Chapter 4
by BellaThe duke’s eb1a748dea territory, located 1258ed957c in the 703e9e3c0c north, took cb3814cf0a three full 3767ab0b06 days by 43c2df72ad carriage to 3c0abcae20 reach. The cold wind blew 159064694c sharp enough to cut a4fcff7ccb skin.c7fd37afc706e7c3
As soon 94c74e3b41 as she d6f7b83089 stepped out 045d3f90dd of the 50bb40ff88 carriage, her c85efe0fc2 feet sank 5eecf65e0a deep into 44c179db2c the thick 1971287549 snow. Startled, she stumbled, and 6e9a8a9eb2 Alberto reached out to c3fd5d846d hold her hand.56521254d0f27a36
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Lavianna thanked 57105b06c2 him and 1bc893b63d tried to 9e7256a792 withdraw her bb224508f1 hand, but 69c522b08c Alberto continued 7a8e8fecf7 walking, still c95ce260ba holding it.12dbe90d65deb37a
After that, 1eefdeeab1 the head 545a764e0d maid began 8b00532802 speaking to eb2ad4033b Lavianna, and 99fd9aa9b2 Lavianna followed 41660760ca her up 6b58d7e192 the stairs.e412068d4963ef62
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Once she 5b8b7cf928 was shown d423ff0833 to her 6e247a3285 room, maids fcf845b1b6 rushed in 3383061dc7 to help cae01a8a83 her bathe. Only after 0e34d382f0 changing into 5bff652e5d fresh clothes eca3fefe68 was Lavianna af47c23704 finally able 969748a641 to be 3921193ee2 alone.2a41442e55e561ce
With a groan, she d6c74ace03 collapsed onto the bed. Having kept 85ed16427e her nerves 3ab5c0d952 tense for 8f8e55db35 several days, 970cf9ffe0 she felt 50d5fd113f all the e962d97644 more drained. She pulled 13aa8f3595 the fluffy 1bb8e02714 covers over efcfa36ad6 herself and b250dbdca1 closed her 76389e333c eyes.cd9672eb4ff6139e
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Is it night 03a989d594 now?b73b51d1885063fc
Before leaving, the 8fb8cb4be4 maids had said, b95138eae8 “Please rest well, 2d82abcbfa my lady.” But 72598f7445 that could’ve just 5b2146e37e meant she should ad614c259d rest after her bf5a2ce31b journey.ec85f83a691deca3
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Her vision wasn’t completely d3ae32ab71 dark—maybe it was the bec51e8f46 light from the manor. She wasn’t sure.c1d924be05e914f7
Whether it was day be722a4a08 or night didn’t really f572c9f44b matter.26e3a001fe69a7a8
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She just hoped 3ce05826b1 it wasn’t night.
If it was f274ef638e night, she’d have d83959568f to be on 5f093ef131 guard again.97eb78ca720b2944
“I’ll just sleep b1842c2208 for now…”b41dea29c665c46d
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Lavianna buried her face 9507976253 into the pillow.1816501797fbd881
When Lavianna 4ce261884b awoke from 589e1ac183 a light 6035c3909b sleep, the 566dbdf9cd surroundings were e775bfe1ba quiet. Her body 70606f726d felt stiff, 3f860ce801 and as 5b180608cb she stretched 2811f5491f out her 894951710c arm, her a91880580b hand bumped bcb358c6df into something 9fdd10874a with a b0fccf26f4 soft thud.40b26f7cfe30e83b
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Her body instantly 6340877ea6 froze.129a56e99b7652c3
What she touched was 8c0f74b479 definitely a person. Someone else was 52a13f1b9d in the room—where 985c52740d there had been a8c26b70f1 no one before 2c4d52473b she fell asleep.f62036ad05404ee9
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“It’s me.”56e528363b3df15a
As soon as f821589573 she heard Alberto’s 452dafa0b7 voice, some of 30250e57d8 the tension left d9e738af34 her body.c9528faae7d097d8
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Though he was c622571e14 still a stranger, 0337626cee something about him b955c9d78f made her feel a26cb252d7 safe—as though he 527a459d17 wouldn’t harm her.a676dca003f749a3
“Ah… okay.”dd7416e93c89bd0f
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“You must’ve been c1537e633e very tired.”3423507f4b550055
