Kingsley's Bride

Chapter 40: The Moment

I stood before the mirror, dressed in a simple brown civilian gown. The fabric was rougher than I was used to, but it felt familiar, like a distant echo from a life I had left behind. I turned slowly, the skirts swishing against the floor as I examined my reflection. It was strange, seeing myself like this again, like I had before marrying Lord Darius.

Before my life had become entangled in power, politics, and the weight of the Kingsley Estate.

The maid had just left, her quiet hands having fastened the buttons of my dress with practiced ease. As the door clicked shut, I reached out and touched the fabric, letting it slide through my fingers. The texture was coarse, nothing like the fine satin I'd grown accustomed to wearing since my marriage.

"What exactly has changed?" I whispered, staring at the woman in the mirror. My voice felt foreign in the quiet room.

I used to wear clothes like this every day. Simple. Practical. And yet now they felt like a costume, as though I was playing a part in a life that no longer fit.

Has the Kingsley Estate's fame gotten to me?

The thought gnawed at me as I gazed into my own eyes, trying to decipher the emotions swirling within.

Am I so used to the royal soft satin clothes that my old clothes seem to bother me?

There was an undeniable sense of loss in the thought. Had I changed so much, so quickly? The woman I used to be, the one who didn't mind wearing dresses like this, seemed so far away now.

The weight of responsibility, the expectations, the pressure to uphold a certain image, they had all slowly molded me into someone new, someone who found it uncomfortable to return to her roots, even for a moment.

I sighed and let my hand fall to my side. Lord Darius had been right, we needed to blend in, to go unnoticed.

Meredith had disguised herself once again, slipping through the cracks like a shadow. To find her, we needed to become invisible, unremarkable. That's what these clothes were supposed to help with, to hide the woman I'd become behind the person I used to be.

But standing here, staring at myself, I couldn't shake the feeling that I had lost something in the process. Something small, but vital.

I had to push these thoughts away. Meredith was out there, hiding, and we needed to reach her before anyone else did. Lord Darius had warned me that this was dangerous, that the closer we got to her, the more peril we'd find ourselves in.

With one final glance in the mirror, I straightened my shoulders and turned away. The dress, the past, the doubts they didn't matter now. All that mattered was the road ahead, and the sister I had to save.

As I stepped outside the estate, the crisp air hit my face, bringing with it the scent of the horses and the damp earth beneath their hooves. My eyes immediately found Lord Darius. He was standing by his horse, Obsidian, who pawed at the ground impatiently. For a moment, I stopped in my tracks, unable to do anything but stare.

I had never seen him like this before. He was dressed in plain white civilian clothes, a stark contrast to the polished armor or fine coats he usually wore.

And yet, somehow, even in such simplicity, he looked remarkable perhaps even more so. The white shirt clung to his broad shoulders, and the soft fabric made his figure appear almost casual, but his presence was anything but ordinary. His grown beard framed his face in a way that made him seem both rugged and regal, and the light in his eyes as he caught sight of me made my heart skip.

He was looking at me with an intensity that always made me feel exposed, like he could see right through whatever facade I put up. His gaze softened, and a faint smile curled on his lips as I approached.