The faraway expression on Zander's face made my heart clench with grief. "I'm so sorry."

"It wasn't your fault. You don't have to apologize." He responded in an oddly calm manner.

My arm outstretched to soothe him, but it only met empty air as he avoided my touch. Retreating my arm, I whispered, "Thanks for sharing that with me." An affirmative grunt was his only response.

After eating in silence for a while, I muttered, "You asked me about Mari this morning." My gaze focused on my fingers as they picked bits of fluff out of my robe. "Yes, she was the maid that raised me and the one who I abandoned after the trial." With a self-deprecating chuckle, I asked what I already knew the answer to, "Such a faithful friend, am I not?" Lifting my glass to my lips, I gulped down my milk. "I didn't even say goodbye to her. I just left." I sighed. "She must have already served her sentence."

"Would you like to go see her?" Zander asked in a low voice.

"No."

A sudden burst of bright light illuminated the doorway, freezing Zander's tongue before he could utter another word.

"What are you guys doing here at this late hour? And why do you look like two kids caught with their hands in the cookie jar?" Benjamin smirked.

"Can't sleep." I deadpanned.

"Okay." The smirk didn't leave his face as he poured himself a glass of water and walked out of the kitchen.

⚜⚜⚜

"Oh, that darn mouse!" One of the kitchen staff shouted.

"It came back?" Brigitte asked, her eyes scanning the floor, windows, and every crevice around the room.

The woman pointed at a small patch of crumbs on the kitchen counter. "Look."

Taking hold of two pieces of bread, I walked back to the dining room as my voice trailed behind me. "That's odd."

Behind me, Annie shouted with a mischievous smile that seeped into her voice. "There it is!" A giggle broke through my lips at Bridgitte's responding squeal.

Back in my seat at the table, I cut the breakfast meat on my plate and asked Zander. "So, what do you have planned for today?"

"Paperwork." His answer was as detached as his gaze, which refused to leave the food on his plate.

Is he regretting telling me about his past last night? Does he feel embarrassed, or does the memory torment him still? "I was thinking. Would you like to join me for a picnic this evening? The sunset is even more beautiful if you look at it from the garden." A picnic always cheers me up. Maybe that'll work for him too.

His fork pushed the uneaten potatoes around and around on his plate. "Alright."

"Good morning," Ms. Rose greeted me as she walked through the door and met me in the foyer after breakfast. She pulled me into a tight hug and whispered in my ear. "I heard. I'm so happy for you." Pulling away from the embrace, she added, "Is he here?" I nodded. "If you want, I can come back some other time."

"No, don't worry, he's going to be working in his office today."

Ms. Rose didn't respond as something behind me had caught her attention. With wide eyes, she curtsied. "I'm so pleased to see you in good health, Your Grace. I'm Ms. Rose. I was the madam's teacher."

"Yes, thank you for your great service to my wife." He bowed his head.

With twinkling eyes and a bright smile, she responded, "No need to thank me. It was an honor to assist our duchess with her learning."

"Yes, well, I'll leave you ladies to it." Bowing his head one more time, he set off to his office.

Out in the garden, Ms. Rose and I painted some landscapes under the willow tree.

"I have to get this out of my chest, or I may burst." Ms. Rose blurted and quickly added, "I had never seen the duke from up-close before. He's so handsome. You're so lucky." Her words brought the sound of laughter to our little corner of the garden.

With an ear-to-ear smile across my face, I indulged in a good-natured gloat, "Yes, I am." My smile receded with the memory of his pained face, and I added in a low voice, "I'm so worried about him."

"Oh?" Ms. Rose's expression changed into one of concern. "What happened?"

"We talked about something last night that upset him, and I don't know what to say to help him feel better."

"Was it a disagreement?"

"No, no. We spoke about something that was very..." My words trailed off as I searched for the right word to describe it. Upsetting? Sad? Traumatic? "Emotional, let's put it that way."

"Oh." Understanding flashed in her eyes. "Well, you know sometimes it's very hard for men to express their feelings due to the way they were raised. Maybe he wishes for comfort but feels like, as a man, he shouldn't ask for it and should deal with it on his own. Or maybe he felt like he got too emotional in front of you. And now he's embarrassed and feels like a lesser man because of that."

