The Duke's Bed Warmer-Chapter 18: You Are Safe

Alina was walking from the library to her room, carrying a book, when Lord Fenton, a drunkard noble, known for his loose character, blocked her way.

He was so drunk that he couldn’t even stand properly.

"The duke’s little warmer," he slurred, looking her up and down. "Out for a stroll?"

"None of your business," she said.

He looked at the books in her hands and a crooked smile appeared on his face.

"Reading?" He scoffed. "That’s what women do when they can’t do anything useful."

"Lord Fenton," she said, calmly. "How is your estate? I hear the creditors visited again last month. That makes it the third time this year, doesn’t it?"

His smile disappeared.

"And Lady Thornton must be very generous," she continued. "Entertaining you every Thursday while your wife waits at home."

His expression hardened.

She had learned this gossip from Lord Ashby and Lady Talbot. She had been listening to every whisper and every rumour carefully since she had arrived at Ravenmoor. Information was the only currency she possessed.

"You little..."

His hand shot out and grabbed her wrist. The books slipped from her hands. His fingers dug into her skin, tight enough to hurt.

"You think you can talk to me like that?" He snapped. "You think because the duke keeps you warm at night, you can..."

"If you don’t let go of me, I will walk into the great hall tonight and tell everyone exactly where you spend your Thursdays."

Suddenly, his hand dropped and he stepped back. Alina picked up her book and stood up slowly.

"Don’t touch me again," she said. "Don’t even come in front of me again. And think carefully, Lord Fenton, what will happen if the duke hears someone like you thought he could put his hands on his woman?" 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

The little confidence he had also faded away.

"We’ll see," she added. "whose position here is more precarious. Yours or mine."

He stepped aside without any other word. Alina walked past him with her head high despite her throbbing wrist and pounding heart.

At dinner, Fenton sat far down the table, drinking more than usual, and avoiding her gaze as if he didn’t know her.

Alina barely touched her food. The incident stayed with her, silent but impossible to ignore. Cruel words were still tolerable, but physical humiliation was too much for her to bear.

Later that night, as she walked towards Austin’s room, Lady Talbot called her.

"Alina."

Alina stopped and turned.

"I heard." She said.

"Heard what?"

"What Fenton did in the west corridor." Lady Talbot stepped closer, lowering her voice. "My maid heard it from a kitchen boy. Lord Fenton...has already begun telling his version of the story."

"What version?" She asked, curious.

"That you tried to seduce him," Lady Talbot replied. "And he put you in your place."

The words felt absurd, yet plausible.

"That’s ridiculous," she said, clenching her hands at her sides.

"I handled him," Alina said. "I made sure he wouldn’t come near me again."

"You handled the moment," Lady Talbot said gently. "But Fenton is spreading rumours which make you a... "

Lady Talbot was right. The truth didn’t matter. The story that was spreading did. The story where she seduced men in the castle despite belonging to the duke.

"Tell the duke," Lady Talbot said. "Before he gets to know from someone else. If you don’t correct the story now, it will become the truth."

Alina nodded.

"Be careful," she said and left.

That night, Alina lay in bed, thinking about whether to tell him or not.

If she told him, she would be asking for his help and she didn’t want to need him. She didn’t want to depend on him.

I won’t ask him. I’ll handle Fenton myself.

Austin entered, and he lay on his side, like always.

"Fenton." He said, suddenly.

Alina almost stopped breathing.

"I heard," he said. "About what happened in the west corridor this afternoon."

She turned to him.

"Who told you?"

"It doesn’t matter. He has been reassigned to the northern garrison. He will leave at dawn."

She sat up.

"I didn’t ask for that."

"You didn’t need to."

"I handled the situation. I used his own secrets against him and walked away."

"I know." He replied, softly.

"Then why are you reassigning him?"

He looked at her.

"Because by morning, everyone would know my bed warmer tried to seduce my drunkard lord and he put her in her place."

She froze.

"This narrative will make you a target for every trash man in this castle. He isn’t being reassigned because you couldn’t handle him. He is being reassigned because his version of the story needed to be stopped." He paused. "And the only way to end a story is to remove the storyteller."

Oh! So he isn’t protecting me. He is protecting the narrative.

"Give me your hand," he said.

She didn’t move.

"Alina. Give me your hand."

Slowly, she extended her arm across the space between them. His fingers closed around her wrist and she held her breath.

He turned her hand slightly, looking at the bruise under her sleeve. He brushed his thumb over it three times. For a moment, he looked angry, but then regained his composure.

He released her hand. She pulled her hand back quickly, pressing it against her chest, as if to hold onto the warmth he had left behind.

"Go to sleep."

That’s all?? What are you expecting, Alina?? Control yourself.

At dawn, the sound of horses stirred her sleep. Austin’s side of the bed was empty. He was gone, earlier than his usual time. She lay still for a moment, listening to the murmur of voices from below.

She stood, walked to the window, and looked down into the courtyard.

Lord Fenton sat stiffly on a horse at the gate. His face was flushed, his shoulders hunched, and his eyes fixed on the ground. He looked humiliated and embarrassed.

A servant stood beside him holding a bag. Within a few moments, the gates opened and he left.

When he was gone, Alina saw Austin standing at the edge of the courtyard, his arms crossed, watching Fenton’s departure as if making sure he had really left.

Then he looked straight at her window. Their eyes met across the courtyard. Even from a distance, she could read his expression, which said:

You don’t need to worry now. You’re safe.