Page 29 of Bound By the Duke
Of course, he didn’t.
He simply offered his arm, and she took it.
Aurelia had thought that leaving her family would be easy. But when the guests began departing after the ceremony concluded, she felt a heaviness in her chest.
She and Nora stood together, away from the quiet bustle. She lazily ran her fingers through her sister’s hair like an affectionate mother.
“I’ll be fine,” Nora assured, breaking the silence. It was as if she could already sense that Aurelia was worried about leaving her alone.
“You don’t need to be. Not right away,” Aurelia sighed, and her hand dropped to squeeze Nora’s shoulder.
After another beat, Nora’s lips wobbled, her emotions threatening to betray her. “You’re leaving. You’reactuallyleaving.”
A lump formed in Aurelia’s throat. “It’s not the moon, you know. Just Whitmore.”
“It’sfar,” Nora groaned, hugging herself.
“You’ll visit. You’ll write. And I’ll write back so often that Mother will say it’s unladylike to correspond so often.”
Nora smiled, but only faintly, her gaze locked on the crescent moon.
“I meant what I said earlier,” Aurelia continued, gently touching her sister’s wrist. “I’ll help with your debut. I’ll talk to Celia, and if Mother becomes too overbearing… Well, she already is, but I’ll deal with it. You won’t be alone.”
“I…” Nora opened her mouth to speak, but then she closed it when her tears spilled over.
“Oh, Nora…” Without thinking, Aurelia wrapped her arms around her, holding her tightly.
Nora trembled in her embrace, her breath hitching as she buried her face in her sister’s shoulder.
“I’m scared,” she admitted softly. “What if I’m not ready? What if I do something that ruins everything?”
“You won’t,” Aurelia told her fiercely, then pulled back to look deeply into her eyes. “You are not me. You are cleverer, kinder, and you don’t stumble over your words when speaking to a viscount’s mother.”
“I’ve seen you charm a room.” Nora gave a half-smile.
“Out of thin desperation.” Aurelia laughed. “But you? You belong. You always have.”
Nora wiped her cheeks quickly, then glanced sideways to make sure no one was watching her cry. She paused when her eyes caught a shadow in the distance.
“Do you think he heard us?”
Aurelia blinked. She then turned slightly, following her sister’s gaze.
The duke stood at a distance like a quiet shadow. He didn’t move, not even when she met his gaze.
And she felt it, that heavy feeling that he was always watching, always waiting.
“I don’t know,” she murmured, before looking back at Nora.
Her younger sister sniffed and then leaned in to whisper, “You should go. He’s brooding, which likely means he’s tired of waiting.”
“Or he’s always like that.”
“Or that,” Nora agreed, her half-smile returning.
“Will you be all right?” Aurelia asked, though she already knew the answer would never be simple.
“I’ll try,” Nora said. “And you… Be happy. Or at least don’t get eaten alive by Whitmore.”