Her last suggestion triggered the memory of him moving away from my comforting touch. "Yeah, maybe that was it."

"Then you should assure him that you don't think any less of him for showing you how he feels. That it's alright to speak about feelings and that you will always be there for him."

"Yeah, you're right. Thanks."

"Don't mention it. If you have any more man issues, you can come to me. I have ten brothers, so I'm basically an expert."

⚜⚜⚜

The bright oranges, yellows, and pinks of the sunset reflected on the pond at our feet. Absentminded fingers pulled at the blades of grass peeking from under the cotton blanket while my eyes repeatedly glanced at Zander, whose body lay beside me, but his mind seemed to be anywhere but this little patch of paradise.

Leaning backward to lay on my back, I asked, "Beautiful, isn't it?" My ears barely picked up his affirmative hum over the sounds of nature's nightlife rousing from slumber.

With eyes that flitted around the garden, I gathered the words that would best convey my thoughts. "You know, since I was little, I always looked forward to the rise and set of the sun. I liked to look at the colors the sun painted in the sky until the darkness of the night would wipe the canvas clean. It made me happy. And it was one of the few joyful, constant things in my life, if not the only one. So, every night, I would go to bed with complete faith that the next day the sun would rise without fail to paint me a picture that would bring me some relief in my miserable life." My head turned to look at his expressionless mask, "I wish to be that way for you. I want to be that way for you. Just like the sun, I'm always going to be here for you. No matter what. Even if I'm not physically there with you at the moment, you can have faith I'll always be there for you to give you comfort and relief, and nothing will change that." The profile of his face didn't move an inch, and thirty heartbeats later, I added, "That was very corny, wasn't it?"

His face broke into a smile, and a breathy chuckle went through his lips. "Y-Yeah. A little." He turned his face towards me with eyes that bore into mine. "Thank you."

His eyes were mesmerizing from up close. The dark ring around his grey irises brought a beautiful contrast to his silver gaze. It drew me in and seemed to loathe letting me go. With great effort, I ripped my eyes free of his pull, only for them to immediately fall on his full lips. My heart somersaulted in my chest. What was that? What is going on? What is wrong with me? I jerked upright and covered my burning cheeks with my hands.

⚜⚜⚜

I stood in silence and watched with a smile hidden behind my hand an intriguing spectacle that was taking place in my foyer.

"Sir. Acoma, it's so nice to see you again." A demure Annie greeted a reserved Sir. Acoma after she almost ran over her best friend in her efforts to get to the man standing before us. Interesting. Annie, I didn't know you liked him.

"Likewise, Miss. May. I will also like to thank you for your efforts in consoling me last time I was here."

"Oh, it was nothing. It broke my heart to see such a gentleman be so aggrieved. The least I could do is try to mend that broken heart with some kind words." She finished with a flirty smile.

Beside her, Brigitte's face morphed into a look of total bewilderment at Annie's words, which made me bite my lips before I burst out in laughter.

With a bow of his head, he responded, "Thank you for your kindness, Miss. May."

"Please, call me Annie." Her eyelashes fluttered, and she shot him another smile. "Anyways, I gotta go now. I have some chores to do. Enjoy your dinner, Sir. Acoma." With a low bow, she turned towards the hallway with a dumbstruck Brigitte trailing behind her.

"So, how are the lovebirds this evening?" Calim asked with a mischievous glint on his eye as we sat by the table at dinner.

"You know we don't have pets in this house." Zander deadpanned.

Calim grinned and pointed his fork at him. "You know what I mean." His response made Zander's eyes take a three-sixty view of our dining room.

Clearing my throat to get Calim's attention, I said, "So, Calim. How are you feeling? Zander," Calim sent a teasing look to Iskander at the mention of his nickname. Should I not call him that in public? "Told me that you went to drink your sorrows yesterday. Are you feeling better?"

