Total pages in book: 57
Estimated words: 54630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 273(@200wpm)___ 219(@250wpm)___ 182(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 54630 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 273(@200wpm)___ 219(@250wpm)___ 182(@300wpm)
I'm absolutely nobody...while everyone on social media is crazy over him, England's #1 Heartthrob---and the fifth Duke of Flanders.
I would never have considered surrendering myself to his claim if not for that glimpse of warmth in his icy blue eyes.
What we have is imperfect but beautiful. It's almost but not quite love...and it would have been more than enough if only I haven't found out Rathe sees me as his most shameful secret.
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
Part I
Prologue
Four years ago
Pastor Bartholomew Grenville silently wetted his lips as he struck his stepdaughter's bare back with his cane. His every blow had her ass tightening visibly under the slightly translucent fabric of her nightgown, and his own body trembled with the zeal of righteousness.
A full hour passed before he deemed Mary satisfactorily punished in the eyes of the Lord, and it was quite a pity that the girl hadn't released a single cry of pain. He would have loved to use that as proof of her weakness, which she had unfortunately inherited from her once-sinful mother.
His stepdaughter struggled to get to her feet, and a part of him wished that she would lose her balance so that he could truly feel for himself if her tits were still as soft as they looked. They were shockingly large for one so young, so much so, in fact, that Bartholomew was starting to think her breasts were but a gift from the Devil.
Maybe one day, those tits of hers must be punished as well.
But for now...
His tone was low and rumbling as he reminded his dear little Mary about his reasons for punishing her.
"It is my responsibility, as a man of the cloth, to look after the Lord's sheep."
I understand, Father.
"It gives me no pleasure to punish you or your mother. If you wish to never experience again the Lord's wrath, then you must obey my word at all costs. Do we have an understanding?"
Yes, Father.
A part of him wanted to haul her back as soon as she turned to leave. There would come a day that the girl would be legally free of his authority, and virtuous rage filled his soul when he thought of the many wolves in sheep's clothing that would surely attempt to defile his young lamb.
Her purity must be protected at all costs...or if that were not possible, then perhaps it was the Lord's will that Bartholomew himself take her innocence, so that his stepdaughter might be saved from the ignominy of becoming a harlot for the first wicked man to turn her head.
Yes, ah, yes.
The more Bartholomew thought about, the more convinced the good pastor was that it was the Lord's will for him to take his stepdaughter's innocence.
Mary's virginity was his, and he would make sure that she would not become pregnant from his possession. He would not let her bear a child outside marriage like her mother did. He was a good man, after all, and the only thing he wanted was to save everyone's souls with his holy claim.
****
One week ago
A faint grimace briefly marred the icy nobility of the duke's features as he unfolded the piece of paper handed to him by his friend's wife. This, if nothing else, should teach him to stop playing poker with his friends. They had been playing for years and years, and not only did he always lose, but his losses almost always involved the most despicable consequences.
And tonight's task was no different, with the 5th Duke of Flanders (as well as being obsessively referred to as England's #1 Heartthrob on the Internet) currently reduced into playing the role of nursemaid to Saffi's babies. As for the worst thing about all of this?
Those damn babies weren't even humans...but fish.
And not just ordinary ones at that, but fish that were pregnant.
Pregnant fish that Staffan's wife unfortunately also happened to adore with all of her heart and soul, and so it was now Rathe's duty to make sure that her enceinte pets would not go hungry while the newlyweds were on their honeymoon.
It took only moments for the duke to locate Saffi's room in the dorm—-and only seconds to realize that maybe this day wasn't going to be as bad as he thought.
A girl who seemed to be about Saffi's age had just stepped out into the hallway, and she was the curviest little thing. When her gaze collided with his, the expression on her face was an adorable mixture of awkwardness and shyness, and he was also silently amused by the way her glasses, which were a little too big, kept falling over her nose.
Rathe normally wouldn't hesitate to describe such a person as eccentric...but she was not just that considering how her choice for sleepwear seemed patterned after every hot-blooded male's fantasy. The combination of silk and lace was decadent and demure at the same time: the top had a plunging neckline that revealed most of her gloriously plump tits while its matching pair of shorts were just an inch shy from revealing the pale flesh of her pussy.
One look, and he wanted her then and there, and he wanted her even more as she hugged herself in a belated and seemingly sincere attempt to cover her chest. Her expression had also changed; she looked at him as if she was preparing to face down the Devil himself.