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“From men who want to take advantage of you,” he said nonchalantly.

Rage returned, easily replacing her lethargy. “Then you should have protected me from you!”

I never thought of taking advantage of you!” William appeared genuinely affronted. “All I ever wanted was you, nothing else. And it’s still the truth.”

“If that were true, where the devil were you for the past two years? If all you wanted was me, you would have fought for me, stayed for me. But you didn’t.”

His jaw clenched, and he had to forcefully unclench it before he spoke. “Are you mad at me for following you or for not following you enough?”

“Yes!” she cried.

“Which one?”

“Which one, what?” she asked in frustration, her mind a blur.

He wrinkled his brow. “Look, dear, I am your husband. It is my job to look out for you and make certain you’re safe and that you won’t do anything you’ll regret. So, when you openly started looking for a lover, did you think I would not notice?”

“It is none of your business!” she enunciate every word.

He moved so fast that Victoria flinched as he reached her side. He stood so close now that she could smell his cologne, a fresh and earthy scent mixed with his own masculine musk. That scent of his was intoxicating. It made her want to burrow her nose in the juncture between his shoulder and neck and breathe in. She wanted to bask in his heat and let it wash over her.

But he didn’t touch her, had not even tried. He stood a few inches away, his chest rising and falling with the intensity of his breaths. “You are my business,” he gritted through his teeth. But then he shook his head, and his regular aloofness came over his eyes, his tone rising one octave. “Besides, you do not appear to have the best judgment when it comes to men.”

Victoria stared him right in the eyes. “Yes, I am starting to see this to be true.”

He let out a little chuckle, his carefree demeanor back completely, and took a step back. “I am the only right choice you’ve made. And only because you weren’t left to your own devices when it came to choosing me.”

“Oh,” she said with a chuckle. “You mean, because you tricked me.”

“I didn’t trick you. I stripped off all the external factors, the wealth, the title and all that’s left was just me. And that is who you fell in love with. I wanted you to know the real me and base your decision on my character.”

“And now I know your character,” she agreed. “You are a liar and a criminal.”

He dropped his cheroot to the ground and crushed it beneath the heel of his boot. “I might be a criminal, but I never lied to you!”

Victoria couldn’t help herself; she laughed at that. “Really? Are you going to lie to my face about never having lied to me?”

“I didn’t.” He shrugged.

“You said you were a lord!” she cried.

“I never said that!” He raised a finger heavenward. “I never said I was a lord. I said I was a duke’s son. And I am.”

“A bastard son,” she seethed.

“Perhaps I omitted that little part. But it’s not a lie. Yes, I deceived you, but I never lied to you.”

She stared at him in disbelief for a moment before licking her dry lips. “English is not my first language. It is not even the second. And perhaps lie and deceit mean different things in English, but they both translate the same.”

“What would it take for you to forgive me?” He spread his arms. “Or at least, to give me another chance.”

A bubble of laughter left her lips before she could help it. “Hmm… let me see… You knew I needed to marry a titled lord, and you lied to me about it to get me to marry you. Because of this, I was unable to travel to Russia and be there for my sister and her family when the coup happened—”

“I’d call it a blessing.”

She continued as if he hadn’t spoken, “You stabbed my uncle in a duel, you blackmailed my friend, and you killed at least three gentlemen for their riches.”

“I never killed anyone!” he protested.