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"No, you don’t"

"I do!"

"You want to marry me because you realize youme now, Gideon We lost each other, so your tiether You loved her"

Astley sed "I--"

"You loved her and the sooner you realize that, the sooner you can mourn her properly"

"But if you won’t marry either of us--"

"Don’t tell me that you’re afraid I’ll end up a spinster! I’ll tell you exactly who I a to marry: a coe that you never really thought I was good enough for you I a to find an ordinary man ill court me And he won’t be a duke Now if you don’t mind, I’ll leave you"

She left

Leopold pulled on his shirt "I’ll leave for London immediately," he said, tired to the bone He felt as if a cla around his heart, as if he’d--He couldn’t let himself think about what he had done

"No, you won’t"

"For God’s sake, Astley She doesn’t want either one of us"

"You fool," Astley said "You utter blithering fool"

Leopold laughed, shortly "Are you trying to get me to slap you this time? Because believe it or not, I don’t believe in duels anymore"

The slap made his head fall back and his teeth rattle

"What in God’s name was that for? That’s the third time you’ve struck me in five minutes"

"Because I love her," Astley said "I behaved like a young ass when I left her And ht when she says it’s too late for us But you--you used her You oing to kill you"

For the first time, Leopold felt a stir of alarm Faint, but real "You can’t kill me"

"Yes, I can," Astley stated clearly "I dishonored Eleanor This will atone for what I did to her I’ll revenge her I’ll take you down because it’s the right thing to do You broke her heart I’ve never seen her look like that, not when I left her, and not thereafter By God, I never understood the point of dueling before but I understand it now"

Leopold knehen a man had irrevocably made up his mind He pulled on his boots "Toreen down by the river It will do" He felt inexpressibly weary A man wanted to kill him because he had broken the heart of--

It was ireed with him that he should marry Lisette Women had moaned and murmured and shouted their love for him before, not that he ever believed them Hell, Lisette had patted his cheek and told hi

Eleanor never said a word

"She doesn’t lovethe rooely "You utter ass"

"You’re hardly an uninterested bystander," Leopold said