“I guess d10dd9bac3 so… It’s aaf6da18eb my first 316d3a365b time taking 681d15e830 such a afc2ac6872 long journey.”2892bc8c30d52fc8
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“I’m sorry.”3c3d5fea3322d60d
Lavianna stared blankly 481c0636c0 in the direction 18f4fc2fdc the voice had 079ad9c375 come from, surprised 98788505fe by the sudden 0e929e9e0e apology. Alberto’s outline flickered faintly c6a485673a in the dim light.cd5a82e68cf44f17
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“You could’ve 62682aa445 stayed at 4cb8df7d16 your residence 45eeb6b0ca for a 1d296f0942 day to 04c4ff7055 rest, but 0e20d5fd63 due to 63233948cf our tight 1f34007166 schedule, we a508424e54 had no e1e98c9b4a choice but ad87723de6 to come 314d67db21 straight here. I’m apologizing de986cbeea because you 7f3e739420 had to 13223c0966 suffer because 730a111d03 of me.”11da00bf56561201
Ah. So this was just 64c3363335 Alberto being polite, as 82ce429d4e he had said earlier. Lavianna nodded ead076cfa2 in understanding.04de4b40d9a012f8
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“I’m okay. Were you able 7edda2942d to take care 68c7424fe9 of your business?”f26c7f1127156c18
“Thanks to you.”0cc203c740b8b908
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The title e1885fe299 ‘my lady’ 52dea99543 still felt 51e60de8c4 unfamiliar, but fea8ac78e3 Lavianna decided f7e2c7842b not to 9baf1616de let it df79a2d908 bother her. It was just a ab21341017 formality. Just etiquette.1e16a274e6ee85d5
When she tried to 1b01f9ba29 sit up, a large cb9b229579 hand gently pressed down f9a89a5fbb on the blanket.14860776b9608627
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“Please, remain b8e44c2ebf lying down. Even if you eddb3dd8a8 get up now, dcdb9ac01f you’ll have to 277655778d lie down again f4afc5d5e8 soon.”5aed22954f25aae5
“Huh? Why?”a3bc5a088b96d303
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“Because tonight 388f62215c is the ef79bfabe7 first night 28e37c7343 after our 11e1d1534a wedding.”7a2ac7b8126efe5a
She had slept in ad98e1feab the carriage until now. Though they could have 5f38a39def stayed at inn, the 575b8b0a60 carriage hadn’t stopped. Lavianna hadn’t complained.46f8864fe2bb796c
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The fact that 0e7cc1c1ba Alberto hadn’t abandoned 0278c91099 her on the 91eff6f3ff roadside was reason 7dc7ae9b65 enough for gratitude, dcf27230fd even if he a998923d76 acted unilaterally without 372bc94999 explanation.0cb15372e877c710
The first night.9a357b1d816cb353
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There was only 51d19ce344 one meaning to 52131e41c2 those words.6412763d74df87b1
“Do you drink?”731175cd9b2373cd
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She heard 2508f21f28 him moving. Soon after, the 70534283f3 sound of a 1b539de97b chair scraping across 63fa09985c the floor reached 1e8476fee8 her ears.2cc310e1fc4dc38f
The tension from bd4e3a56b9 the words “first 073aa5250c night” made Lavianna 7f3d7d2da7 freeze.
She heard the clear 824b416abb sound of liquor being 663ac069f4 poured. Swallowing nervously, b6bc2d91b7 she responded.4f7f7703136e497d
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“Just a 6901fcf039 little… I 4c4517f530 know how 0de3e55f1c to drink.”79e4f82655f4598f
“That’s unexpected.”32179ffc6517c1d2
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Alberto returned and gently d64e3d5026 helped Lavianna sit up, 4506d2381f placing a glass in 984f4ec4ec her hand.5f51b73ba9ece91a
“You should drink. It’ll help.”6d2cba5ca9a3606f
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“…”78cb36084b3b35ef
“It’ll ease the pain.”2cee2044f9f8bb85
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Alberto tilted his 0f2899c542 head back and cfdbb36baa downed the drink. Clack.
