The Secret Life of a Duke (#10, The Valiant Love Regency Romance) (A Historical Romance Book) by Deborah Wilson

Author:Deborah Wilson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Regency Romance, Clean Regency Romance, Duke Romance, Regency, Regency Historical Romance, Regency historical fiction, Historical romance
Publisher: Deborah Wilson
Published: 2020-02-07T00:00:00+00:00

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* * *

Cassius put down his quill at the sound of knocking on his office door. “One moment.” It took him exactly ten seconds to clear his desk. Once that was completed, he moved to the door and opened it.

Clive stood on the other side. His expression was one Cass could not decipher. It was closed to him.

“You’ve returned,” Cass said, stating the obvious. A rather quiet and uneventful week had passed since Clive’s departure. “Does Irene know you’re here?”

“I saw her first. We spoke. Do you have a moment?” Clive asked. “I’d like to speak to you.”

Cass backed away from the door and then took a seat behind his desk. “Did your little jaunt have anything to do with me?”

Clive settled in a chair on the other side of the desk. “It had everything to do with you. I needed to speak to the others about what took place at your party.” The others were Clive’s four friends, a group of lords who’d once been kidnapped and chained on the authority of the previous Van Dero. “I’d heard the whispers, but I’d thought them all a lie. Have you truly stepped into the role that Irene’s father once held? Have you truly become the Duke of Van Dero?”

He was not the first man who’d asked him that question. There was being the duke and then there was being The Duke. The distinction could not be missed. One was just a man with a great inheritance, the other was a force.

“If you are asking if I have the book and plan to use its power then yes, but if you’re asking if I’m anything like Irene’s father... I’m not sure. I have no intention of abusing children or anyone else I deem innocent.”

“You deem?” Clive crossed his arms. “And what qualifies as innocent in your eyes, Your Grace?”

“I don’t believe there is a man alive who hasn’t made mistakes, but I’ll stop anyone I believe needs to be stopped.”

“Including me?” Clive asked. “Or Garrick? James? What about Kent and Marley?” That rounded up the total of the Lost Lords. The group had been kidnapped, tortured, and then managed to break free and wreaked havoc on London as they hunted everyone who’d hurt them down.

“If you need to be stopped, I will stop you.”

Clive didn’t flinch. “With blackmail?”

“Blackmail will not be an option, since I’ve destroyed and will continue to destroy any evidence of crimes against you men. It is the least I can do, considering Irene’s attachment to you. However, if there comes a day that I think one of you has taken a turn for the worse, I swear to end you with my own hands.”

“Thank you,” Clive mocked. “We promise to do the same to you if need be.” The last lacked any hint of jest.

“I would not expect anything else from any of you.” There must be balance.

Clive’s eyes flickered with surprise. “Irene said she spoke to you, about your business and about Milly.”

“Neither of which am I ready to discuss.

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