"Well, yes. I'm feeling a bit better. Thanks to Zander," He stressed the nickname as he sent another teasing look to Zander. Yeah, definitely not going to use it in public.

"Are you sure?" Zander asked.

Calim's face dropped as well as his façade. "Not entirely. But I will get better with time."

"You will." A comforting smile crept across my face as I patted his shoulder. "So, tell me a story. How did you and my husband meet and become friends?"

"Well, we met at the knight academy. He was in grade five, and I was in eight. But we weren't friends around that time. I barely spoke to him, really. Everyone in school knew him as the prince's best friend. So everyone, for some reason, didn't want to play or speak to him because they thought that he was going to tattle tale to the king if he got hurt or something and they would get kicked out of the academy."

"Oh." My lower lip jutted out in a sad pout.

"Yeah, it was so sad, and that went on until we finished school." He grimaced and continued, "After that, I got assigned to a unit, and he got assigned to another. We didn't see each other for some years, and then I got assigned to the new Supreme Commander's unit. Imagine my surprise when I saw that he," He jabbed his index finger at Zander. "Was that Supreme Commander. I was mind blown. So, I decided that this time, I didn't care what anyone said, and I pestered him until he accepted me as his friend."

"And you really were a pest," Zander commented.

"Well, could you blame me? You were like a kicked puppy, that all you want to do is cuddle it until it feels better."

Zander scoffed, and I giggled. Laughter, annoyed grunts, and teasing jabs charged the dining room's atmosphere as Zander and Calim took a trip down memory lane.

I took advantage of the silent lapse when the dessert was laid on the table to ask, "Where are you from, Calim?"

"I'm from a small mining village in Erinus between the west sea and the gloaming peak mountain range. My dad worked the precious stone mines, and my mom was a nurse."

"Do you have any brothers and sisters?"

"No, I'm an only child. My parent's blessing, as they fondly called me." He smiled. "She had me when she was forty, you see."

My spoon scooped up some custard, and before it reached my lips, I followed up with, "Oh, wow, and did you always want to be a knight?"

"Well, no. I actually took the outstanding civilian placement test as a dare when I was thirteen, and to my surprise, I got one of the five spots for that year. Beating three hundred other applicants." His eyes seemed far away in memory as he chuckled, "My mother was not happy."

Zander leaned forward and added, "For context, every four years, there is a test that the capital sponsors on each dukedom allowing regular teenage civilians to go to the knight academy. There are five spots for each territory and several knowledge and physical tests you must get a high grade in to get into the academy."

"Is that the only way civilians can get into the school?" I asked.

"Yes. The knight academy is of great prestige. Only the noble families of the kingdom can send their young sons for their full education at the academy. The only time a regular civilian can have the opportunity to at least get the quick course at the academy is when they pass the outstanding civilian test, like Calim."

"Or, when they're handpicked by the king himself." Calim added, then asked, "In your case, since you were so young and the king sent you there, you got the full education, right Iskander?"

"Yes."

Calim nodded and turned to whisper in my ear. "He's special." Which, earned a giggle from me and another circuit around the room from Zander's eyes.

⚜⚜⚜

Two months had passed by, and like any married couple, Zander and I had fallen into a routine. Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner were served and always consumed in each other's company. From nine to three, we ran the dukedom of Nubilus from our adjacent desks. He from his desk and I from the beautiful new mahogany desk he got me so I could split the workload with him.

Outside of working hours, time was spent on walks with Zander or Ms. Rose around town and on the trails in the small patch of woods circling our estate. Other times I had picnics in our garden or reading sessions at our library, and before bed, Zander and I have our doorframe talks, where we stand by my doorframe and talk until our eyes feel heavy. I've never been happier.

One morning, our daily routine was interrupted by the knocking at the office door.

"Come in," Zander responded.

Benjamin walked in with an envelope in his hands. "Iskander, it's the king's seal." He held the envelope up, and the sight of the golden sun wax seal of the emperor loaded our once peaceful existence with dreadful uncertainty.

Author's Note: Twenty chapters uploaded on Wattpad, wow, I can't believe it. Thank you to all my followers and readers for sticking around and cheering me on.