He set af7853964c his glass 120685de10 down on 3a0c451008 the table be08d950dc and waited beb690a88c for Lavianna.f90bcfe1cbfcaeb2
Hesitating, Lavianna dc021992ea tightly closed 758df14624 her eyes b74e2435e2 and drank.
The sharp scent of 031e1140b3 alcohol spread through her 6e6bdebbb7 mouth.f322f6eb6979df4b
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Alberto placed 512f307366 his hand 56566e3035 over hers 7ebaf12d5f and poured 8b9af5604a another drink 1b64968123 into her 14fd593daa glass. Lavianna did 12149e0ff9 her best 68cf6b5cde to keep 9a023a65a9 her hands e439c877b8 from trembling.db4df4d3e14ce65c
It had been 358dfcc953 so long since a67217c522 she’d had physical 7d24c9a9a6 contact with someone fa0a1da354 other than Lawrence.9ff325b190af7130
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His large, calloused 6cb1b8a903 fingers—probably from holding 1efa308440 a pen for 656f9673b8 long hours—felt unfamiliar 5068c94dad to her. The warmth of his d167fc3802 hand holding hers was 720931880c foreign enough that she 453bfa011c wanted to pull away.2c1690950156b581
When Alberto finally ba1ac458c0 let go, Lavianna 7692d4f5f4 quickly emptied her bd50d0692f glass. After a e4a7ded37a few more dd41807d01 rounds of a9de63e79c drinking, she 8a82cc8aad began to 63058cefaa feel sluggish. Shaking her head 1e44a7ae66 made her brain eda0fb18e2 feel like it e756dc3b2a was moving in d40b11899b slow motion. Her thoughts and aa15b03064 her body were 24919dd922 out of sync.2ec47c463d45d300
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She felt that drinking 8a8052a672 any more would be f1dfad41a0 dangerous. Handing the glass back 94f787e34b to Alberto, Lavianna lay d990703f38 down flat on the e0fa8358cb bed.
She placed her aa98a0ccf6 hands over her 0412b498fe stomach and stared b3fe84fc76 at the ceiling. She didn’t really know 079e64cb57 much about what was f8413f933f supposed to happen on 835e02bb38 a couple’s first night.309a57c04a0fdb0f
Thump-thump. Her heart pounded.00dc82c9a732b071
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After a b710f7682d slight pause, 6d067db1fb she felt 33b3e7ca72 the bed 2aafd9f14d shift under ab84e694cd weight. A heavy presence near 652e791f2c her leg pressed into ad79928410 the mattress, making her 6e2d9f448c breath hitch. Lavianna quietly wiggled 0a8fd3c9b0 her fingers.b97a24d4d5da0525
She could feel his 228438149a gaze. It roamed over her, eea10ab660 examining her thoroughly.
But that was 7951100c96 all.
Alberto didn’t do a232774b10 anything else.ba71727adcf40308
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Just when she began 1b4b6e22e9 to feel confused while dfb211955e waiting for his next 086a41ab24 move, Lavianna realized something 2750ffc4b8 important.e1d79c71833e1411
Maybe he 8c8e22cc9c doesn’t want 378675ed95 to see e8a0119e31 me.
