Fateful Encounters

Chapter 2

3rd Person pov

Vinter led Penelope to the living room.

The servants smiled as the two made their way to their destination.

The maids spoke to each other in hushed voices about how adorable the two looked.

Said two were flustered but did their best to put on a straight face.

They finally reached the room and Penelope took a seat as Vinter asked the maid standing nearby to bring them a cup of tea.

"My lady.... Does the Duke know of this?" - Vinter

Penelope shook her head.

"No one from the duchy knows about them. Save for Albert." - Penelope

Vinter furrowed his eyebrows.

"Albert?" - Vinter

"The carriage driver. He may look grumpy but he is quite nice once you get to know him." - Penelope

He nodded.

"I see. I'm just glad the Duke doesn't know." - Vinter

"Pardon?" - Penelope

'Is he embarrassed because I'm the fake Eckhart Princess? Would he be happy if I was Yvonne?' - Penelope

She looked down at her feet.

"Ah! No! Its not what you think! It's just that I am quite nervous! And I am still trying to figure out how I'll explain the situation to them!" - Vinter

Her eyes widened in surprise.

"Y-You don't have to explain the situation to them.... I can do it....!" - Penelope

"My lady... I'm afraid I cannot do that. The two of us are in this together. Those children are not only your responsibility. They're mine too. They are our children. Which is why, please do not hesitate to depend on me. I will help you and protect you to the best of my abilities." - Vinter

He took her hand and placed a delicate kiss on the back of her palm.

He looked up at her flushed face and smiled reassuringly.

Penelope looked away and nodded as a small, shy smile took over her features.

Her eyes wandered to the clock and then widened.

The hour hand almost touched two and the minutes hand pointed at nine. The seconds hand menacingly ticked closer to twelve, causing another minute to pass.

The Duke had summoned her for a luncheon that day.

If she didn't make it on time, she would get in trouble.

She turned to the father of her two children and spoke in a rushed voice.

"I need to get to the mansion for the luncheon. I'll be in trouble if I don't make it on time. No one knows that I snuck out with Rael." - Penelope

She stood up, waving her hand towards the grandfather clock.

"The luncheon is at two and the it takes half an hour to get yo the mansion from here. I'll never make it on time. I'm done for." - Penelope

"My lady.... I can get you there in under a minute." - Vinter

Penelope looked at him with furrowed eyebrows, her mouth slightly open.

"I shall explain it to you the next time we see each other but for now......" - Vinter

"I can only teleport you outside the mansion, since magic cannot be used in the ducal premises from the outside." - Vinter