Everything I Do, I Do For You

Chapter 11

"While you are right that I am spending time with you" Belinda confidently pulled her face back, "I will tell you right now I have no intention of marrying you."

It felt good denying him of the kiss. Probably just as good as it would have felt if she had actually kissed him. She did consider it, he was handsome, but pulling back like that gave her power that she enjoyed having. She watched him try to recover himself. "Oh well" the words stumbled from his lips, "yet."

"Huh?' she was too caught up in her satisfaction to really listen to what he had said.

"Yet. You said you have no interest in marrying me, and I said yet. I tell you, you and I are meant to be together" Kellan said, "You daft woman" that comment obviously made in defense of his wounded pride.

"As much as I'd love to indulge you," Belinda said, slipping her hand downwards, "I have much more pressing matters to return to." In two sweeping motions she removed her shoes and tossed them aside, letting out a sigh of relief.

"Have you taken your shoes off?" he asked her.

"Yes." She answered plainly, letting her toes wiggle on the cold tile, "They were awfully too tight. But a woman must put up with tight shoes if she wishes to numb her opponent."

Kellan laughed, "I knew you were stepping on my foot on purpose."

"I never denied that I did." she smiled, "I just questioned why you would think that."

"Being a bad dancer will not get you away from me, Miss Bassett. I spent nearly my entire life dancing with my eldest cousin, and she is the worst dancer I have ever been paired with. Though she never hurt so much."

"She must have not been trying." Belinda added, she picked up her shoes and handed them to him. "These are the weapons if you'd like to see them. They are too small for me, but I knew they would do the job"

"More deadly than any sword I have ever seen." She watched Kellan examine the shoes in his large hands,

"Belinda we must get going, your father challenged Count Wyatt to a race outside, and the darn fool has cut up his knees." Belinda saw her mother, looking only slightly embarrassed compared to her father's downward expression. She wished she could have seen it.

"I suppose I will see you soon," she said, turning to Kellan, then heading down the hallway.

Kellan said something, but she had not heard him, she assumed it was probably some kind of promise of potential love, so it really wasn't that important anyway.

The ride home was fascinating. She first got a rehashing of her father's pursuits, followed by the duke's embarrassed defense, and finally the most confusing argument that ended in her parents agreeing to host a more suitable outdoor event for such games.

Even though the concept downright scared her, Belinda couldn't help watching her parents in love. They seemed timeless in moments like these. Just as young as they were when they were married nearly 25 years ago. She would have loved to have known them then. From what her mother had said, they had each been quite fun.

"Belinda, where is your shoe?" her mother asked in a most confused voice.

Belinda peered at her foot just visible from the frills of her dress, and slid her other foot out.

"Come to think of it, where are both of your shoes?"

"I must have left them at the ball. They were dreadfully too tight, and I kicked them off before leaving. I am very sorry" She replied honestly

"I suppose you'll have to send over for them tomorrow morning." her mother said. "It is dreadfully too late to be turning around now."

"Yes mama," Belinda nodded

The stones were cool under her feet as Belinda made her way back into the house. She hadn't meant to leave her shoes. Or maybe she did. The last time she had had them, she was passing them off to Kellan. Making them his burden. She wondered if he would hold on to them for her. If she had told her mother that he had left her shoes with him, the duchess would have definitely expected the worst. And she had so many shoes, what would be the reason to get them back? Hell, they weren't even hers. Amelia really would not mind if she never returned them. They must have not been important anyway if Amelia had left them home when she had married only two years ago.

Before bed, her brain returned to that moment earlier. What if she had kissed him at that moment? Surely it would not have been as gratifying for her long term plan of revenge, but what if she had liked it. She had never kissed anyone like that before. And something about that moment with Kellan made her feel like it was something she just had to do, She shut her eyes tight at the thought. If that was the case, then what was she truly feeling for him? And if that was love, well then, how would she move next. Her plan couldn't play out if his plan had actually worked. She didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing that he had won her over either. Then again, this was all dependent on whether or not she was actually in love.

It had been easy to see when Amelia and Caroline were falling in love, but they had never been so adverse to their relationship. Sure Amelia and her husband Robert quarreled like it was some sort of sport, but Amelia's whole demeanor beyond that seemed to change in mere months. And Caroline-sweet Caroline- she had become all the more sensitive the year before, nearly catching a cold the day she professed her love. But for Belinda, she couldn't figure out if anything had changed about her. Her only company recently had been Edward, who at four years old could not understand the changing emotions of himself, let alone others.

Belinda knew she couldn't ask her mother. Partially because she did not want to give her the satisfaction of thinking that her plan had worked. But maybe it had. Belinda tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep. She needed answers, but she had to accept that they would not come until the morning.