The Dragon Duke's Wife - Chapter 29
As expected, Eleanor arrived two days later in the evening.
In fact, she had already reached the capital the day before, but she had stayed at a hotel for the night, thinking that if she arrived too early, Ancia would be caught off guard. She smiled graciously, explaining that she had waited until the late afternoon to come over.
“I’ve been wanting to meet you, Ann. When I heard the news about Kal’s marriage, I was so curious. I wanted to come right away, but now we’ve finally met.”
As she spoke, Eleanor handed Ancia a large bouquet of roses. Ancia didn’t even notice the flowers and instead, her gaze was fixed on Eleanor. It felt as if her breath stopped.
Even the large, beautiful flowers seemed to pale in comparison to the stunning woman before her.
Her dark blue hair shimmered like the night sea, and her deep, captivating eyes were the color of a moonlit lake, a silvery-blue. She radiated the elegant, noble aura of a mythical fairy or goddess, as if she had just emerged from the water, her fingertips graceful and refined. The simple white dress she wore, with no patterns, made her delicate beauty stand out even more.
Khalid, seemingly unaffected by her beauty, spoke in a flat tone.
“You came right away. You were at Odelphine Harbor, right? Normally, it takes a fast boat about a month to get from there to the Roden Empire’s harbor.”
“‘Normally,’ huh? What good is that? You know how fast I am in the water.”
“Right. So, what are you here for?”
“Oh, can’t I come? Are you worried I’m here to steal your Heart?”
Eleanor lightly hit Khalid in the side. It felt more like an easygoing gesture between siblings or friends than a flirtation, but Ancia still felt a pang in her chest, as if a thorn had been planted there. Despite this, she tried to brush it off and stand tall.
‘Right now, I’m the Duchess.’
She steeled herself and accepted the roses. The fragrant white roses filled her arms completely.
“Thank you.”
“Why the flowers?”
Khalid spoke again, arguing.
“She’s the Duchess of Velados, surely she already has plenty of jewels? I couldn’t think of anything else to give her. I hope I’m not mistaken in assuming that you haven’t gotten her a proper gift yet, Kal?”
“What’s it to you?”
“I like them. And Kal is so good to me. Every gift he gives me is wonderful, more than I deserve.”
Ancia spoke with an effort. The bouquet of flowers was truly beautiful. She wished her heart could be as pure as it looked. Yet, she couldn’t help but think that the white roses suited her far better.
She had bathed and dressed up in anticipation of Eleanor’s arrival.
Khalid had praised her beauty, and she wore a daring dress that boldly exposed her chest, along with the heavy diamond necklace around her neck.
Aside from all the jewelry in the Duchess’s jewelry box, Khalid had gifted her many precious jewels. There were large sapphires with stars inside, opals that seemed to contain the ocean itself, and a golden pearl necklace that could wrap around her neck three times and still hang low enough to touch her chest.
The diamond she wore today was one of those gifts. Khalid had personally placed the necklace around her neck.
“Pretty, but I worry all the men will just be staring at your chest.”
“They’ll be looking at the necklace.”
The necklace was made of several rows of small diamonds, arranged in such a way that, when the light moved, the diamonds appeared to rest gently on her rounded chest.
Khalid kissed the back of her neck and trailed his lips down the necklace. Then, he moved to the diamonds resting on her chest, taking them in his mouth along with her b****t, and pounced on Ancia.
“I didn’t mean for this to happen. It’s your fault for being so seductive.”
They had planned to go to the opera together, but neither of them left the bedroom. Khalid, groaning and lost in pleasure, kissed and touched her until she begged him to stop. The diamond necklace clinked as it bumped against her bare skin.
The thought of it kept coming back to her, and she felt too ashamed to wear the necklace out in public. Every time she opened the jewelry box, she would secretly peek at it with her face flushing.
Today, she wore it because, despite Eleanor being Khalid’s former fiance, she wanted to show that she was now his wife.
Of course, neither Khalid nor Eleanor knew the personal meaning she attached to the necklace, and she couldn’t tell them. But since he had called her beautiful, she wanted to show him that.
Still, she thought that it was a futile attempt. No matter how she dressed herself, standing next to Eleanor would make her feel small and insignificant.
“I’ve prepared a place for you to rest. Have you decided how long you’ll stay?”
Ancia asked, leading the way. Eleanor answered softly.
“I’m not planning on staying long. The capital’s water doesn’t agree with me. I’m thinking of staying for a week to two weeks, just meeting a few old friends, and then leaving.”
“You’ve come such a long way, and now you plan to leave so soon?”
“I’m not foolish enough to intrude on a newlywed couple. I just came to see your face, Ann.”
