fury. "Do you have any idea who you're speaking to?" He

original Elenore would have

ot in panic, but with deliberate speed. Thumb and forefinger found the pressure point on the

s fingers went numb, his grip vanishing. He re

o can't control himself on his own wedding

her protector falter. She launched herself

's foot shot out in a small, precise motion, catching her ankle. Wrapped in the cumbersome sheet

ed like a predator-economical, lethal, utterly controlled. He had seen trained soldiers with less precision. A slow, dangerous curiosity

stiges of aristocratic composure vanished. "Ele

arriage was a favor to your father. Your family clings to its status by a thread. I can make yo

he original Elenore hostage. The fear of d

lenore, it wa

at? Petition the King? Tell him you wish to annul a politically advantag

about consolidating power. To break it on a whim, for a sordid affair with

She was right, an

isting everything!" she sobbed, clutching his arm. "She forced me! She threatened

e, elaborate. Did I drug you too? Did I tie you to the headboard? Did I stand over you with a knife and demand you pleasure my husband on my wedding night?" She tilted her head, mockery dripping from every syllabl

o the core, and fell sil

ssembled his mask of detached nobility. "It seems we need to have a di

wer-a desperate, clumsy attempt t

pushed it open a crack. A sliver of cold, clean night air sliced through the room's cloying sweetness.

gainst the dark glass. "What I want? It's very

it took him a moment to process. Isabelle's eyes widened wit

e House of Hawthorne is an inn you can simply come and go from as you plea

ite clearly, that it was you, Sterling Hawthorne, who was unfaithful on our we

her way out. Isabelle's joy vanished, replaced by horror. If that document was

lammed his fist onto a nearby mahogany table. The soun

" she said, her voice soft and lethal. "You wanted a Duchess, Sterling. Now you have one.

vision swam, the edges of the room blurring into darkness. She locked her knees, forcing herself to sta