“I’ll Marry the First Man Who Enters,” She Joked — Then the Duke Walked In
Chapter 14
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"We made a bargain," Bella said. She stood up, turning to face him. Her heart was hammering a frantic rhythm against her ribs, but she kept her chin level. "I do not renege on my debts."Augustus's jaw clenched. "This is not a debt collection.""Isn't it?"He crossed the room in three strides, stopping inches from her. The heat radiating from his skin was overwhelming."I warned you in London," he murmured, his voice a low, gravelly rumble. "I am not a gentleman. I have spent my life breaking rocks and fighting in the mud. I don't know how to be soft.""I have had soft men flutter around me for four seasons," Bella said, looking up into his flat, dark eyes. "They were cowards, all of them. I prefer the rock."Augustus reached out. His hand hesitated for a fraction of a second before his fingers brushed her jaw. His skin was incredibly rough, the thick calluses scraping gently against her cheek: it was not a smooth touch, but it was violently careful; he was holding back his strength, terrified of breaking her.He leaned down and kissed her.There was no poetry in it: it was a heavy, claiming kiss tasting of whiskey and desperation. Bella gasped, her hands coming up to grip his forearms; they felt like carved marble beneath her palms. He wrapped one massive arm around her waist, pulling her flush against his chest, lifting her slightly off the floor.The transaction ended there; the cold, logical ledger burned to ash in the heat of his grip.He carried her to the massive four-poster bed, laying her down against the pillows. The mattress sank under his weight as he followed her down. He stripped off his dressing gown, tossing it blindly onto the floor.Bella's breath hitched: his chest and shoulders were covered in scars—pale, jagged lines from falling rock, burns from localized gas explosions, the violent history of the Pendleton Collieries written in his flesh. He was not a pristine lord; he was a survivor."Augustus," she whispered.He froze, his dark eyes snapping to her face, searching for panic. "Do you want me to stop?""No." She reached up, tracing a particularly nasty scar across his collarbone. "I want you to finish what we started."He took her with the same brutal efficiency he applied to everything else. But beneath the heavy weight of him, beneath the friction and the awkward, hurried tangle of limbs, there was an anchor: he held her as if she were the only solid thing in a collapsing tunnel.When the pain flared, sharp and bright, she dug her nails into his shoulders, stifling a cry against his neck. Augustus stopped instantly, his entire body going rigid. He swore viciously, burying his face in the pillow beside her head."I'm sorry," he gritted out, his muscles trembling with the effort of holding himself still. "I'm sorry.""Don't stop," Bella commanded, her voice tight but unwavering. She wrapped her legs around his hips, pulling him deeper. "Don't you dare stop now."