by Yasmine Nash
Descamps’ jaw was working hard, and it looked as though he had something he wanted to say. Amanda lowered her eyes so she wouldn’t have to look at that face which had haunted her, dreaming and awake, so much of the last few lonely days. Now that he was in front of her, she was afraid to see hatred again in his eyes.
He finally spoke. “Will you come no closer to me? No? I suppose I deserve that. I frightened you before. I was wrong.”
Amanda couldn’t believe her ears. Was this an apology? She couldn’t even think of what to say, but she didn’t have to speak. Descamps was not finished.
“I told you once that my father was not a good man. He hurt my mother. He would hurt me and my brother too,” Descamps added in an offhand way. “When he got the chance. But he enjoyed causing my mother pain, I think. He took pleasure in the act. And while I have spent my entire life worried about how much of my father resides inside my own spirit, I have never harmed a woman or lifted a hand against a child.”
In his voice was an openness Amanda had never heard before. She hung on to every word.
“I have a temper,” Descamps continued. “You know that. But it’s one I’ve struggled to keep under wraps my entire life, in case whatever evil had poisoned my father’s soul had spread to me as well. In my attempt to do so, I found I could not shut down one emotion without also shutting down all the others. So I made a choice. I would shove everything I felt away, good or bad, so I would never be at risk of becoming my father. And I succeeded. Until I met Caroline.”
Amanda, who had been listening up until now with bated breath and a heart that ached for the pain Descamps had gone through, was suddenly not sure she wanted to hear anything more.
Descamps continued anyway. “I thought I was in love with her. When we were married, I thought maybe, just maybe, we could actually live happily in this accursed castle. I tried to open myself up to her, but it wasn’t enough. I had done too good a job for too many years at hiding myself away. I could not bring my true self out again, not even for my wife.
“I spent many years blaming Caroline for the dissolution of our marriage, but I now see I was just as much to blame for driving her away. So when it came time for me to marry again, I was determined it not be for love. I had chosen so wrongly the first time, after all. And then, to my absolute shock and dismay, I fell in love with you anyway.”
Amanda gasped aloud. Had she truly heard that, or had she somehow deluded herself? She slowly, shakingly lifted her gaze to meet Descamps’ vulnerable one. This was like looking at a new man.
“You have undone me, wife,” he said plaintively.
Amanda did not have the words to express what she was feeling inside her heart, so she stumbled forward into her husband’s embrace. His arms gripped her tightly, as though afraid to let her go for fear she’d slip away again. She let out a shaky sigh. She fit so perfectly against his chest.
Sometime later—it could have been minutes; it could have been hours—Descamps leaned back just far enough to be able to lift her chin so their lips could meet. He explored her mouth hungrily, like a drowning man searching for air, and Amanda eagerly reciprocated his kiss.
He loved her.
He truly loved her.
Amanda couldn’t believe it.
She pulled back to catch her breath and gaze at his gray eyes, darkened to black in the candlelight. “Is this really happening?” she asked in wonder. “I’m not dreaming, am I?”
“If you are, then I am too,” he said, his voice a low rumble. “And I hope we never wake up.”
He took her again in his arms, and they swayed slowly back and forth in the candlelit room. Her future flashed before Amanda’s eyes: a lifetime filled with sensual nights, and eventually babies to keep them company. Perhaps even grandchildren one day, the happy sounds of tiny footsteps and laughter echoing throughout the castle walls. It would be a good life, Amanda thought dreamily. A happy life. And through it all, her husband would be by her side.
Arm in arm, Amanda and Descamps slowly made their way back upstairs to her bedchamber. It was time to get started on the first part of that happily ever after.
About the Author
Yasmine is an author of romance novels. She has written several historical Regency romances and currently, she’s working on a paranormal romance inspired by the Regency era. Stay tuned to hear more about that novel in the coming months!
In her spare time, Yasmine bakes recipes inspired by the Great British Baking Show and sews very messy embroidery. Yasmine lives in the Midwest with her family and her two dogs, Darcy and Tilney.
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Also by Yasmine Nash
Tempting the Duke
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08959YSCH
A Man Who’s Gaining Everything
When the Duke of Devonshire unexpectedly becomes guardian to 18-year-old Louisa Kellynch, his plan is to send her off to boarding school the first chance he gets. But after he meets her, his desire begins warring with his sense of duty.
A Young Woman With Nothing to Lose
Since Louisa is unable to inherit her family’s entailed estate, she comes up with the next best plan: seduce and marry the duke so she can regain what’s rightfully hers. Only she’s soon at risk for falling in over her head…
Her Secret Scandal
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B088PNLH5W
A Woman Carrying a Heavy Secret and a Man Struggling to Find His Place
Heiress Alexandra Morland lives a charmed life until her mother reveals a life-shattering secret on her deathbed. Alexa’s world is immediately turned upside down by the revelation. Kicked out of her former home, she arrives in London in near ruin, with barely more than the clothes on her back. That’s where she meets Henry Northam. Even though he’s the heir to a large fortune and title, Henry has ambitions to make a career for himself in the law. His family doesn’t approve and he knows a wife wouldn’t either—he’s had his heart broken enough times to prove that. As the two fall in love, Alexa needs to decide whether she can trust Henry with her heart and her secret.