before dissipated before his very eyes. She looked almost…hopeful. His annoyance shot to the sky and without a word, he grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the tavern, heading across the street.

  She didn’t say anything, thankfully. He didn’t know what he would say if she did. After so rudely and bluntly showing he didn’t care about what happened to her, he didn’t want to have to explain himself now. He didn’t even want to understand it himself. But he kept dragging her along, not stopping until he’d pulled her through a gap in two abandoned houses and spotted his coachman sleeping against the carriage.

  “Wesley,” William clipped and didn’t bother to comment when his coachman jerked awake and wiped at the sparkling drool on his chin. Instead, he pulled Elizabeth up to the carriage door and opened it for her. “Home,” he threw back at the coachman.

  Elizabeth stared at him with wide eyes filled with questions. William didn’t bother to answer them. For now, he wouldn’t question his actions. He simply tilted his head at the door, a clear indication that he wanted her to get in. After a moment, she complied while the still groggy coachman scrambled down from his post to assist.

  William climbed in behind her and instantly positioned himself on the opposite end of the carriage, as far away from her as he could get. It didn’t take him long to realize that it would do him very little good.

  Once Wesley climbed in front again, the carriage jerked to a start. William kept his eyes stubbornly looking out the window though he saw nothing but dilapidated houses.

  “Thank you,” Elizabeth murmured after a moment. He remained silent. In the corner of his eye, he saw her fidget, her fingers gripping and releasing the skirt of her plain gown. “In truth, I was a bit scared of being on my own.”

  William scoffed. You should have been scared from the very beginning, from before you decided to follow a stranger.

  He kept the words to himself. Being already so at odds with his actions, he didn’t want to risk revealing something he shouldn’t.

  The silence dragged on for a while longer before she continued, “William…what happened?”

  William gritted his teeth. Slowly, he dragged his gaze over to her, meeting those curious eyes. He didn’t have to ask what exactly she was asking him. He already knew it was about what happened seven years ago.

  She didn’t give him the chance to respond. To his horror, tears filled her eyes once more and he quickly averted his gaze. “After being apart from you for so long, I…I nearly lost hope. I thought I would never see you again. I thought you might have died.”

  “You should have just believed that and went on with your life,” he murmured gruffly.

  “How can you say that? Did our friendship mean nothing to you? Did you truly not love—”

  “Enough.” He didn’t shout the word, but it cut through the air with such dangerous authority that she stopped talking. Surprise rushed through him at that, though he didn’t show it. The last time he’d quieted her, she’d lost her temper.

  It appears I am not the only one who’s changed.

  “William,” she began again. The sound of her cracking voice was enough to drive him mad. “Please, I need to know what happened—”

  “I said, enough!” he shouted this time and saw when she flinched. As impossible as it seemed, Elizabeth shrank into the seat, curling in on herself. She bit her lip, squeezing her eyes shut and the rest of her tears ran down her cheeks. William wrenched his eyes away, not wanting to see any more.

  Neither one of them said anything the entire trip to Brandon Estate, where the lonesome manor of the Brandon Dukedom stood on the outskirts of London. The entire time, William made sure not to look at her. Not even when she sniffled softly and lifted a hand to wipe her tears. Despite the fact that her crying was slowly tearing into him, dragging out that boy he’d buried long ago, he didn’t look at her. The trip felt longer than usual having her so close to him.

  At long last, they pulled into the driveway. William didn’t wait for Wesley to open the door for him, and he hopped out to the coachman’s shocked face. Behind him, he heard Elizabeth climb out.

  He didn’t look back at her as he made his way towards the front doors, knowing she was following. Since it was the dead of night, his butler and the rest of the help was asleep. The manor was still. His footsteps echoed through the quiet as he crossed through the foyer and began to ascend the grand staircase stretched out before him. He couldn’t hear Elizabeth and had to keep from looking behind him to make sure she was still there.

  Without pause, William made his way through the lonely hallways, heading towards the west wing where he finally came to a stop at a spare bedchamber. He swung the door open
and strode in, finally looking behind him to see Elizabeth gingerly step over the threshold.

