The Pirate's Duchess: A Regent's Revenge Novella by Katherine Bone Page A

touch, felt surprisingly sincere and agonizingly delightful. She yearned for mor e, another tast e, an excuse to forget the past two years, to yield to the inferno igniting her soul.
    But he hadn’t answered her question, hadn’t agreed to her one request.
    She placed her hand over his chest and pushed him away, needing to put distance between them. Would she wake up to discover it was her wedding day all over again, that this , this momentary bliss with Tobias, had all been a dream to sort out her feelings for Basil?
    No, her heart cried. Tobias was real. He was alive—and here—in her arms. He’d championed death. He’d come home to her, and he was offering her another chance to attain everything she’d ever desired—children, more time with him, the love they’d been denied. If only she could allow herself to forget—
    “You haven’t promised not to hurt Basil.” God help her, the hollow ache inside her grew.
    “Prudence,” he offered huskily.
    Her heart hammered foolishly in her chest. She would never be able to live knowing Basil had suffered because of her at Tobias’s hands.
    “If I could reverse time, I would. Markwick and I have always been friends. That will never change. And I would never jeopardize that friendship, unless you were caught in the middle. Which you are, through no fault of your own, my dove.”
    “But I will not come between you. Basil knows how much I love you.” Her eyes widened in surprise as blood coursed through her veins like molten heat. She hadn’t intended to speak the words aloud.
    God help me!
    “You . . . love me? After all that I’ve done?” A tic worked his jaw. He leaned his forehead against hers and inhaled deeply, stroking her hair, expelling air in his lungs on a sigh. Then he took her hand and kissed her palm. “Everything I’ve done has been for you. If you need to hear that I will not harm Markwick, you have my vow. I will do anything for you. Anything.”
    Tears gathered in her eyes. His nearness, his touch, and the promise he made her were gifts of extraordinary treasure. “Some sins cannot be forgotten.”
    “But can they be forgiven?”
    She wanted to tell him they could and ease his burden. But physical agony cut through her.
    “I love you, Prudence.”
    Hearing the words she’d long desired to hear, her inner torment released at last. She choked on a sob, her heart hammering in her ears. She tried not to swoon or burst into tears as she inhaled his leather-and-spice scent. Could she trust that what he said was true after so many lies?
    He pressed a kiss to her palm. “Believe what you must,” he said as if reading her thoughts. “People can change.I give you my word as a gentlema n— as your husban d— I will do everything in my power to make sure Markwick isn’t harmed.”
    Her heart whispered, Believe. She took a deep breath. “I believe you.”
    “Do you?” he asked, reaching to twirl a strand of her hair between his fingers. He brought the tendrils to his lips and kissed them gently. His eyes smoldered with disturbing power, like a man who was not used to being defied.
    Her brow furrowed slightly. “You are not the man I married, are you?”
    “No. But you are not the woman I married, either,” he said, glancing at her enticing lips. He leaned down, hovering near enough that his breath tickled her flesh. “You are better. Stronger. Bolder. An untamable fire igniting my soul.”
    She chewed her lower lip, struggling to suppress shivers of desire coursing through her limbs. Every word strummed her courage, liberating her emotions.
    “I came back for you , my dove.” He caressed her neck and gooseflesh flickered down her spine. “Only you.”
    She’d only ever wanted to be loved, cherished again. If what he said was true, he’d selflessly denied himself access to home and the comforts of his own bed in order to fulfill a debt. What kind of man did that? A compassionate one.
    “Wait,” she said, lifting the chain over her head