His Innocent Rose (Hinley Manor Book 1)

Chapter Thirty-one: Tying the knot

"The road not taken was not taken for a reason. Trust that you are where you need to be."
-Unknown

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Saturday.

Amber eyes opened as soon as the sky changed from black to an orange hue. It was dawn already.

Em rolled over her bed. She hasn't changed since the night prior and had completely ruined her dress. No time to mull over, she said. Her legs swung over the other side of the bed and off she went towards her table. She dabbed a fresh white linen damp with cold water against her face and decided she will have to do something about her eyes. They were swollen badly.

Thankfully, Ana had remedies for these emergencies. She had cooked a soothing balm that worked miracles. Em applied it on both her eyes and let it cool for few moments. She will have enough time for the balm to work before people would notice the redness. For now, she needed to help the Duchess prepare.

After donning a simple pink dress and a white cap, Em left her room and headed towards the second landing.
***

Blue eyes flickered against the faint rays of sunlight. The curtains were drawn but a small partition gave way to the early morning light to penetrate his room. His vision was blurred and his eyelids felt like sandpaper. There was also a heavy banging on his head that only seemed to go away if he closed his eyes.

Bloody hell. He overslept.

Damian forced himself to sit up right. The room started to spin so he had to grab his headboard. There. That was better. He tried his eyes again and thankfully he could see much better now. His head was still heavy but he knew it would not last for long. He just needed a warm bath and breakfast.

Throwing the blankets aside he noticed he was still wearing his clothes from yesterday. No. That was wrong. It had been from the day or night before. He recalled putting these on when they had dinner at the Laure's.

Bloody hell yet again. Has no one noticed him absent? And where was his valet? Should he not be attending to his needs? But if he was asleep for a very long time then there was no one to attend to. Then did no one asked for him? He could recall a voice coaxing him to walk back to his room , asking him what had happened. Sadly, it was all he could remembered for now.

But back to the matter at hand if this was the morning after Friday then it meant he was going to be married today. Damian looked around and found his journal. He kept entries of what he did daily or what his engagements were for the upcoming days. Saturday was marked with an intricate writing that said "Must marry today" and he found that Friday was empty. Not even a single drop of ink smeared the paper. He flipped through the pages and found his last entry was on Thursday.

Bloody— no. He was not going to say it thrice. This was his fault and he needed to do something. He needed to calm himself so he could start functioning properly. He closed his eyes and took deep breaths. After a few moments of concentration he finally felt calmer. He opened his eyes and began planning his day ahead. He rang for his valet and began disrobing.
***

Gray feathered eyes stared up the ceiling. They have been open since the break of dawn. They had no plans on closing back anymore. Her ears picked up noises from the end of the hall. Slowly, she could hear the house awakening. The servants always started the chores early so that they could move with ease. Lydia wondered how they managed all that.

Her arms felt numb. Mayhap because all night she had been lying down on the same position. She feared her legs would feel the same but she did not care for now. Her mind was in no hurry to get up.

She loved the early morning breeze that was brought in the draft by the window. She could hear the whistle of the wind as it passed through the trees outside. Maybe even the birds that were nesting there. I wish I could stay like this, she thought. She just wanted to lie down all day.