Hold Your Breath 02 - Unmasking the Marquess by K.J. Jackson Read Free Book Online Page A

conversations that only grated on his nerves.
    He had slept for a few hours and woken up early, just as the first rays of light crested the horizon. Woken up disgusted with himself. Woken up disgusted at the slip of a girl beside him.
    He had been down in his study since. Hours passed as he drank and contemplated what the fate of the girl tucked into his bed would be.
    It was a battle he wasn’t keen on having. A battle with himself over some very disturbing truths that he wasn’t even attempting to lie to himself about. He had wanted, enjoyed—hell— lost himself with her last night. Something disturbing had happened that he couldn’t describe and didn’t want to think about. The other truth, and the fact that made the first so heinous, was that she was still the daughter of the man he was committed to destroying.
    He didn’t want her, didn’t need anything like her in his life, and the whole loving fiancé farce he had produced over the past three months had grated on him. He had needed to consummate the marriage to make sure no annulment could be fought for, and now, she had served her purpose, and he was done with her.
    He had originally planned to allow her to live in London, or here at Curplan. As long as their lives were in no way mingled. An occasional passing would have been tolerable, but Killian had planned to resume his pre-engagement lifestyle, including resurrecting several of the mistresses that he had begrudgingly set loose in the name of a scandal-free engagement.
    But after last night. Hell. He wanted her nowhere near him.
    Nowhere that he could possibly be reminded of all that he had betrayed last night when he had lost control in her arms. He had never felt so damn much in his life, and he wasn’t about to again, especially not with the daughter of that bastard. Killian had betrayed his mission, his parents’ memories, and his quest to honor the family name, all for one—a few hours—of pleasure.
    So nowhere had to mean far, far away from London and Curplan. He could not, would not, afford such a night again.
    Killian turned his chair back to the wide desk, fingertip balancing the flint knife upright on the wood, when a thought struck him. Something he had never considered.
    Was it even possible that he was the one being duped? Could she have been sent to him by her father in order to fleece him? Did the bastard finally figure out it had been Killian all along who had ruined him? And then sent his daughter to prostitute herself in order to gain back what was lost?
    The thought invaded his mind so quickly and fully, that the wood on the desk ripped up as he slammed the knife down. He hadn’t even realized he had dug it into his desk.
    A soft knock on the study door drew his attention across the room. He was not surprised when Reanna meekly poked her head in, obviously not wanting to disturb him.
    “Ah, yes, the blushing bride.” He waved his hand dramatically. “Do come in and have a seat.”
    ~~~
    She had been happy to find Killian so quickly, but as Reanna opened the door and stepped into the study, she looked quizzically at her new husband. His words had been said with a snap, and possibly even a little slurred. From her father, she knew well enough to step lightly around a man that was drunk. Slowly, she approached Killian and spied a near-empty decanter and full glass sitting at the edge of his desk.
    Shock registered on her face. “Killian, are you drunk?”
    “Drunk?” He raised an eyebrow at her. “I hardly see how that should matter to you. Sit.”
    Hesitant, staring at him in confusion, she sat down on the edge of an uncomfortable, smoothly leathered chair. His voice sounded biting, even malicious, and it seemed to be directed at her. That had to be her imagination. “Killian, is everything all right?”
    “To the nines, or it will be an hour from now.” He leaned forward in his chair, propping his elbows on the desk and clasping his hands in front of his chin. “What do you