“By the gods! Let’s be civilized about this! No need to resort to violence, my good lady!”

Ainsley could barely register that it was his own voice echoing loudly in the room. It sounded shrill! Him! Sounding shrill! Imagine that!

He wasn’t sure which hurt more at this point—his stinging cheeks or his bruised ego.

The Duke didn’t want to be dramatic about it, but what was one to do under such trying conditions…?! He didn’t ask to be married to a stranger. He was an innocent bystander of unusual circumstances.

If only that angry woman would stop wagging her finger at him for a moment and let him explain!

She puffed up like a furious dragon as she breathed inferno in his direction, “You insufferable ass! Have you no shame?! Truly now—Mirai is your wife! WIFE!! I wouldn’t have chosen to be related to your debauchery under any circumstances, but it is what it is! Have some respect for the girl, and at least remember her name!”

Mirai. His wife.

How extraordinary.

There was little chance of Ainsley forgetting that name now, for it was branded on him like a deep mark upon his soul. Even in his state of intoxication, he seemed to recognize how important it was to remember her name.

Oddly, he also felt an inexplicable surge of protectiveness for the girl. She was his wife now and also his responsibility. For heaven’s sake! She should be dressed properly!

It was atrociously chilly in there. What if she caught a cold!? He should take her to the modiste immediately!

His eyes flickered anxiously over to the lady who was shivering next to the fireplace, but wait—Where did the chit go?

She was no longer there!

His heart skipped a beat when, just as suddenly—like the songs of a robin whose music accompanied the sunrise—she spoke. And her voice, as beautiful and clear as melodic wind chimes on a fragrant spring day, drew his eyes to her presence.

She’d migrated to the dragon’s side and was attempting to put out the woman’s fire.

“Aunt Chelsea, please don’t be upset! He is inebriated and may not understand what has happened. I’m sure he didn’t mean to come into my room. Surely, he is harmless.”

“Nonsense! His kind—and believe me, I know his kind—live for debauchery! This was planned. He was targeting you from the start, you stupid girl. There is simply no other explanation for it! Ruining an innocent young girl in a house filled with decent people. For shame! Thankfully, he still has a shred of decency in him. If he didn’t marry you, the consequences would be unimaginable!”

Ainsley was shocked to his core!

‘Blimey! Did that paragon of a gorgon hear what came out of her own mouth?!’

There were few things in the world that could shock this silly and cynical duke. Yet this person, who was supposed to be her aunt of all things, did just that!

The feeling of indignation quickly filled Ainsley to the brim. He attempted to defend his good name against this fire-breathing dragon. He would also set this woman straight on her priorities!

“Pardon me, but I did not target anyone! I thought she was a pillow! Now that I am seeing her—really seeing her now—I realize that she is not a pillow. But she certainly looks no older than a girl fresh out of the schoolroom. You can’t possibly mean to tie her to a stranger for the rest of her life over what was a simple mistake! Are you not her guardians…?! What about her well-being…?!”

Since the start of the debacle, those were perhaps the most sensical words that came from the Duke’s mouth. As if they never thought he was capable of making sense, gasps could be heard escaping from the lips of the elders present.

This Aunt Chelsea certainly did not absorb his words well, for she breathed another round of molten lava at him!

“Do not deflect the blame, Your Grace! Your bed was made the moment you decided to ravage Mirai in her room. You have no one else to blame for the mistake but you! It is impossible to escape this marriage now, for what is done is done. Accept it!”

He was defensive, but not on his own behalf.

“I am not trying to deflect from my part in this. But there was no ravishing done to her person. She is a perfectly fine young lady, who should not have to bear the rest of her life tied to someone she doesn’t lo—”

Ainsley stopped himself before the word left his mouth. Yet enough was said to sufficiently supply the room with a fresh round of sardonic chuckles.

“Ah, the naive fool.” Those were the words hanging from the lips of those seemingly superior elders. “Much too young and too dumb.”

Even Mirai, his accidental wife, gasped at the unspoken and forbidden word. Her doe eyes bore into him, inciting a wave of nervousness.

‘She is much too innocent for this!’ he thought, groaning inwardly and cursing himself for supposedly soiling an innocent.

He was hoping she wasn’t frightened by this mess, but it was hard to say. Surely he was misreading that emotion on her face. She looked almost hopeful by his embarrassing outburst.

Ainsley struggled with his inner thoughts. ‘Do they not care for how she feels…?’ he wondered, as a sinking sentiment dug itself further into his stomach, leaving behind a gaping hole.

For the first time, he was really seeing the world for what it was.

A pity that he hadn’t realized this sooner.

If the silly duke was drunk before, he was sobering up now. Fast.

It was atrocious! It shocked his sensibilities! His own words were haunting him now—taunting and twisting him around fate’s cruel fingers.

How could her family just give the girl to a total stranger?! Over a simple mistake!

What if it wasn’t Ainsley who had wandered into her room, but a complete scoundrel instead?!

Would they have handed her over to a criminal?

Were they not supposed to protect her…?

It was now Ainsley’s turn to fan embers in their direction.