Chapter 13

“Ibelieve we put on a united front today, Your Grace,” Duncan said to her as they sat in the carriage to be transported back to the estate.

The wedding festivities had tired Sophia out, and she was looking forward to getting some rest finally.

“I think so too,” she noted. “I am sure that no one would suspect that our marriage is only one of convenience.”

As she said the words, she remembered the conversation from last night. Her duty as a duchess… Her duty to give the Duke an heir.

The reminder filled her with an aching nervousness once again. It showed on her features and by the way she tapped her fingers impatiently against the ruffle of her dress.

“Is there something on your mind, Madam?” Duncan did not take long to notice the change in her demeanor. “The wedding is over now, and there is no one observing us anymore. You can calm down your nerves.”

She refused to give him an answer and instead just bit down on her lip. Her mind was swirling with all sorts of questions about what was to happen now.

Would he take her to his bed tonight? Would he wait for some time? Would they discuss it before? Would she even know what to do?

She was working herself to a tizzy with the questions that appeared in her mind.

“Sophia…” The Duke addressed her with just her name for the first time, causing her to look up at him. “You are beginning to worry me, just a little.”

“Your Grace, do you expect me to give you an heir?” she blurted out, unable to control herself. “I am sorry for my bluntness, but the question has been haunting me for some time now. I must know.”

The Duke seemed taken aback by her question. He took a moment to reel himself in before responding.

“Madam,” his voice was soft, “you do not have to worry. I am not going to force myself on you. It is not something I could even imagine doing. I understand that our union is one born out of duty, and I would not expect you to bear a child for me.”

Immediately, a sense of relief flooded Sophia, but then a sense of emptiness began to take over her.

She felt confused by her own reaction. Could it be that she was secretly hoping that he would say the opposite?

And that was when the hurt began to seep in. She started to question herself whether she was not woman enough for him to want to produce a child with her.

Not wanting him to see the hurt on her face, she quickly hung her head low, so he could not see her expression.

“I see. That was what I was expecting to hear,” she replied, her tone stripped of any kind of emotion.

“You shall be able to live quite independently,” he continued. “I have made arrangements for you to have your own bed chambers. Rest assured, I will not make you share a bed with me if you were not comfortable by the idea.”

“I… of course, that is very kind of you.” She managed a smile, but it did not reach her eyes.

“As for your everyday needs, we have staff that can cater to everything. You will not need to worry about anything, and your lady’s maid will be there as well. She will tend to you and be made available for you.”

“Of course.”

“I am glad that we have gotten these things out of the way. I wish for you to feel comfortable at Blackmoore Estate, for it is your home now.”

They parted their ways shortly after. She was taken to her private chambers while the Duke disappeared down the hallway.

As she sat at the edge of her bed, still in her wedding gown, a strange sense of loneliness began to overcome her being.

She was married, but her husband did not share a room with her.

She was married, but her husband did not want her to bear his children.

The thought hurt her more deeply than she had expected it to. Immediately, she found herself missing her home. This would be the first night she would ever spend away from her home, and it felt quite unfortunate that she had to do so alone.

The sound of a loud meow pulled her out of her thoughts, and she looked to find Cecil emerging from underneath the bed.

“Oh my God, Cecil,” she cried out, grabbing the furry animal in her arms at once and kissing it repeatedly on the top of its head. “Oh, I am so glad that you are here.”

She cuddled the animal close to her chest as he purred happily in her lap. Her aunt must have transported him here earlier.

Even though she still missed her home and her own room terribly, having Cecil here was enough to cure her homesickness a little.

And then there was a knock on her door.

“Come in.”

She wondered if it was the Duke, hoping to speak to him again, but it was just one of the maids.

“Your Grace, I am Lilly. I was told that your lady’s maid will be arriving by tomorrow and that I should take care of whatever it is that you may need for the night.” The woman smiled brightly at her.

Sophia felt starved for company and gestured for her to come in.

“Perhaps you can assist me in getting these pins out of my hair,” Sophia said, moving over to the vanity.

