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Everything he could give her

All the bits and pieces Even if they were just bits and pieces She would take them

He closed his eyes "Fuck" The curse ca, and Sophie stilled as he sat up, his hands no longer lingering, no longer holding, now pulling her bodice up around her

What had she done?

"King?" she asked, his hands at the laces of her gown, pulling the? "What’s happened?" Once it was done and she was dressed, he lifted his eyes to hers, and she relaxed, recognizing the desire there, restrained, but clear as the North Country sky "Why did you stop?"

"I’m sorry," he said, his voice low and dark and full of want

"For stopping?" She stared down at him, more confused than she’d ever been in her life "You don’t owe y"

"But I do For all of it," he said "For the things I’ve done and said to you For bringing you here For this"

"I was quite enjoying it"

He exhaled, the sound harsh in their close quarters "That’s the proble her feet to the floor "No Of course I want you to enjoy it But this" He paused and cursed again, low and wicked in the quiet library "Christ I was enjoying it, too Too much I can’t enjoy it, Sophie I can’t enjoy you And you shouldn’t enjoy me"

Too late

Her brow furrowed "Why not?" She cast about for a way to protect herself "You promised you’d ruin me, didn’t you? This is it, isn’t it?"

He looked at her then, his green eyes glittering with anger and frustration and so near sorrow And then he broke her heart

"I’ve no intention of ht Not ever"

Chapter 17

KING ONCE, DUKE TO BE

He spent the next day roa he’d find her Half hoping that seeing her ht restore the incredible relief he’d felt once he’d told her the truth about Lorna and she hadn’t run screauilt at her disappointment when he’d told her he wouldn’t make love to her

By afternoon, he’d found himself in the library once more, deep into the scotch, seated in the chair where he’d had her the night before, torturing hi theher tart with the same It occurred to hi with the servants, sighing over pasties, facing hi room

He’d think of her with passion

She was all passion and strength and perfection, and stopping hiainst the shelves of the library, again and again until neither of the but each other, had been one of the hardest things he’d ever done

But leaving her had been far entleuilt He did not ruin her, despite their idiotic agreement That was the point of it, no? It was his role as a decent uilty he was, and it had nothing to do with not taking her to bed

It had to do with the fact that he could not be what she wanted

He could not give her the love she desired The love she deserved And the best thing in the world he could do for her at this point was to pack her back to the inn in Mossband and pretend as though they’d never uilt turning to frustration What a daht Sophie here, to have introduced her to his demons To have tempted them both hat could never be