My Wife, My Rules – 4. chapter

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As Aiden dressed in more formal attire, his fingers slowed of their own accord. He fastened each button as though by force, for his thoughts kept returning to that invitation. Formal. Brief. Delivered during a chance encounter. Supposedly so he could meet their daughter. Unmarried. From a wealthy house. In all likelihood well raised, under her parents’ control, and prepared to fulfill social expectations. There was no doubt what this was about. An heiress needed a husband. And they were choosing one for her.

But why him?

To the locals, he was nothing more than a learned but poor wanderer. He muttered to himself,

“What do they actually want? What is behind this?”

He had that unpleasant feeling in his belly, the one that comes when something does not fit, but a person does not yet know what. Like an unfamiliar sound from the forest. Quiet. Unclear. Yet gratingly wrong.

Still, he told himself he did not care. At least for now. He had accepted the invitation and intended to survive it as a duty. Tess was still whirling through his head. And she was the reason he had no intention of lingering there at all.

The carriage passed through the stone gate and crunched across the gravel before the grand residence of the Anagnostos family. Shutters stood open, light flickered within, and for a fleeting moment he thought he heard laughter. High. Female. Unfamiliar. Not like Tess’s. Laughter he would have recognized among a thousand.

The servants did not fuss over him. A bow. A polite word. Then they led him at once to a sitting room, where the lord and lady of the house awaited him. The man was broad-shouldered, clad in garments that likely cost more than their servant’s yearly income. The woman was polished, her gaze that of one who always knew what was proper and fitting.

They exchanged formal greetings and, to his relief, invited him straight to the dining room. Thank the heavens. The sooner they ate, the sooner the visit would end.

He entered the great hall first. The furnishings did not surprise him. A vast table dressed in crystal glassware, polished cutlery, and candlesticks casting small gleams of light upon the walls. Everything was perfect. Coldly perfect. Like a porcelain display one was not even allowed to look at too closely.

A slender female figure was already overseeing the table, her back to him. He could not miss the deep crimson gown. Each movement was perfectly smooth, practiced. Her red hair, somehow familiar, had been swept up. He saw no more, for the lady clearly heard the sound of those approaching and turned toward them.

The moment Aiden saw her face, the sudden recognition almost knocked him off his feet.

“Tess?!” he whispered, shocked.

The beautiful young woman wore a rich, heavily gathered formal gown, her elegant coiffure complemented by a jeweled tiara. Large gold earrings, along with the rest of her many jewels, completed not only her exquisite appearance, but also Aiden’s shock. She looked like someone who had never set foot in a forest. Someone who would fear soiling her hem on wet grass. The finest lady of any gathering smiled at him beautifully and stepped forward with confidence.

His shock was masked by her father’s voice.

“Master Leventis, allow me to present my daughter, Theressa. Theressa, Master Aiden Leventis.”

The young lady offered Aiden her hand with perfect grace and, as though they had never met, spoke sweetly.

“For you, Tess.”

Aiden had not yet managed to process the shock of seeing her, and so he did not look any more surprised at this incomprehensible performance of hers. He took her hand automatically, bowed, and as he brought his lips to her fingers, replied,

“Aiden.”

“A pleasure,” Tess said, the picture of a perfect young lady, then turned nonchalantly and took her seat. Her tone was flawless. Her appearance beyond reproach. And yet there was not the slightest sign of recognition. Not even a flicker of memory.

She sat. And he sat as well, as though in a dream.

Dinner got underway. Words flowed. Replies, laughter, toasts. Aiden heard them, but did not listen. His eyes were pinned upon Tess, following every movement of her fingers, each tilt back of her head when she laughed, every fold of her gown. He understood practically nothing. She did not seem like a fairy. She was an elegant wealthy young lady. Her shyness was gone. Confidence positively radiated from her. And why was she pretending they did not know each other?!

“Aiden, do you like the theater?” Lady Anagnostos made conversation.

“Um,” Aiden answered, surprised that, given his thoughts, he had even caught the question at all. “Not especially,” he said. And this particular performance repels me to my core! he added to himself, piercing Tess with his gaze. Thankfully, no one noticed.

“I adore the theater!” Tess chimed in. “People, society, the gowns. All of it creates a wonderful atmosphere!”

He gave her an assessing look, and she gave him a radiant smile.

You told me you hated people. He nearly said it aloud. He barely restrained a frown. What the hell is going on here?!

Later, music began. Slow and gentle, from an unseen quartet behind a screen. The muted tones of viola and piano drifted through the air like smoke. Aiden paid it no attention, at least not the sort he gave to his thoughts and to watching Tess. Even when Lady Anagnostos looked meaningfully toward him and gestured in her daughter’s direction, he failed to understand. At last the hostess had to say aloud that her daughter enjoyed dancing.

Only then did he understand and ask the young lady to dance.

Tess accepted with great enthusiasm, and Aiden hoped it might allow them a chance to speak at least a little privately. It did not. She spoke with social ease and charm, laughing openly even at his unsuccessful jests. He gave up waiting for a miracle and resolved to speak with her alone the next day.

For now, he would at least savor that he could touch her at last.

Yet the fingers he held were soft, delicate, and cool. Like someone who had spent her whole life dancing not on grass, but only on marble. He could not help noticing her scent and realized he had never smelled anything like it before. Perhaps in the open air where they once met, it had been impossible. A rich, heavy fragrance of costly woods filled his nose, and after a moment he admitted, unwillingly, that he did not like it very much.

Something else troubled him far more.

He felt no arousal. His dick did not move, much less get hard.

Something was simply wrong.