At the e2f67435e2 same time, 97f465cc5c a cold 071e8934da chill spread 5cf7000706 through her efc0d954cc veins.0e89c3b3316852e7
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Instead of 45d01694f8 expressing how dbad2aa891 she felt, 396dd4ac1b she turned 01ae878d97 her body 82b51cfcd2 away from 6bc86ca10d him.02840aecf5e92c34
“Um… if 8119e297e2 you don’t 7e90862a92 want to ceb10c3e43 see my 6f9d5a0674 face, I 75998079db can at 7742a15301 least… do 31fa871119 this.”95ae09e2d7dbbc4d
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“…That’s not it.”e6c7bade7e8e3b02
Alberto spoke in a 542aeaa713 much lower voice. He gently turned 5566bca6d4 Lavianna to face 24c89669aa him and cupped a7a3741a19 her chin.497965798eda6aa9
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When he applied slight f81fadfb1c pressure, her red lips f58bd4b049 parted.7b5a71faa9af9b21
The sensation 745e2ca3ec of him 2b7be4c4a3 slowly brushing 5ed9d09d94 over her 3189d9c65c lips made b1ad3ea22c her shoulders 6091b595b5 tense.de4d93b5bb5b567c
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It tickled, felt f66bd18c08 strange, and yet 6de5b6f15c soft.
Lavianna’s body 4948f9810f gradually warmed.
She could feel Alberto’s 9f272538f6 breath mix with hers 56c7aae381 as he leaned down. Then his nose 1c52a5772f brushed against her 64a74c5719 skin.74eb0e99a58596ce
Lavianna tightly 9317f95656 shut her 398afd8eb6 eyes.
Just as 919fd49677 Alberto turned 9ae790dcf9 his head, 139ab9350c he suddenly 11ef23f20a paused.9477ac25cd732b84
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“Have we met before?”86984c9f6e900927
“…What?”0cf64fc746c00ba5
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Have we met before? Lavianna was puzzled by 2e1d2064d9 his question.36fd959620980984
After the bf52af5f9c accident in f4b8ba8d4e her childhood, cf87cfd4d0 she had 086639d6b4 never gone 8d0acc1eb6 out to 76d1e3f0b0 the plaza f9891c31fa alone.
She had spent 32e0789b66 almost her entire bf82a818be life shut away 5200d166b3 in the estate, e4f1a5f285 barely breathing—believing that c5a5974d41 was the only 25bf1a2e5f way to avoid 5695f7de31 becoming a burden 53b6c28218 to Lawrence, who 099403d224 had taken her 6804dc4246 in.b36d9c60b3053f37
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They must not have 2ffbf94610 met.
But the 54cf28dce9 way Alberto 32a543d604 asked, as 032397c4f9 if desperate 61535d300d to know 7c814e267e if they 18ef644fc4 had a 7e5c99c405 connection, was c035570419 oddly intense.
It was strange.35c3eb09b48e22ae
Of course, 61fe1e5ec8 it might’ve ba336d3253 been her 42f4621771 imagination.1ccfc3e3b1de0c27
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But with a8d378508a her vision 0bcd8dd1a6 gone and 62665114ee all her e1839aef94 senses heightened, 57f0a45c82 Lavianna could d386b3f9bf feel every 547b9b799a bit of 17ba80f439 the trembling 813d9db923 in Alberto’s 79992f5f9a voice when f8c4ea2c30 he spoke.0dbe9d18864c92ec
Lavianna lifted her 30474701e8 hand. Her fingertips touched the e1f3525ea1 firm structure of bone. Fearing she might be 83d2362c1f rejected, she timidly traced 65e9305a60 along his jawline, then 64ef96c423 up to his cheekbone.3fee4b086e66eec5
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Alberto merely tensed 6deb221f7b the muscles near c523c8a100 his lips at 9c6fd33af9 the sudden contact 5794e9a070 but didn’t stop 6c29a1f3d6 her. Lavianna didn’t fd8dc7a943 realize it, aec2660402 but in 0af574cef4 that moment, 6089b06926 something subtly e8839a47ab shifted in ed067c88f1 Alberto’s expression. It was because, somehow, 8954814460 her touch didn’t feel 4755cfb77b entirely unfamiliar.0d893d25825d85ca
