The Duke's Masked Wife

"Enlighten me, why were the two of you running around the table from one another? What did Edgar do?" Alfred asked the duo while they ate breakfast. He returned with the cream to quite an exciting sight. "Please remember that you are a Duke and Duchess."

"Are you telling me I can't run after my wife in my own home?"

"Edgar," Alfred sighed. "Why did you need to run after her in the first place?"

Edgar smiled, watching Alessandra avoiding his gaze when she looked up and saw him staring at her. "I was only trying to give her a hug but she refused and ran away. Isn't it right for me to comfort her in a moment like this?" He asked like an innocent child.

"Well yes," Alfred became puzzled on why Alessandra did not accept the hug. "Why didn't you allow him to hug you, Alessandra? You have to seize rare moments like this when Edgar shows concern. Sometimes I find him incredibly rude and horrible-"

"Hey!" Edgar called Alfred. "You could've stopped at why she didn't accept the hug. Are you trying to make me look like a bad person in front of my wife?"

"But that's your personality, Edgar. Anyway, he only offers this rare side of him to people he cares about. You are lucky," said Alfred.

Alessandra would have felt touched by Alfred's words if she didn't experience Edgar's teasing nature previously. Edgar was not simply going to hug her. From the sly smile he was giving her from the end of the table, he knew it too. Still, to not let anyone know what happened when they were alone, she replied, "Thank you for letting me know."

"So I take it I'll be able to hug you whenever I want?" Edgar asked, inspecting her every move from the way she gripped the fork to her glare. "I'll take that as a no. You should be thanking me for the light workout before breakfast, Alessandra. It's a good way to start the day. Should we do it every morning?"

'What would I have to do to avoid having breakfast with him?' Alessandra wondered. 'Should I stay in bed until he leaves?'

"Alfred, bring my coat. It is time for me to leave," Edgar placed his fork down.

"One moment," Alfred excused himself.

"Aren't you going to ask where I am going, Alessandra?" Edgar playfully asked.

"It is not my business," Alessandra continued to eat. It wasn't her place to ask about where he planned to be for the rest of the day.

"Normally, I would visit the red light district but now that I am married it would cause awful rumors and gossip."

Alessandra's hands paused mid-air upon hearing the red light district. She wanted to ask about it but then again, it wasn't her place nor her business so she continued to eat with the thought of him being there haunting her in the back of her mind.

"I go there to read-"

"You have large libraries here and no one to interrupt you," Alessandra cut in but then bit her lip right after as she regretted commenting on it.

"The red light district provides more information than these libraries of mine. Men go there to get drunk, have fun, and inevitably speak of things that interest me. So, I pay for a room, read a good book, and listen to what the walls have to offer. I have never slept with anyone there. That's one misunderstanding we should avoid in the future."

"Oh," Alessandra's shoulders relaxed. Why they were so tense in the first place she could not understand.

"I am going to visit the church and then I have to pay a visit to the town guards to see if they have found any information about the missing girls. I'll stress it again, Alessandra, do not walk around alone. Alfred will introduce your guard later on. Are you finished with breakfast? Before I go, I want to show the last gift," Edgar stood up. "I'll be back shortly."

"What do you think it is?" Sally's sudden question startled Alessandra. "My apologies. I should have let you know I was behind you, Duchess. What more do you think the Duke has to offer you?"

Alessandra took a few deep breaths to calm her heart after being surprised by Sally's presence. "I do not know. He has already given me the paint, shoes, bags, jewelry, and the dressmaker is coming later today. What else could be left?"

"Perhaps it is your wedding ring? The two of you have been walking around with wires on your fingers. Is there some romantic reason behind why you two do not wear proper wedding bands?"

Alessandra looked down at her finger now realizing what she was wearing on her finger. She wore her engagement ring and the wired ring Edgar created. "He only had the engagement ring prepared," she remembered why Edgar was able to save her the night she was going to be sent to William. "Our marriage was such a last-minute decision that we did not have time to collect other rings."

"That must be it," Sally clapped her hands. "I am curious to see how it will look."

"How what will look?" Edgar questioned, causing Sally to retreat from Alessandra's side. He carried a large box in front of him and something shuffling on the inside could be heard. "I have been meaning to give you these since you lost your kitten."

Alessandra's eyes lit up when Edgar revealed two kittens, one white and one black. "Where did you get them?" She picked the two small animals up. It was clear they had recently been born from their small size. "Where is the mother?"

"A servant found them and left them expecting the mother to return for them but as days went by and constant checking, the mother did not come back. I assume the mother has somehow passed away. We can keep them if you wish-"

"Yes," Alessandra excitedly answered. "I mean, we shouldn't leave them alone. Look how thin they are, like they have not been fed for days. I should see if the cook has something for them. Come, Sally," Alessandra stood up from her seat and began to walk away.

"Excuse me, aren't you forgetting something, Alessandra?" Edgar asked.

"What?" Alessandra looked back at where she previously sat and saw nothing wrong.

"You need to offer him a kiss for the gift, Duchess," Sally whispered. "I will go ahead and take the kittens to the kitchen," she took the two cats to give the couple privacy.

'Do I really have to? Is that what he is expecting? He has given me a lot. Maybe it is just common courtesy to give a kiss on the cheek,' Alessandra concluded in her mind.

"Very well," she replied, walking back to where Edgar stood. They had done more embarrassing things where a kiss on the cheek was hardly a problem. "Thank you," she said then tiptoed slightly to kiss his cheek.

"What a lovely surprise, Alessandra. I was only expecting you to see me off but I was given a kiss. It was two kittens," he grabbed her waist to ensure she wouldn't run away again. "Shouldn't I be given a kiss on each cheek?"

"Wait what?" Alessandra blushed, embarrassed by her actions. She was only listening to what Sally said he was expecting. She wanted to bury herself in a hole for kissing him when it was not what he wanted."There is a misunderstanding, Edgar. Sally said you were expecting a kiss in return so I…"

"The misunderstanding is cleared now that I am expecting one. You should hurry before my other cheek feels sad."