Chapter 39
I’m not surprised when I realize people are staring at us. That was to be expected, considering the dinner was organized so we could announce our engagement. But the whispering—that is starting to get on my nerves.
I don’t have an inferiority complex. I like the way I look, and tonight, in particular, I feel beautiful beside him. We match in a contrasting yet complementary way.
Temperament aside, I think, hiding a smile. In that regard, we’re soulmates.
Every now and then, I step away from Rodrick and try to mingle on my own with a group of people, partly to show I’m not afraid of them, and partly because I’m a princess and more than used to lavish parties in our palace.
I suppose high society is snobbish everywhere—few people can look at you without trying to see what they can gain—but here it’s different. I can tell they’re judging me.
It might just be my imagination, but whenever I approach a group without my fiancé by my side, a heavy silence settles in. They stop smiling and make no effort whatsoever to include me.
After a while, my patience runs out, and I wonder how much longer we’ll have to stay before this torture finally ends.
“That necklace should be mine.”
I turn around to see who’s speaking in that aggressive tone, and it doesn’t take long to realize it’s one of the finalists from the wife competition.
To my surprise, though, it’s not Davina, who seemed far more confident at the yacht party, but the other one, the blonde with the more timid demeanor: Elizabeth.
At first, I don’t quite know what to say, so I take the opportunity to study her face. She’s much older than I am. I’d guess around twenty-eight. She’s beautiful, but there’s something unhinged in her eyes.
I grew up surrounded by competitive women. When you have that many sisters, especially from different mothers, that’s inevitable. So I don’t feel afraid or intimidated by her barely contained rage. I’m curious.
“Really? Who says so?”
“The duke was choosing between Davina and me to be his wife. Then you showed up and ruined everything.”
I look her up and down. “So it would’ve been a kind of job for you, right? Or better yet, an early retirement.”
“You’re in love with him,” she says with a cold laugh, scrutinizing me as well.
“Poor thing. You probably think you’re living a fairy tale, but you have no idea.
The Duke of Kindubh will never love you.
He’s incapable of that. The family is cursed.
His father killed his stepmother and then killed himself. ”
I try to hide my shock at the revelation. Years of training with my mother and sisters to conceal my true nature have taught me how to put on a mask of indifference when necessary.
I take two steps closer, leaving no doubt about the threat in my posture.
“And yet that didn’t stop you from wanting to marry him anyway.
Don’t be fooled by my looks or even my title.
I may be a princess, but I’m perfectly capable of ripping your head off if you dare speak about my future husband again. ”
She looks at me, trying to decide whether I’m bluffing, but I don’t even blink.
“No one will insult him in front of me. So if you value your skin, stay away from me, especially if all you have to offer is venom and bitterness. Behave like the lady you’re trying to pass as. Lose with grace.”
I hear a laugh behind us, and when I turn around, I see Isla, the young girl I met the first time I was in Scotland.
“You’ve finally found someone willing to stand up to you, Elizabeth,” she says. “Do the world a favor and stop embarrassing yourself, cousin.”
The woman storms off, clearly hating both of us, but my mind is already elsewhere, replaying what she said.
His father killed his stepmother—Gilroy's mother—and then killed himself.
Is that why they hate each other so much? Does one blame the other for being left alone in the world?
No . . . I feel like there’s more to that story.
“Thank you. You cleansed my soul. I’ve been bullied by that witch for years.”
Isla’s voice pulls me back.
“Having someone like that in the family is terrible,” I say honestly, and she bursts out laughing.
“I think I love you, Jazmina. You say exactly what you think, no sugarcoating. Anyone else would’ve told me I shouldn’t talk that way about my cousin.”
“I can’t deny she looks a little unhinged with that serial-killer stare.”
Her laughter grows, and after a few seconds, I join in, already half-forgetting the horrible things that woman said.
“Congratulations on the engagement. You and the duke make a beautiful couple.”
“Thank you, but I think we’d better go back in. It wouldn’t look good for me to be absent from a dinner being held in my honor.”
Even though I suspect Rodrick’s relatives aren’t actually thrilled about our future union, just curious. I didn’t take a liking to any of his aunts.
“You disappeared,” he says when we’re on our way back to the castle. Rodrick isn’t driving, and as the chauffeur guides us along the dark road, we finally have time to talk.