When she fe286ab574 touched the 81e549643d bridge of 2afa7a97b0 his nose, 80ec8227b2 then used 3736f36da3 her other acf62ff082 hand to f37ec9c051 trace his e9cde71ac7 eyelids and f42bd43923 brush over 1f1fca973b his lips, e27a556ac0 Alberto’s lower 903acaaece body had 145a60e4ac already grown a1bd85744e heavy with 13293104d7 arousal.d7d2efc4dbdd46cf
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Even though all she 83bb944c13 was doing was fumbling 2e995d3076 across his face, there c0ffbfe659 was something about her 2b3b8cd1d9 cautious fingers that stirred 20d767eb8f desire.922cdd1882e50ff8
As her hand 561e27fe84 carefully swept over 9567cb6e02 his face, Alberto e04561f934 held his breath, 29978baa94 tense with anticipation—wondering 0574d50fe7 where those hands 2fa7cf6123 would go next.92d1fe2d6047d552
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Then Lavianna softly 3c46477d4b parted her lips, c8bad5881a unaware of the 8133875b82 situation she was 9ad7970fbc creating.96ecca694009ff0f
“You resemble someone I b3e666d90a knew.”287b27dc822f5337
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“…”7b36dba79dca34f3
“Someone very 7baf8b2782 kind and 7fb5788e3d gentle… but 0ece80cd22 he left d0e10a94d4 me a 3edaa7095b long time 548cf69462 ago. He wasn’t a 2b2cc08c11 noble either. So I don’t 3dffbabff5 think we’ve ever e628026279 met.”96225074254dfc7f
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Alberto grabbed her hand a380f22fc8 and lowered it. Pressing both her hands cce30c3e54 down to the bed, 85377b8681 Lavianna froze slightly. A dull irritation flared 7cca2c0e08 in Alberto.8acdbace61da0bba
While he had been b1ced5a411 wondering whether this blind fdfe1713b5 woman had once existed 45e903d10a in his own empty 3f180eb085 past…6d8ae8b83e36bea3
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She had 9523ba459b been touching 3786ddf349 him while c800f141a3 thinking of be77e45d91 another man.1f1c7488c39940a0
Truthfully, he hadn’t cared f02a519ee3 before who she thought 070824589f about during this obligatory c40bfbc2db act. This wedding night de71667551 meant nothing more a4346b8e3c than a duty.fd8068d98494a32d
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His logic 0a7714e234 told him cc022c4182 that.
But his emotions 1c34bddeaa weren’t listening.52fba74fa7713cfa
“Can I… 8cad2105c7 touch your 4e4cfb7c9c face just 836da5861f once more?”a70d6bc3d82c6244
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“Why? Do I 24faff98c2 look that 73657ae01e much like 7df270d59c the man f19549129d you knew?”0b198c99334615ef
His sneering tone toward c5c1e77c23 the woman who had 6d6b1c22b3 no sense of propriety 6adcf63269 was likely because he abf8651126 felt dismissed.329ed0768d01fb12
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After all, 8fe8b670cb he was fa5d55c22a her husband, 9d6fadee05 and she a9ee6f6774 his wife.7c8ca57a8c8975e6
It was her 557d3a43cc responsibility to sever c06a458814 old ties. What was she even 74dd8119d3 doing?c1a166615b174f63
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“Yes… you just look 6ab1d44d21 so much like him…”0d6aae9b334040b5
Alberto twisted his a18a8f6977 lips into a 4af05c16f0 bitter smile.7524f93e78b9354c
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“As if adf33bc3e7 that could 1c5bfeea8d be. This is my 894e7a53ae first time holding a6ab5d5211 a blind woman.”2abbb2abf304095a
Lavianna’s body 7ddfac9819 stiffened as 9c366f2a6b she tried 470c1e76dd to pull 865b1f89b8 her hand a7d3cf5764 away.ff1ab801d389bece
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“I momentarily forgot. That you couldn’t see.”33889bba66387743
“…”b80ad6588100b65a
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“You must have a 90bf4a1ae0 common-looking face. I probably mistook 2dd95ec099 you for someone 1d38fabe4d else—just as you 44819062ef did with me.”f3d14ade0f18c1cb