I wake up alone in bed, which is actually a new situation. Alexander has already got up, and he is getting ready by the wardrobe.

«Where are you going so early?» I inquire while moving on his side of the bed. The sheets are hardly warm, but his part of the mattress is oddly more comfortable than mine. As well as his pillow.

I'll exchange our cushions when he's not around to notice.

«It's not early, wife,» he comments while stepping in my direction. «It's half past eight.»

«What?»

I turn to the clock and, indeed, he's right about the time.

I sit on the bed, rubbing my eyes, and I remember that I don't have any clothes only when the air hits my skin, causing goosebumps.

I cover my chest with the sheet, wondering how did my Duke get up so readily. He pecks my forehead and waits for me to accept that it's actually late in the morning.

In the end, he didn't continue to embrace me for the whole night. He stopped late and left me to sleep, but it was me that complained first.

I really understated my Duke's perseverance.

I straighten my spine, recalling the way I requested my husband to let me sleep. This movement makes the muscles of my back scream all together.

I stretch my legs under the sheets and notice that same, busy pain in all my muscles. It's as if I passed the night running in the woods rather than in my bed.

What I can't understand, though, is why my arms ache as well. I didn't use them much, except for when I scraped my Duke's back. However, he didn't complain about that. I guess he hardly noticed. He was so focused on me.

«Oh, no... I told lady Lyana to come here at eight sharp!» I remember all of a sudden. I startle, and that movement makes me moan in pain.

I won't be able to do anything, like this!

«You asked your lady in waiting to come that early?» he murmurs. «You're merciless, Thea. And also, you can't get up on your own, yet you require your employee to do so?»

«Whose fault is it that I can't?»

«I don't know,» he shrugs.

This naughty Duke! He dares to act so innocently!

«You're a beast,» I complain, and he chuckles. He seems so happy to be insulted.

«You better watch your mouth, wife. This night I'll be by your side again.»

«There's no way in hell I let you do this again,» I mutter. «Not until I recover.»

«Recover from what, exactly?» he asks.

I'll kill him; in his sleep.

«Should I have turned a deaf ear, when you begged me to let you sleep?» he whispers, suddenly so close.

«Who begged?» I protest.

«It was such cute sight, though. Makes me want to do that every day.»

«I can't survive every day.»

«I'm just kidding, Thea,» he replies and kisses my temple. «I won't force you into anything.»

At least, that is true. Unfortunately, it's not enough of an argument to believe I'll sleep tonight. Even though my Duke won't force me, he improved his persuasive skills by several degrees.

«Don't work too much today, I don't like a tired wife,» he adds before leaving.

As soon as he opens the door, he walks out with a satisfied grin while Kate runs in.

«I'm back!» she exclaims. Then, she notices my state, and she smirks cunningly.

«Don't say anything,» I warn her. «Just find me a dress. A black dress.»

Kate lifts her eyebrows in surprise, but then she simply obeys. A sleepless night is certainly not enough to deactivate a former queen.

Just when I finished dressing, lady Lyana knocks at the door.

«Good morning, my Lady,» she greets me.

«Good morning,» I nod. «I'm behind schedule with my tasks, so I'll work in the office for now. You can read, meanwhile, lady Lyana.»

«Or I can help my Lady,» she whispers, looking at me with a complicated expression. On one side, she would like to be of assistance. On the other, she's afraid I'll interpret her proposal as meddling in.

«All right,» I accept.

After all, I can find something for her to do. Once she understands that administration is utterly monotonous, she won't be so happy to be my aide.

Kate follows a step behind, studying this new face with unhidden interest. Differently from when she examined the Duke, this time, she isn't worried about my safety.

The rest of the day passes working.

I begin at the desk but soon move on an armchair. This way, I can at least lean my back comfortably. Also, my stomach has started cramping. It means that, by the end of the afternoon, my period will come back.

It hasn't been a month from the last time. However, the bleeding stopped abruptly, back then. It seems that now, in this apparently safer place, my body is relaxing again.

The cramps are a pain, but I'll have a night of rest. Finally! I've never thought I would be grateful for monthlies. Marriage changed the way I look at things quite much.

«I will retire early,» I inform lady Lyana.

She lifts her head from the papers she has been diligently copying, and she nods while smiling politely.

«I have almost finished with the replies, my Lady.»

«You're helping me very much with that. I don't have a clue who all those people are.»

«Not one of them is worthy of being remembered by my Lady,» she chuckles. «But I guess you will meet them all, sooner or later.»

«Alexander told me that I should organise a gathering, once in a while. He told me that once every two months is enough, but he tends to spoil me. So... What do you think, lady Lyana? I'd like to hear your sincere opinion.»

«Once every two months might be too little,» she breathes. «But no one will dare to comment on my Lady's choices. Also, rare gatherings are deemed more exclusive. Lady Kyre can surely afford to be missed by her social circle.»

«Still, too rare occasions will make people think that I am lazy.»

Which isn't that far from the truth, concerning gatherings.

«I have an idea,» she starts, and I nod to signal her to continue. «Once every two months, my Lady can organise a tea party or a lunch with other noblewomen. It can be a grand event, with at least fifty guests. Once every month, or once every fifteen days, the Lady can simply ask a small group of women to visit. Just those that attract your attention or that you like. It can be an informal event, so there's no need to follow social paradigms.»

«Am I supposed to visit out of Stoneyard, though?»

«Oh, not if you don't want to. You're the Lady, after all.»

«Wonderful,» I whisper. «For now, let's have an event every month. We will alternate big parties to small gatherings. Do you have a suggestion for the date, lady Lyana?»

«Some of the nobles under Duke Kyre's administration are still in the capital. They will come back only in a few months. However, those that stay at the fief all year haven't met you. I think it's the Lord's responsibility to introduce you.»

«It sounds like a debut,» I chuckle.

«It is that, in some ways. I think that making the nobles recognise you as the Lady won't be as easy as it had been with the Countess and me.»

«The Countess accepts me?» I mumble dumbfounded.

«She's harsh with words, but she trusts the Lord's decisions. If he kept you as his wife, it means that you're capable enough to handle Kyre, my Lady.»

«And you? Why did you accept me?»

«Because I owe a favour to the Lord. He's helped me when I needed it the most, and now I can pay back part of my debt.»

I'm starting to understand why my Duke was so eager to show me his territories. First of all, there aren't rude marquises that can just challenge him without consequences.

Then, he has duties related to people, and his subjects trust and respect him. I've also noticed how much he cares about them.

And third, his castle is full of people ready to sing praises about him. Especially while talking to me. Even the Countess, in her odd way, told me that Alexander is trustworthy and capable.

«I'll talk about it with my husband,» I decide. «If it's something we ought to do, it's better to involve him as soon as possible.»

«It will also be easier with the Lord's help.»

«I know,» I comment, starting to wonder if my Duke knows that lady Lyana likes advertising him so much.

«The local nobles are hard to deal with, sometimes, but they all follow the Lord's guide,» she continues.

«Lady Lyana, I'm already married to the Duke. There's no need to praise him so much,» I chuckle.

She stops talking and looks at me for a few seconds, trying to decode my mood. She's not sure if I'm bothered by her transparent intentions.

«It's all right,» I sigh. «And I can't quite disagree with your words.»