I stayed quiet for the rest of the night, smiling on autopilot when his aunt—with the fakest smile imaginable—made a toast to our future marriage.
“Can I be honest?”
“Always.”
“All night, I felt like I was part of a play. I know we’ll have to make these appearances, and I’ll be by your side every time, but they’ll never stop judging me.”
“Did someone offend you?” he asks, tense.
“No. One of your finalists tried, but I’m not that easily shaken.”
“Who? What did she do?”
“Elizabeth. She said this necklace should be hers, but that’s not what upset me.”
“Then what did?”
“Let it go. I don’t want to talk about it.” I hate gossip, and I won’t force him to reveal his secrets because of that woman’s malice.
“Tell me,” he insists.
I sigh. “She said your family is cursed,” I simplify.
“She’s probably right. Maybe we really are cursed.”
As soon as the plane lands on the private runway of my fiancé’s estate, I get out of the car. I can barely stand still, and I suspect Rodrick is hiding a smile.
After what he said yesterday, we remained silent for the rest of the journey, but when we arrived, he walked me to my bedroom door and pulled me into a bear hug.
I hugged him back, understanding that, in that moment, words mattered less than what he made me feel.
If he isn’t ready to talk about his family history yet, I’ll wait until the time comes.
“You’re so close to being mine,” he whispered in my ear, yet made no attempt to follow me into my chambers, even though I could feel his rigidity pressed against my abdomen and knew exactly how aroused he was.
“I can’t wait, my fiancé,” I teased, then slipped away into the room.
The sound of the plane’s engine shutting down brings me back to the present. Adeela is the first to step out, and I run to her, hugging her tightly.
“I can’t believe you’re here. I missed you so much!”
“Me too. It feels like years have passed. How are you?” she asks, pulling back and holding my face, as if checking that I’m really okay.
“Happy,” I whisper, just for her. “And I survived the official engagement dinner.”
“Was it that bad? Did they mistreat you?” She looks ready to pick a fight. My friend has changed so much since marrying our sheikh. From a shy girl who even apologized for breathing, she’s become a strong woman who doesn’t take nonsense from anyone.
“They tried. Actually, they already had the last time I was here, and now I wonder if the conversation I overheard in the bathroom wasn’t intentional. I was in a stall, and they mocked my accent. Yesterday, one of them was more explicit, but I put her in her place.”
“What happened?”
I glance over my shoulder to make sure Rodrick hasn’t approached yet.
I think he’s giving me some time alone with Adeela.
“He opened applications for a wife of convenience—over a hundred and sixty candidates. One of the finalists is a real monster in a skirt. You think you had problems with Ingrid? You suffered nothing, sister.”
She starts laughing, and I end up laughing too. “So much competition, only to end up surrendering at your feet.”
“Josephine said something similar, and you’re both wrong. He hasn’t surrendered.”
“In a few months, you’ll tell me,” she says, still smiling, then her expression shifts. “And don’t compare me to her. I’m jealous, and I still don’t know if I like this new friend of yours.”
I roll my eyes but don’t get the chance to reply, because when I see my brother holding the little future sheikh, I lose my mind. “Auntie’s prince has arrived. The most handsome big boy in the world!”
He jumps proudly in his father’s arms. Like father, like son. Poor girls of his generation.
“Hello, my sheikh,” I greet my brother, and he pulls me in for a kiss.
“I missed you, girl. But I didn’t expect to see you again already engaged,” he says, looking over my shoulder.
When I turn around, I realize Rodrick has come closer. He looks at me oddly, seemingly unaware of Kaled, his attention fixed instead on Tajj in my arms. My nephew is clinging to my neck, and I hold him just as tightly.
I see Rodrick greet Kaled and Adeela, but his eyes never leave me.
I feel uneasy as the clause of the contract comes back to mind.
What is he thinking? That I’ll try to get pregnant on purpose?
The thought sours my mood, and all the joy of reuniting with my family fades into the background beneath the doubts filling my mind.
Kaled, Adeela, and Tajj get into one of the cars, while Rodrick and I get into another.
I stare out the window, lost in my thoughts, with no desire to talk.
“You never said whether you wanted children,” he says.
“I don’t think this is a good topic for us to discuss on the eve of our wedding. It’s enough for you to know that I will never violate that clause, Your Grace. By marrying me, you won’t be walking into a trap.”