  “Am I to sleep here?” she asked.

  Unable to stop himself, William took in her face. She’d wiped her cheeks free of all tears, but her eyes were rimmed red. In the morning, they were sure to be swollen.

  But it wouldn’t diminish the beauty before him. In a plain gown and a large cloak, with her hair wrapped into a tight chignon and her cheeks flushed red, William felt his body grow tense at the sight. Heat spread throughout his loins and it was all he could do not to give in to the urge to touch her. To feel her soft skin, to remind himself of what he’d lost.

  “Sleep here for tonight,” he said curtly, already making his way back to the door. The quicker he was away from her, the better it would be for him.

  “And what of tomorrow?” she asked before he could leave. “Will you tell me all that I wish to know?”

  William already had his hand on the door handle. He gripped it tightly, hating the tender emotions that filled him—emotions he hadn’t felt in a long time. For a moment, he grappled with the thought of simply shutting her down. Of saying that she would not learn what she so badly wanted to and tomorrow, he would send her back to her home.

  But, not trusting himself to speak, he decided to simply leave, closing the door on her unanswered question. As he made his way to his own bedchamber just a few hallways away, William knew that sleep would not come easy tonight. The girl who’d once haunted his dreams had returned in the body of a woman—and it would be even more difficult to get rid of her.

  Chapter 5

  The next day, Elizabeth was afraid to open her eyes. She was afraid she would find that everything had all been a dream. Gathering the courage to leave her home, being accosted in a lonely alleyway, finding William. If it truly was a dream, she did not want to wake up, not when she was so close to her happy ending.

  But sleep slipped away no matter how much she tried to cling to it, and seeing no other choice, she opened her eyes. For a moment, she was afraid she recognized the ornate ceiling above her, but it was a different sight from what she would normally see in her own bedchambers. Excitement steadily building within her, she sat up, her hair falling down around her shoulders. Last night, because she’d found herself inexplicably exhausted, she’d fallen into bed wearing the same grey gown. Throughout her sleep, she must have gotten tangled within the covers and so she took a moment to free herself of the blankets before getting to her feet.

  At that moment, the door opened and a woman with frizzy brown hair slipped in. She gently closed the door behind her, then gasped when she faced the bed and saw Elizabeth standing there.

  “Forgive me!” she gushed quickly, bowing her head. “I thought you would still be asleep. I had come by a few minutes ago and saw that you had not awakened yet.”

  “It’s quite all right,” Elizabeth told her gently. “Did His Grace send you?”

  “Yes, My Lady. He’s asked me to assist you with preparing for the day. He wishes to break his fast with you.”

  Elizabeth couldn’t keep the smile off her face. It felt too good to be true. After searching for so long, to think that she would be standing in his manor, knowing that William was waiting to have breakfast with her, was simply too much to bear. She sank onto the bed with a sigh, putting her hand over her racing heart.

  “My Lady?” The maid rushed to her side, eyes wide with concern. They were a clear blue, like the sky above.

  “I’m fine,” Elizabeth whispered. “I simply grew a bit overwhelmed by my emotions, is all.”

  “Would you like for me to prepare something for you?” the maid asked worriedly, her brow creased.

  Elizabeth slowly shook her head, shooting to her feet. “Rather, I would like to be ready as quickly as possible. I should not keep His Grace waiting.”

  “Y-yes, My Lady.” The maid took a step back as Elizabeth rushed by her, heading towards the vanity table sitting on the other side of the bedchamber. She sank before the mirror, tucking her hair behind her ears with a scowl.

  Her face was quite a mess. Her cheeks had splotches of red, evidence of the tears she’d shed last night. And if that wasn’t bad enough, her eyes were quite swollen. She would not be in her right mind if she allowed William to see her like this!

  “Excuse me?” she called to the maid. “What is your name?”

  The maid paused in the process of rummaging through the bag Elizabeth had carried with her, standing straight as she said, “Minnie, My Lady.”

