Chapter Ten - Old Faces, New Jealousies

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"Florence Huntingdon... how wonderful to finally make your acquaintance," she said, offering me a strained, but still polite smile, as she cocked her head to the side. "Although, now I suppose it's Harding. Florence Harding."

"Lady Glendale, wonderful to finally meet you," I say, offering the woman a small smile.

She hadn't changed much from what I remember. Her hair was just as blonde as it was when we were younger- if not, somehow blonder, and her chocolate brown eyes still held the same mischievous glint from her youth.

She hummed in response and looked me over as a small smirk flashed across her face. "I'm sure. Care to promenade with me?"

My eyes widen as I look at her, my heart beginning to beat a little bit faster and a little bit harder in my chest. "Pardon me?"

"Promenade... with me, Your Grace," Lady Glendale repeats.

"Um..."

"That sounds like a wonderful idea, Lady Glendale," Frederick says quickly, looking over at me with a hopeful smile.

"Please, just call me Charlotte, Your Grace," Charlotte says, chuckling softly as she smiles up at him.

Frederick hums and respectfully nods his head before turning to look at me.

"I need to speak with Lord Glendale anyways," he assures, offering me a reassuring smile, "I shan't be long."

"Yes! My dear husband has been telling me how much he has been looking forward to talking with you, Your Grace," Charlotte says, "are the two of you going to the Royal Ascot?"

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"My mother named me Charlotte after the Queen..." Charlotte said pleasantly, glancing over at me as we continued down the path, "she believed I would be destined for greatness, just like the Queen is."

"That is nice... a wonderful reasoning," I say, looking over at her and offering her a weak chuckle. "I believe that my mother just like the name Florence."

"Hmm, I remember when I heard that the Duke of Windsor was coming to town... the night of the Danbury ball," Charlotte muses, "my father is quite close with Lady Harding- the Duke's mother, you know. We're quite close... she always said that she thought of me as the daughter she never had."

I nod slowly at her words, "that sounds... lovely. Uriana is a lovely woman. Frederick was very lucky to have such a... caring mother."

"Yes, he was," Charlotte sighs, looking over at the river for a moment. "I remember I was so excited to finally meet him- perhaps he would even ask me for a dance. I had my maid do my hair in the most perfect style... my mother even allowed me to wear my family's heirloom tiara for the occasion. I remember looking in the mirror before we left and feeling like... well... like the most beautiful debutante. Like the clearest option for the Duke to take as his wife. I had a good family, a good reputation, impeccable sewing abilities, able to hold a conversation, and skilled at dancing... but he wasn't at all interested in me. No, it was you that seemed to catch his eye that night... for a reason that I am still trying to find."

I let out a weak chuckle, "me as well... I certainly did not think that Frederick would be interested in me."

"Yes... but I played my part as an eager debutante and did what I could to find a respectable match... only to hear of your engagement in the Lady Whistledown column which forced me to turn my attention to finding a man willing to marry rather than trying to convince the Duke to- well, nevermind."

Convince the Duke to... do what?

The question rang through my head for the duration of our walk together.

"I do admit, though..." Charlotte's eyes flutter over to me as she slows our pace, "I did expect you and the Duke to have children by now... as did the rest of the Ton."

I pause, looking over at her with a raised brow, "oh, really?"

"Yes, I was just talking to the Duke's mother... she seemed quite upset that she hasn't gotten a little grandchild to spoil, yet... poor thing," Charlotte muses.

"We... we decided to wait for a little bit before-"

"I'm sure that the Duke was over the moon about that... all the freedoms of marriage without the stress of being leg shackled because of a child," Charlotte lets out a little giggle before sighing, "I am sure that he is enjoying his life... and all the joys that come along with it."

"Whatever do you mean by that?" I ask, glancing over at her with a raised brow.

Charlotte chuckles and waves off my question, "oh nothing... my husband loves to chatter about all sorts of things. Nothing for your pretty little head to worry about. I mean, you are a Duchess for goodness sake! You have more important matters to deal with than your husband's life!"

