Married To A Duke

The Dinner

Raphael

“Everything is ready for tonight. He already knew and as you guessed he was only too eager to come to tonight's meeting.” Z said as he sat down on the chair opposite me.

“Tell me, Z, would it be too harsh to kill a man in the middle of a meeting?” I asked as I looked at him.

“Yes, unless you're a king.” He smiled. “Which you are.” A serious expression crossed his face as he said, “What he did was unacceptable and not just to you, I know that even he wouldn't have let it go.” I nodded for him to go on. “But that man is her father.”

“Hmm.”

“Forgive me, your grace, but I think you should not be a part of this.” I looked up at Jesse, who stood, as usual, beside the door. “It's not your battle to fight.”

“You know, Jesse, King or not. I know one thing if the battles are not fought, they turn into a war.” I said to him, my most trusted man, even more than my brother. Because Jesse had seen me at my lowest, and he was the one who brought me back from hole I had creeped into. “But tell me one thing, Jesse, why are you so opposed to her?”

His chin tipped up as he said, “Not her, your grace. It’s you and her. I saw how you looked at her and believe it or not I saw how she returned your gaze.” She did, didn’t she? I also saw the attraction in her gaze and how she tried to bury it. He paused for affect, always so dramatic. “And the last time you were affected by someone like this…” His tone turned sombre. “I do not care to witness that again.”

We stared at each other for a long time, before I said, “Your concerns are endearing, but unwarranted. I have stopped feeling anything the long time ago, Jesse. And it’d be better if you remember that.” And I have to remember it too.

He nodded, almost a bow, forgetting himself once again. “Apologies, your grace.”

Z cleared his throat and my eyes went to him. “Mr Bianchi, another man, who you need to be aware of. He’s a good man with a daughter named Katlyn, his sole heir, and another best friend of your sister in law and the woman upstairs.”

I nodded. “What about the man who was killed that day?” I asked.

“Adam. He joined the forces a few months ago, he wasn’t connected. A gardener’s son. But from what I collected from my guys, it had something to do with her and this Adam, why Angus Clarke refused to marry her in the first place.”

“Isn’t the Angus Clarke, the one you said was heading the Mexican cartel now?” I asked and at Zurich’s nod, I added, “The Mexican and their business is forbidden in New Orleans from what I gathered from my brother because of obvious reasons then why the hell would her father want to join forces with them.”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Z asked. “He is hungry for power.” He added.

Just what Amelie has said. “Hungry enough to barter his own daughter.” I stated as I laughed without amusement. “That man really has some guts or he is just stupid enough to go against a wolf without anything to save him.”

“Why don’t we show him, who rules this kingdom then.” Z said, and I nodded my affirmation. Time to have some fun. I hope it’d be more fun than London ball rooms. Oh yes, for one, here I was allowed to draw blood. I very much intend to.

Amelie

A week has passed since that encounter in the library with him and for some reason he was avoiding me. I don’t know why, but as much as I preferred the lack of energy that he brings with him, stealing my thoughts, I also had so many questions. And the foremost was, where was Summer and why wasn’t she here?

One thing I liked about being here, in his home, was the fact that I just didn’t know that I was safe, I felt it too. That very day after the interaction in the study, a middle aged woman with a name of Mrs Perry Mathews had come. She had told me that she was to look after the house and me. Except her, I haven’t talked to anyone in a week. I wasn’t bothered by it, I was happy to spent my days in silence, especially in the small library I had found. There were so many books, and I knew all the romantic books I found in there was Summer’s doing.

A knock came at my bedroom. The bare room I was put in, was now my bedroom. My things were now all over the place and some part of me felt like I was encroaching on my best friend’s territory. The knock came again, and I called out, “Come in.” I thought it was Mrs Mathews, but the man who stepped in was Jesse.

“You are requested downstairs for dinner, Miss.” Jesse said.

“Why are you always so formal, Jesse?” I asked instead. Whenever we had crossed paths in the last week, he had always given me a differential nod as if he had stepped out of one of those historical romance that I loved to read.

His brows drew lowered and then he straightened as if it was even possible with the rigid way he already carried himself. “I beg your pardon, Miss.”

“See, that… you always speak like we are in some historical fiction.” I said. He looked at me like he didn’t know what I was about. I waved my hand. “Forget it. Tell me why am I requested tonight when I wasn’t for the last six days?”

“You have to ask him that, Miss.”

“Hmm…” I murmured and his eyes narrowed at me like I had done something to offense him. “What if I am not hungry?” I asked.

“Quite frankly, Miss, it shouldn’t matter. His gra—” He stopped, took a deep breath as if to calm himself and said, “Boss has ordered for you to be downstairs then you should be.”

“Fine.” I nodded. He was such an oddity among all the men here. “Let’s go.” Without waiting, I marched out, leaving him to follow behind me.

When I entered the dining room, now after so many days I have finally had my fill of taking in all the beauty of his house because yes, it was beautiful, I focused on the man sitting at the head of the table. And just for a wayward second, I allowed the guilty thought to enter my mind that the man was even more beautiful than his house. I marched to the other side of the table and sat down.