  “It is nice to meet you, Minnie.” Elizabeth gave her a kind smile before facing her reflection again. “Could you fetch ice for me? Bring it in a cloth as well, please.”

  “Yes, My Lady.” Without hesitation, the maid rushed out of the room.

  Elizabeth touched the bags under her eyes once again, grimacing at the sight. Had they been this bad last night? The thought made her want to bury her head in her hands. She’d dreamt about seeing William again so many times and not for a second did she think she would cry like that. The tears would not stop, even though she was more happy than disappointed.

  He was certainly not the William she’d once known. She remembered him to be strong-willed, rash, and so energetic that she could hardly keep up. He’d always had a lust for life, happy, and willing to take on whatever he could for the sake of his entertainment. That boy would have willingly thrown himself in harm’s way if it meant protecting her, and she’d seen a glimpse of that last night when he’d come to her rescue. But that was where the similarities ended.

  He’d never been rude to her, never been so short and distant. Like a cold wall, he’d kept her at a distance, with none of the warmth he’d shown her before. Elizabeth didn’t know who this man was, but she’d already come this far. Now that she’d met her objective, she would not stop until she’d figured it all out.

  Soon enough, Minnie returned with a piece of ice wrapped in a clean cloth. Elizabeth pressed it against her eyes as Minnie laid out a gown and proceeded to fix her hair. She did a simple style, gathering most of Elizabeth’s blonde strands to the back of her head and leaving tendrils to frame her face. It matched the gown she would wear, another one that had been Patience’s. As Elizabeth got dressed, she ruefully wished she had brought one of her own gowns with her for William to see. At the very least, she was grateful her scars were covered and that Minnie had not said anything—had not even faltered in her movements—though she must have seen them.

  When the time came at last for her to go downstairs for breakfast, Elizabeth was positively shaking in her excitement. She kept her hands by her side, to keep from nervously fidgeting with her fingers. Minnie stayed with her the entire way, escorting her to the drawing room, but when they came upon the butler standing by the door, she curtsied and left.

  “My Lady,” the butler greeted, sweeping his arm out as he gave her a deep bow. “His Grace awaits you in the drawing room.”

  “Yes, I have been told,” she responded, her voice breathy. It was difficult keeping her enthusiasm from shining through her words. She licked her lips, hoping the butler wouldn’t be able to tell. “What is your name?”

  “My name is Harold Jennings, My Lady,” he responded instantly, standing with his back ramrod straight. His black hair was streaked grey, wrinkles lining his face. But despite his obvious age, there was an odd air about him, as if he was more than what met the eye. He didn’t quite look at her either, but slightly over her shoulder.

  Though she was eager to go into the drawing room, eager to see William again, she couldn’t stop herself from asking, “Have you been working with His Grace for long?”

  Harold shook his head, closing his eyes briefly before he reopened them and settled his gaze back over her shoulder. “I was hired by the late Duke of Brandon only five years’ prior, My Lady.”

  “Ah, I see.” That would explain why she did not recognize him. For some reason, she’d expected to see the same butler she’d come to know when she would vis
it William in the past, even though he no longer lived in that location.

  Harold nodded to her, then took a step to the side. Without looking, he reached for the door handle and pulled it open, gesturing for her to enter. Elizabeth nodded gratefully to him before facing the open door. Her heart began to race, her mouth going dry. On suddenly unsteady legs, she entered the drawing room, sweeping her gaze throughout the ornately furnished expanse.

  Despite what she’d overheard at the ball, it appeared, when faced with this beautiful drawing room, that the Brandon Dukedom was not lacking in wealth. A cream-colored marble fireplace dominated one end of the room, accentuated the purple drapes that hung over sash windows. Lavender-colored furniture occupied the center of the room, from arm chairs to sofas to chaise lounges. To the other end was a small round table with three chairs surrounding it, laden with food. Elizabeth’s heart jumped when she spotted William sitting in one of the chairs, his face turned towards the window. The manor was large enough that she had not expected to have breakfast in the drawing room, but she didn’t question it.