I let out a weak chuckle and nod my head, "of course..."

"You do intrigue me, I must admit," Charlotte said, "from what everyone says you are the... most beloved member of the Ton, but the company that you keep is so... repulsive. I mean, ha, the Featherington sisters and the Cowper girl... it's a marvel that you haven't fallen as low as them, seeing how much you are seen hanging around them."

I let out a humorless chuckle and roll my eyes at her. "Cressida, Prudence, and Philippa are just as deserving of friendship as anyone else in the Ton. No matter how anyone else, who, mind you, certainly doesn't know them, would like to portray them. I am sure that you could say that same... that kindness and compassion should be offered to those around you."

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"Your Grace! How wonderful to see you again! I was just telling your wife how honored I would be to host the two of you for a night at Glendale house," Charlotte chirped, all but throwing herself towards him, not a care in the world for her husband who was watching on with a faraway look.

Frederick looked over at me momentarily, pausing when he saw my expression before giving Charlotte a small smile, "I shall have to see what my wife thinks, we are flooded with invitations at the moment."

Charlotte's eyes slide over to me, her smile dimming for a split second before she nods and stretches her grin further than I thought possible. "Of course, do let us know, though."

"Of course, are you ready to go, darling?" Frederick asks, looking over at me and placing a hand on my back.

"Yes..." I snap my gaze over to him and quickly throw on a small smile, nodding towards Charlotte and her husband. "Wonderful to see you both..."

"I'll be hearing from you, Harding?" Lord Glendale barks, looking over to Frederick through his heavily lidded eyes.

"Of course, I'll see you soon, Glendale," Frederick says, nodding his head to the couple before gently leading me down the path and towards the street.

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"Do you know Charlotte?"

I couldn't help but ask the question. It had been eating away at my mind for the past few hours, and Frederick being couped up in his office certainly wasn't helping.

"My mother knew her. I wasn't as well acquainted with her though," Frederick said, putting his paper down and leaning back in his chair. "Mother seemed to like her well enough, though. Always was talking about how wonderful she was... it got rather annoying after a while, I have to admit."

"Did she ever... show an interest in you?" I whispered, taking a step further into the room and looking at him.

Our shadows flickered around the room in the candlelight, casting us into a hauntingly beautiful glow.

"What?" Frederick let out a humorless chuckle, "where is all this coming from? Did she say something?"

"We... talked... during our promenade," I confess, biting my lip as I continued to look at him.

"She did... show an interest. But as did countless other debutantes during the last season... I never thought anything of it, she never caught my attention," Frederick said simply, "mother was pushing for me to choose her as my Duchess, but I didn't agree with that."

"Why?"

"She was too... sly. She always had a feeling around her, like she wanted more than she could get... it was a little offputting, if I am being completely honest," Frederick explained, "she thought she was better than everyone and wasn't afraid to speak her thoughts on others. That's not something I wanted in the next Duchess of Windsor."

I bite my lip and glance down at the floor for a moment before glancing back up and looking towards him. "What did you want... in the next Duchess?"

He paused, thinking it over for a moment before looking over at me, "I wanted someone who was kind... no matter who she was around. Someone who wasn't afraid to be themselves, even if who they were didn't go with what the Ton wanted- or was used to. Someone who didn't feel that they needed to tear others down to make themselves feel or look better. Someone who wasn't afraid to offer forgiveness and who wasn't bound by the 'rules' of society. I wanted to marry someone who was unapologetically themselves and who held firm in their beliefs. Who wore their heart on their sleeves, and who wasn't afraid of following what they knew to be right- even if it was different from what those around them believed."

"That's... a lot."

He shrugged, by now he had stood up and had made his way over to me. A small mischievous smile appeared on his face. "I knew who I wanted to marry the moment that I ran into them at Lady Danbury's ball."

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in honor of it being my birth week, here's a surprise chapter! (this week's chapter may be a little bit late because of this 😅)

and yeah...Anya-Taylor Joy as Lady Charlotte Glendale (don't worry she'll make her triumphant return later)!

don't forget to comment and vote!

-T