“Of course, Madam.”

Lilly began undoing Sophia’s hair, and Sophia was reminded of a love story she had once read as a young girl. In it, the groom helped the bride at the end of the day.

She felt a pang that it was not the Duke who was here with her. Closing her eyes, she tried to imagine what it would feel like if it were his hands instead.

“All done, Madam,” the woman finally said.

“Thank you, Your Gra…” She stopped herself midway, embarrassed by the slip of her tongue. “Lilly. Thank you, Lilly.”

“Do you require any help in getting out of your dress, Your Grace?”

Sophia shook her head, “No, I believe I can manage on my own. That will be all.”

As the maid left, Sophia came face to face with the loneliness she felt once again. She decided that she had to keep herself from feeling that way as she had a lot to be thankful for.

She had married a man who respected her and looked out for her. If that meant she had to live without any semblance of romantic love, then it wasn’t the worst trade-off that could be made.

After all, it was what she had always expected her life to look like. It was a wonder that she had gotten married at all, given her curse.

Duncan was in the parlor with Jacob, and the two brothers were relaxing over a glass of wine and a game of cards.

“Rematch, brother?” Jacob asked from across the table.

“Eager to lose again, are you?” Duncan laughed. “I have just beat you twice.”

“It is quite unusual for you to have a winning streak. I think we all know that I am the better card player in this family,” Jacob replied, “Perhaps something, or rather someone, has boosted your luck. I told you that Lady Sophia was a good omen for you.”

Duncan laughed off his brother’s absurd assumption and was just about to draw another set of cards when both of them noticed a shadow of someone lurking down the hall.

It revealed itself to be Sophia as she timidly peaked her head into the room.

‘Oh, I am sorry,” she said immediately. “I did mean to disturb you both. I was only strolling the house, trying to see where all the rooms were.”

“No worries,” Jacob grinned. “You have not disturbed us at all. In fact, you should join us for a card game, don’t you think, brother?”

Duncan shrugged his shoulders.

“Why not?”

“Lovely, lovely, come right in. You could play against the Duke,” Jacob said as the Duke distributed the cards.“He seems to believe that he is unbeatable, and I want someone to humble him.”

Sophia smiled politely and nodded.

“I am not so adept at card games, but because you have invited me, I can stay for one.”

“No, I think you are just being humble,” Jacob continued. “I have full faith in you. In fact, I will even help you.”

“I believe the lady is fully capable of playing her own cards.” Duncan raised an eyebrow at his brother. “She can make her own choices.”

“Are you just scared that she will beat you if the two of us join forces?” Jacob grinned, handing the cards that Duncan had just dealt to Sophia.

“No, he is right,” Sophia interjected. “While I do not have that much expertise in playing cards, I am up for the challenge. After all, they call it beginner’s luck, and I might have a chance to take advantage of it.”

“As you wish, Your Grace.”

Duncan looked at his cards. To his disappointment, he had gotten a bad hand, but he was careful not to show it in his expression.

A card game, he felt, was not unlike any other challenge in life. The first step to winning was to not let your opponent know your weakness, so he kept up a confident facade.

Sophia looked down at her hand, pursing her lips.

“What is it, Sophia?” Duncan inquired. “A bad hand?”

“I cannot tell you that,” she replied, keeping up a neutral expression.

“I am only telling you so that you can forfeit in advance. I do not know about you, but my brother, Jacob, certainly does not take well to losing,” Duncan shrugged.

“Well, I will have you know that I am not Jacob, and I have my own strategy,” she replied confidently.

Duncan raised his eyebrow.

“I thought you were a beginner? You certainly do not act as though you are one,” he noted.

“Well, let us just say that I am someone who learns quickly,” she explained. “But we are only wasting time by chatting. I am being made to believe that perhaps it is you who has the worst hand then, and you are deflecting so that your inevitable loss is delayed.”

Duncan was stunned by how easily she had picked up on his strategy, despite never having played a game together with him. He felt even more motivated to beat her in the game now.

“Ladies first,” he said, gesturing to the table.

