Cocky Earl - Annabelle Anders Page 0,96

other lady might have been put off by the prone but substantial sight of Mantis near the hearth. Or Chase’s wrinkled shirt. And if neither of those things sent her running, then the stench of scotch and stale cigars wafting throughout the room ought to have.

Jules rushed across the room to her. Realizing at the last moment that they were not alone, he caught himself just in time and instead of wrapping his arms around her, bent at the waist, making a proper bow.

She would be worth everything. The scandal, the guilt, even his mother’s disapproval.

Besides that, his mother would be over it soon enough. She would come to love Charley almost as much as he did… The thought was still new to him. Love?

Mantis remained inert so Jules assumed he’d passed out again, but Chase, after lifting Charley’s hand to kiss in a besotted fashion, slipped out the door, making far more ceremony of the meeting than the situation warranted.

All of Jules’ physical ailments diminished considerably now that she was here. If they had been alone, he would have held her close and buried his face in her hair.

She was his. Nothing was going to keep him from marrying her.

Clean, fresh, Charley.

But for now, he needed to tell her everything, explain the situation he faced. She’d discover the truth sooner or later and pretending the agreement didn’t exist simply wasn’t an option.

With her hands behind her back, she leaned forward and searched his gaze. “Late night?”

“Is it that obvious?”

“Yes.” But she didn’t seem all that alarmed at his condition. She did not, however, have her usual impish swagger. It was almost as though…

“I know about the contract,” she admitted solemnly.

His churning stomach, which had temporarily declared a truce with his head, took up arms once again.

And yet she didn’t appear angry with him. She seemed unusually calm.

Wondering at any number of scenarios in which she had learned this information and at the same time needing to offer reassurance, but then also remembering that she liked to inventory scents, he drew her away from the waste bin hidden beneath his desk and toward the hearth. “Don’t mind Mantis. He drank a little too much last night, I’m afraid.”

Her response was to raise her brows. “Good to know he yet lives.”

“Well. Yes.” He jerked his head toward the liquor cabinet. “We all did, I’m afraid.”

And then, facing her, he grasped both her hands tightly. “I didn’t know about it.”

“I know.” She frowned, blinking rapidly while looking down at their hands.

Still holding her arm, he lowered her to sit on the settee beside him. This wasn’t what he’d pictured when he’d imagined seeing her today.

“This doesn’t change anything. I have every intention of marrying you.” He’d make this perfectly clear to her.

“This changes everything!” She finally met his gaze directly. “From the very beginning, you reasoned that if there had been a contract, you would have been obligated to fulfill it. And now that one has come to light, it’s your duty to comply. Marrying Lady Felicity is your first commitment.”

A dull ache filled his chest as she reminded him of his own words, his own conviction.

“My father signed them. I did not.” Dishonoring his father’s promise would kill something inside of him. He rubbed his thumb along the pulse at her wrist. One week ago, she would have been correct in her assumptions. But after yesterday… Mantis was right. The living were the ones who mattered.

“You told me you would not have accepted the wager with my father if there had been an official agreement with Lord Brightly.”

Jules searched his memory of when they’d first discussed the wager. He couldn’t dispute that. It was what he’d thought at the time.

“You told me a man had nothing if he didn’t have his honor.” There was no accusation in her words, only a sad sort of acceptance.

But the truth of the matter was that he would sacrifice his honor either way. He refused to sacrifice her along with it.

“I won’t marry a man who comes to me with regrets—one who might someday hate me for doing so.”

Jules leaned forward and pressed his forehead against hers. “I made love to you, Charley, knowing we would marry. And because I want you in my life. I need you in my life.” This was the truth. She was his choice. “I won’t let you go.”

But her eyes swam with tears now. “And I need you too, and I want you in my life.” Jules couldn’t keep