He didn’t look up at me from his phone his fingers still busy at whatever he was doing which allowed me to look at him. His cheekbones were pronounces, sharp and chiseled. His chin and jaw was dotted with stubble and his dark hair were windblown as if he had come from a horse riding. He could almost perform as one of those heroes from my favorite historical romances and he'd look too real with those aristocratic features. Which I guess, wasn’t too farfetched as he was a brother to a Duke. Once again my gaze dropped to his phone that chimes in his hand, and this time the thought came had me looking away. May be he was texting his wife. Summer.

A few minutes passed before he put down his phone and lifted his head, his eyes landing on mine. “How are you this evening, Miss Sinclair?”

I carefully masked the irritated surprise at the way he called me and said, “Just like I have been for the past week.” I paused, “Oh, but you wouldn’t know because you were too busy…” In ignoring me, I didn’t say the last part. And now as I recalled the first part I realised I shouldn’t have said that either, it all felt wrong.

“Do you feel neglected, Miss Sinclair?”

I opened my mouth to threw back another retort but stopped when I saw, Mrs Mathews coming out of the kitchen with two plates in her hands. She placed the first in front of him and another in front of me. I said my thanks and when she left, instead of answering his question, I asked one of my own, “Why did you ask for me?”

“I didn’t feel like eating alone tonight.” His response took me by surprise and I was so engrossed at looking at him that I jerked upright when I heard the door close behind me. Turning around I saw Jesse standing by the door with his hands in front of him as a statue might.I looked back at him and said, “Then why don’t you bring your wife here to have dinner with?”

A slight tip at the corner of his lips was the only indication that he had heard me because the next thing he said was purely out of context. “I have a meeting after this dinner, Miss Sinclair. And I want you to be there with me.”

I stiffened in my chair. “Why?”

He gestured at the plate in front of me. “You haven’t even taken a bite of your food.”

I glared at him and he looked back at me steadily as he lifted his wine glass and sipped from it. Gritting my teeth, I looked down at my plate and used a knife and fork to cut into my chicken. As soon as I placed the piece into my mouth, he said, “Because this meeting will decide your future, Miss Sinclair. The future which you want to be safe, yes?” I nodded, still chewing. “Great. Then, it’s decided.” He said, as he closed his lips around the fork, momentarily distracting me. I watched as his throat worked, that adam’s apple working as he swallowed.

I felt flustered. And it took me sometime to get back to what he had said. I gulped down my mouthful and asked, “How?”

“That’s for me to know. You enjoy the benefits without asking any questions.” I scowled at him but he wasn’t looking at me. He had already dismissed me.

Seething, I almost wanted to go to him and demand him to look at me, because this conversation wasn’t finished. “You can’t just expect me to obey everything you say, you have to answer my questions.” I gritted out.

“And, why is that?” His blue eyes dared.

“For one, I am not your wife.” I said. Yes, you remember that, Amelie.

“Hmm.” He murmured.

“And, neither I’m one of your men that you will order me about.” There was that slight tilt of amusement once again. “What is it that you find funny, Gabriel?” I questioned, unable to stop myself.

His blue eyes lost the light and then his voice cold, he said, “I assume, that the pain killers must be responsible for you to so easily forget about what I said in the study to you, Miss Sinclair.” Not just this house but this city is mine. And everyone here is accountable to me. From the corner of my eyes I watched as Jesse quickly came with a bottle of wine and topped his glass before silently taking his place back where he was standing. “And I’ll forgive this slight but not again.” He slightly leaned forward. “Don’t test me again and again, because friend or not, I can and I will punish you however I see fit.”

Coldness seeped into my veins as I looked at him. I couldn’t understand. How could he act like this toward me. The Gabriel, Summer talked about and was in love with would never behave like that with her friends, right? I swallowed and asked, “Do you not love her?”

“Love is a waste of time, the only thing you can be sure of is that in the end the person you trust with your heart the most will always be the one who betrays you.”

My heart jolted in my chest, because I knew those words to be the ultimate truth, and something told me that he had gone through it. We both stared at each other. My brown ones looking into those blues, trying to read them but didn’t find anything. “Did she—” I broke off. I couldn’t ask. Summer would never hurt him.

The slight movement from the side shook us out of the little game, stare into each other’s eyes, we were having. I watched as Gabriel turned his head in Jesse’s direction, and it felt like the interruption was intentional from Jesse’s side. When Gabriel looked back at me, his shoulders were relaxed as he regarded me. Then he said, almost nonchalantly as if he wasn’t talking about love and betrayal. “Just because I think you’d ask this again and again, I’m telling you that your friend, Summer, is okay. And as happy as she could be. And safe. And for that very reason— her safety, she’s not here.”

I nodded and watched transfixed as the blue in his eyes darkened and his eyes seemed to caress my face before he mumbled, “There will be clothes waiting for you in your bedroom. I’ll come to collect you soon. Be ready.” With that final order, he downed the rest of his wine and stood up, leaving me alone to eat.

To Be Continued...