Sophia examined her cards for a long moment, but then she put one down finally. It was an ace.

“Starting off strong, I see,” the Duke noted and looked down at his own cards.

He could not have gotten a worse selection. His next move had to be strategic if he had any chance of getting the lead.

“Starting off strong and hopefully finishing off strong, too,” she smiled back.

“Oh, she definitely has the confidence,” Jacob laughed, seeming amused that his brother had finally met his match.

“Well, if you have decided to start off strong, then I have no trouble following your lead.”

The two of them played back and forth. Despite Jacob’s commentary in the background, the Duke found Sophia to be a very pleasant opponent. The Duke liked the challenge of trying to win for the third time in a row, and Sophia was putting up a good fight, despite not having much experience.

“Your Grace, are you sure that you are a beginner?” Jacob questioned as the game progressed on, and Sophia had a clear upper hand.

When she played her final card, a victorious smile spread across her face. At that moment, the Duke realized that he did not mind losing to her at all.

“Incredible work, Lady Sophia. That was some class craftsmanship that you just displayed here,” Jacob congratulated and then turned to the Duke. “How does it feel to lose your winning streak?”

The Duke shrugged, “I cannot complain too much about losing to the Duchess. They call wives the better half for a reason, I suppose.”

Sophia’s face turned bright red at his words, and he realized that they must have sounded a lot more flirtatious than he had intended them to.

“Shall we rematch?” he offered.

Sophia shook her head. “Oh, no. I must be heading to my room soon as it has been a long day. I did not intend on staying for long.”

“Please stay for some more time. You have not even tried the freshly baked pie that was delivered to us today.” Jacob offered a slice to her.

“It was a wedding gift from one of my great aunts,” Duncan explained. “You must try it. The both of us loved it growing up.”

Sophia took a bite of the pie, causing the jam filling to ooze out from the pastry and spread across the side of her cheek. Instinctively, Duncan leaned forward and cleaned it with a napkin.

“I… oh,” Sophia muttered, surprised by his gesture.

“Oh, I did not mean to startle you,” the Duke offered as an explanation, pausing immediately.

In the background, Jacob exploded with laughter once again, seeing the two of them interact like this. The Duke groaned internally. He knew that he would not be hearing the end of it any time soon as Jacob already loved to tease him about a brewing romance between the two.

“Well, thank you, anyway,” Sophia said, getting up from her place on the table. “It has been really lovely sitting here with the both of you, but now, I believe I really must go.”

“Of course, the wedding was tiring for us all,” Duncan noted. “Jacob and I usually like to unwind together after big events over a glass of wine and some cards.”

“Sure, and I do not want to interrupt your moment any longer,” Sophia said.

Duncan could not help but notice how perfectly polite she was at all times. She really was a true lady, and it made him respect her more, for she did not have the same entitled attitude that a lot of the ladies of the ton possessed.

“You are a part of this family now, and your presence does not count as an interruption in the slightest,” Duncan reassured her.

Sophia nodded and gave him one last smile before she departed. As soon as she was out of earshot, Jacob turned to face him.

“I know what you are about to insinuate.” Duncan rolled his eyes. “Do not even start. I am merely being polite to her.”

“Really? I have never seen you be so polite as to lovingly wipe away a stain from jam from someone’s cheek,” Jacob teased.

“Well, to be fair, you have only seen me be polite with strangers. Sophia is neither a stranger, nor is she a man, so the rules of politeness with her differ,” Duncan argued.

“That is an awful lot of words to convey that she is your wife, and you should be doing that stuff for her anyway.” Jacob raised an eyebrow.

“Fair enough. That is true as well, but again, do not get my gestures confused for any notion of a brewing romance. I am merely…”

“Fulfilling your duty,” Jacob completed his sentence for him. “Yes, you have only mentioned that at least sixty times now. Makes me wonder if you are hiding your true feelings behind it.”

“Enough.” Duncan took a sip of his wine. “I challenge you to another game.”

Laughter filled the room. “Fair enough, fair enough. Let’s have it then.”