The Duke was standing in the middle of the room, his hands in his pockets, his head tilted to one side. It was a relaxed, casual pose, and yet the way he looked at her was anything but casual. The deep midnight of his eyes burned and he radiated a subtle, sensual energy that made the air around him crackle. 

He looked like a man who’d never heard the word ‘no’ in all his life. Unluckily for him, ‘no’ was the only word she had.

“There's no reason why I should stay,” Anna clasped her shaking hands together in an effort to still them. “I’m not marrying you.”

His gaze flickered, his mouth curving slightly, and she had the disturbing thought that far from putting him off, her insistence was only inciting him further.
“But you haven’t heard my proposal yet,” he said mildly. “Isn’t that why you’re here?”

“I don’t need to hear it. I already know that my answer will be no.”

“Of course. But you can hardly tell your father that you heard me out when you haven’t, in fact, heard me out…. Anna.” 



A LADY FOR A DUKE

He stood up from his desk, turned around and stared out the window. Black clouds hovered on the horizon, and he knew that by evening, there’d be a storm blowing in. Which suited how he was feeling just fine. His insides were raging, in a tumult. 


“Yeah?” He glanced over his shoulder, irritated at the interruption as he watched Bonnie step into the office. “What is it, Bonnie?” 


Bonnie blinked at Cedric’s tone, but said, “I’ve got the paperwork drawn up for you to look over and sign.” 


“Right. Fine. Just…leave it on my desk, will you?” 


He turned back to stare outside again, his thoughts racing in circles. He couldn’t help feeling guilty about it all. He’d gotten what he wanted. He'd have a son soon… Or a daughter…. At this point he didn't even care about the inheritance anymore. 


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