《Maid for a Duke (A Christmas Novella)》Chapter 18
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"Elijah, what are you talking about?"
Katherine didn't know what to say to Elijah's question. Run away with him? He made it sound so simple.
"If we can't get married, will you leave with me?" He asked again.
Katherine's head was spinning. "Elijah, where would we go? What would we do? What about our families?"
"We would go anywhere. Anywhere you wanted." There was desperation in his tone, as if he feared losing her.
Katherine's heart was aching in her chest. She loved him as much as he loved her, but running away... Just didn't feel right. They would be leaving everything and everyone behind.
Katherine walked over to stand in front of him. With a quiet voice she asked, "Have you thought this through? Are you sure its what you want?"
His stare didn't waver as he reached out and cupped her face with both hands. "I've never been more certain of anything in my life, Kitten. You...were made for me. And I will do whatever is necessary to keep you."
In the next instant, Elijah's mouth was on hers. Her body responded to his instantly and there was nothing she could do about it. Not that she wanted to. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he deepened the kiss. His words were going through her mind as she started tugging at his shirt, silently begging for him to get it off. She wanted to feel him. No, she needed to feel him.
Elijah didn't know what came over him. He had a feeling that his days with her were numbered. The thought of sharing his bed, his life was someone else, was unacceptable to him. He didn't know how he was going to do it, but one way or another, come Christmas day, he was marrying Katherine.
But he would worry about that tomorrow. Right now, he needed her. When she started tugging at his shirt, clearly wanting it off, he groaned into her mouth. He pulled away long enough to remove it and throw it to the floor.
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In less than two minutes, he had her out of her maid's uniform and naked in his bed. He positioned himself between her body and she wrapped her legs around his waist. He was dying to taste her, but he told himself there would be time for that later. He deepened their kiss as he slid himself inside her. Now was not the time for slow and gentle.
"Elijah..." She moaned as he made love to her.
He stopped kissing her neck to look into her eyes when he said, "Tell me you love me." He didn't know why he needed to hear it right now, but he did.
"I love you, Elijah."
Against her lips he breathed, "Forever?"
"Forever," she vowed.
Elijah paced back and forth in his mother's quarters. He needed to find a way to marry Katherine. When he was with her last night, it was...different. It was as if she were saying goodbye to him.
To think about life without her was unimaginable. For the first time in his life, he was happy; and he wasn't going to lose that. She asked him last night if he felt selfish at to the ides of running away together. She asked if he would feel guilty leaving his mother behind. He didn't answer her. He couldn't answer her. He did feel selfish. He did feel guilty. But wasn't that the point? He wanted to keep her. He wanted to spend his life with her. He had one life and he wasn't going to live it in a loveless marriage full of regret. That wasn't a life for anyone.
"Hello, my son. You wanted to see me?" His mother asked as she came into her chambers.
"Good morning, mother. Yes, I have...some news."
"News?" She asked as she stood in front of him with a brow raised. "Does this have anything to do with you sneaking around yesterday?"
He could never get anything over on her. "Yes. I'm sorry about that. Some things have happened over the past few days. Things that need to be addressed, immediately."
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When he hesitated, a small smile formed on her face. "Elijah, tell me now or I will assume the worst."
"I am in love," he said plainly.
"That is great news, Elijah."
"Not-- with Lady Elizabeth," he added.
When his mother simply held his gaze, he knew the truth. "You knew, didn't you?"
She smiled as she smoothed her dress. "My son, I'm the Duchess of Kent. Not much happens without my knowing about it." She frowned when she added, "And tell William that he needs to be more creative when he has secret meetings with Lady Elizabeth."
Elijah's jaw dropped. "How did-- When-- You knew?" He asked again, clearly at a loss for words.
"I saw the two of them at the masquerade ball. There was no mistaking the instant connection. As for you, I knew something was amiss when you returned home. You were different."
"But how did you know I was in love with someone else?"
She cupped his cheek with her hand. "It's your eyes. I can see it. And it's not Lady Elizabeth you look at like that."
Elijah closed his eyes tight before he spoke again. "I can't go through with this wedding, Mother. I'm sorry."
"Elijah, never apologize for falling in love."
"But, what about duty and honor? Isn't that the whole reason for this?"
She had regret in her eyes when she answered him. "I was wrong, Elijah. When I saw you happy and in love, I realized I made a mistake pairing you with Lady Elizabeth."
He took a step back and ran his hands through his hair. "What are we going to do?"
The Duchess clapped her hands together and started pacing. "First, we need to break the engagement. We'll have to speak to Lady Elizabeth's father."
"Mother, that will ruin her." It would be an extreme scandal if that happened. Especially if she married William.
"Not if we do this right." She stopped and met his eyes. "Does your love want to marry you?"
"Yes," Elijah said with a smile. Just thinking about the possibility of her becoming his wife filled him with profound joy.
"Okay, go find William and Lady Elizabeth and meet me back here in one hour. I have a plan."
Katherine's heart was heavy as she stepped into the mail coach. After her night with Elijah she did a lot of thinking. She wanted nothing more than to spend her life with him. Forever. But, that wasn't a possibility.
After he made love to her, he held her while he spoke of their future. He envisioned their life together with children, laughter, and...love. He wanted to meet her family. He wanted to know everything about her.
Katherine had stayed silent while she listened to him tell her his dreams. She wanted the same things he did. All of it. That was the reason she had to leave. Because, if it didn't work out and they couldn't get married, then she knew she would have agreed to run away with him if he asked. She wouldn't be able to to say no to spending the rest of her life with him. She didn't think she could live with herself if he had to choose between her or his family. Not to mention, she would have to leave her family.
She sighed when she thought about her mother and sisters. They were going to have a thousand questions that she couldn't answer. The most important one was what caused her to leave this amazing opportunity just days after starting. They didn't even know about the incident with the highwaymen. She thought back to how her life was before she met Elijah that day. She wouldn't have changed any of it.
Tears came to her eyes when she thought back to the letter she left for him in his chambers. A goodbye letter. She couldn't just leave without saying explaining why.
When she pictured him reading it, the tears came harder.
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