Chapter 29: A Win is a Win

CHAPTER 29

Both Evelina and Alexander entered the house, their movements heavy as they made it past the front hall and into the central parlor arena.

"Evelina?" Breanna's voice trembled with mixed relief and worry.

"Mother."

Evelina froze as the Countess approached, seeing the weight of recent events etched in the shadows beneath her mother's eyes.

"I was consumed with worry, Evelina. Violetta, your father, the Prince... we all feared for your safety," Breanna whispered, her voice filled with a mix of maternal love and unease, as she embraced Evelina.

What the countess had done was contrary to how Evelina had imagined she would react. Finding solace in her mother's arms, the Countess' tears soaking the fabric of their embrace, Evelina remained silent, unable to find the words to convey the complex situation she had experienced last night.

"Shh. Don't cry now. I'm just glad you came back to me in one piece," Breanna murmured softly as Evelina's eyes began to spray her tears of their own.

"Come, let's sit down and you can tell me everything that happened at the ball after I left," Breanna gently requested as they settled into the nearest sitting area.

Dabbing at her own tears, Breanna encouraged Evelina to do the same.

But Evelina's heart was conflicted. She had always tried to be open with her mother, even in the face of criticism. In this case, however, revealing the truth about her voluntary retreat into the Duke's carriage would only cause unnecessary pain.

"What made you leave the ball so abruptly last night?" Evelina asked, changing the subject.

Breanna tensed briefly before flexing her fingers and rubbing the back of Evelina's hands. "That's a conversation for another time. Right now the priority is you. Are you hurt? How did you sleep last night? And where did you sleep? You weren't kidnapped or harmed in any way, were you?"

Evelina glanced at the Duke, hoping he could help her, but he seemed preoccupied, scanning his surroundings instead of meeting her gaze.

"Evelina," Breanna called softly to get her attention. Evelina turned to face her.

"No one dared to violate you, did they?" Breanna asked worriedly.

"No, Mother," Evelina began to answer. "I was... "

"Duke Alexander of Burnsbury." Evelina was startled as her father's deep voice echoed throughout the hall. She had wondered where he was during her mother's questioning. Now, after descending the stairs, he stopped a short distance away from her, accompanied by her nemesis.

"Hello Evelina. We meet at last," Prince Laith said with an embarrassed smile, his presence urging her to rise and engage him, but not before she saw a flicker of a frown cross the Duke's face. Dismissing it as an oversight, she thought, he had nothing to be angry about here.

"Um... why are you here?" Evelina asked the prince immediately, her tone expectant.

✽✽✽

She was a goddamn traitor. Alexander thought, fighting back a scowl. He couldn't believe her; he just couldn't. In all the time he had watched her, he had never seen her sapphire eyes sparkle with the clarity of a summer's day. But now they did, and all for that delicate Prince Laith.

"I had no prior knowledge of your intended visit, Your Grace," the Earl's voice snapped him back to reality.

"Earl Huxley," the Duke acknowledged.

"What brings you to this side, Duke of Burnsbury?" Huxley inquired further.

But Alexander, out of the corner of his eye, was stylishly observing the prevailing conversation between Evelina and Prince Laith for a while. As soon as he was ready to speak, he let out a sigh. "My apologies for dropping in unannounced," he began. "But there's a reason I had to reveal myself like this. Yesterday, after the ball, on my way back, someone..."

"Father."

Evelina's shout made him stop as she suddenly appeared between him and the count, visibly panicked and out of breath. Alexander's gaze softened at the sight.

Thinking that she might have realized that being by his side was the wisest place to be brought a wry smile to the corner of his lips. What could he say? A win is a win.

"What hole in the world did you crawl out of, Evelina? Everyone's been worried-sick looking all over for you." Huxley's voice brimmed with excitement as he reached out and hugged Evelina.

They moved together to where the Countess stood, all three of them deep in conversation. Alexander could understand the need for family time to catch up. He nodded wistfully as he watched the trio.

Unsuspectingly, Laith closed the gap between himself and the Duke, only catching Alexander's attention with his next words.

"Pleasure to meet you, Duke of Burnsbury," the prince greeted.

"Unfortunately, I cannot reciprocate such sentiments," the Duke replied curtly before turning his attention back to Evelina.

Laith laughed. "You got me there. Very well. But I am curious about something. I am curious about the connection between your arrival now and Evelina's sudden return home."

"Sudden?" Alexander's curiosity was aroused now. "Did you not expect her return?"

"I never said that."

"No, you didn't. But your statement implied it."

"Can you please stop and let's get back to the question I asked you? What are you doing here?" Prince Laith asked, his words carrying a slight threat.

"Good. You should allow yourself to be provoked more often," came Alexander's half-hearted reply.

"From now on you will answer my questions directly. Understood?" Laith warned.

"From now on you are in no position to demand anything from me," Alexander retorted.

Noticing how Laith's rage was beginning to boil over, his fists clenched, Alexander decided to push him even further, until his rage exploded into a damn volcano for all he cared. "Do you think you can handle the truth when I give you the answer you so desperately want to hear?"

Laith blinked his eyes, a sign the Duke interpreted as uncertainty. "I can handle knowing," Laith said finally.

"Well, in that case, I think you already know the answer. What you don't know, and certainly need to know, is this. I'm not just here to return Evelina to her family. I am here to officially seal the deal."

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