The Duke's Bed Warmer-Chapter 32: A Different Game

When she woke the next morning, he was gone as usual. She sat up slowly. The room felt too quiet. For a moment, she pressed her face into the pillow, feeling foolish for what she told Austin yesterday. Then she pushed herself up and walked to the mirror.

She had looked at herself in mirrors before. But never in his room. The woman staring back at her had dark circles under her eyes, her hair messy, looking defeated and exhausted.

She looked exactly like what she was: a bed warmer with no money, no title, and no strong allies. A woman who had promised Austin she would not be married off but had no idea how to keep that.

She turned away, sat at his desk and opened a notebook, writing three names.

Lord Ashby, Lady Talbot and Evelyn.

That was all she had. An old scholar who saw everything but said nothing. A merchant’s wife with a network stretching beyond the castle walls and a kitchen maid who knew the castle’s secrets.

I need more than this. I need to become someone he can’t discard easily, and when the time comes, the choice should be mine not his!

Breakfast was already half over when she arrived. She took her usual seat at the mid-table. Lord Ashby was to her left and next to him was Lady Marguerite, who had once smiled at her weeks ago.

Alina noticed her red eyes and pale face. She looked miserable. Alina leaned towards Lord Ashby.

"Would you mind switching seats?"

He followed her gaze, then looked back at her with a knowing smile. Without a word, he stood and moved. Alina took his seat beside Marguerite.

"Are you alright?" she asked softly.

Marguerite startled, her head snapping up. For a second, she looked almost afraid. She was a minor noble’s daughter, recently married who had moved into the castle and was treated as if she were invisible.

"I’m fine," she replied quickly. "Just tired."

"You’ve been crying."

Marguerite’s composure broke. Her chin trembled and her eyes filled with tears as she glanced around the table but no one was looking at them. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

"I miss my sister," she whispered. "I miss my home. My husband is always at the council, and I don’t know anyone here. Everyone is..." She stopped abruptly, pressing her hand to her mouth.

"Everyone here is performing," Alina finished. "And it’s exhausting. I know."

Marguerite looked at her as if someone had finally seen her after being alone for days in a crowded castle.

They talked quietly for the rest of the meal. Marguerite talked about her sister, the letters she wrote every week but never sent because she didn’t want to admit she was lonely. Alina spoke about Elspeth, the letter she had sent with Lord Ashby’s help, and how writing it made her feel less alone. They discussed about the weight of being new, unknown, in a place surrounded by people who had known each other for years and had no room for anyone else.

It was not strategic or calculated. But Alina got to know that Marguerite was married to Lord Whitmore who was one of Austin’s trade advisors. She filed this information. Maybe it could be useful in future.

When Marguerite stood up to leave, she squeezed Alina’s hand tightly.

"Thank you," she said. "Nobody here speaks to me like a normal person."

Alina squeezed her hand back.

After breakfast, Alina went to the garden and sat on the bench by the fountain, lost in thought, when Audrey came and sat beside her, carrying two cups of tea. She handed one to Alina without asking if she wanted it.

"I saw you speaking with Lady Marguerite at breakfast," Audrey said.

"She was crying and no one noticed."

"I noticed," Audrey replied, sipping her tea. "You were kind to her. Most people here don’t trouble themselves with others’ problems. They think of women of her status as unimportant."

"Nobody is unimportant."

Audrey looked at her, surprised by her blunt response but then smiled.

"You sound like my mother," Audrey said. "She used to say the same thing."

They sat in silence for a while, then Audrey spoke again, her tone casual.

"I’ve been speaking to a few families about your future." She said. "I want to make sure you’re sent to somewhere good. Lord Calder is one option, but there are others."

The tea turned bitter in Alina’s mouth. She remembered Audrey discussing her future with the other ladies yesterday, but she hadn’t expected Audrey to mention it to her so soon.

"How many others?" Alina asked.

"A few. I want you to have choices."

"Choices?" Alina repeated. "Neither did I choose to be here nor will I choose which cage I’m sent to next."

Audrey looked hurt. She genuinely thought she was helping because she had been raised in a world where arranging women’s lives was seen as kindness.

"I’m trying to help you, Alina."

"I know." Alina put her cup down. "And that’s what makes it worse."

She stood.

"Thank you, Your Highness...for worrying about me. But you really don’t have to," Alina said and smiled. "Though...you may want to consult His Grace about your list. He mentioned an eastern lord in need of a wife. I’m sure you’d want to add him to your list, if you haven’t already."

She bowed and walked away, leaving Audrey sitting there embarrassed.

At night, Alina lay in his bed, staring at the canopy, waiting for him to come. He came and lay down on his side in the bed, like always.

"Tell me about your day," she said suddenly.

Silence filled the room long enough that she thought he would deflect.

"Why?" he asked.

"Because I’ve been in your bed for days and I still don’t know what you do during the day. I don’t know what keeps you in your study until one in the morning."

He was quiet for a long time, as expected. She was thinking about how to press him further, when he spoke.

"The trade council argued about southern port fees. Lord Whitmore wants to raise them but Lord Ashby disagrees. They are both wrong, but I let them argue because sometimes it’s for the best," he continued. "My steward lost a shipment manifest. It took three hours to fix that. I had to sign thirty pages of duplicates."

He exhaled.

"It’s all mundane things," he said. "Nothing worth your attention."

She turned her head and saw his silhouette in the dark.

"Everything about you is worth my attention," she said.

He froze.

"What did you say?"

"I mean...I’m in this castle because of you. So it’s obvious everything about you affects me in some way." She replied.

He didn’t answer but she could see the change in his expression.

What the hell is going on in her mind? Is she serious about our conversation from yesterday? Is she really planning her escape???