Second Chances

The Allergy

After five minutes of walking with two maids on each side behind me, I saw him enter the room. If it had been old me, I would have been offended and fled, but now I smiled amiably, as Jasmine had taught me, but the consequence was not what I had intended.

Instead of smiling back or even looking shocked, as my maids do, he had a blank expression on his face. As if he hadn't noticed my smile. Or was he attempting to irritate me? How bad could our relationship have gotten?

I only remember shoving him once during my marriage and refusing to meet with him anytime he requested an audience with me. If I recall correctly, I had thrown tea on him at the marchioness Efrine's next summer tea party in the guise of an accident, but there was still a week to go or had it already passed.

I should have brought more supplies! I sighed and smiled again as he sat in front of me, "Your highness," he bowed slightly to show me respect, and I nodded.

"What have you been up to, Lord Kendrick?" To begin the dialogue, I asked the most basic of queries.

"Your highness, I am OK. Thank you for your interest "The talk came to an end when he replied in a blank voice with a grim countenance.

"You look great today, Lord Kendrick." I thanked him for reinitiating the conversation.

But, when he looked down at his hands and I observed several little cuts on them, his expression became more blank, hiding every emotion in the lowest corner of his heart, and he nodded.

'Oh my God! Did he feel I wanted to remark that he looked nice in the wounds, that's not how I expected the conversation to go?' I stared at Jasmine, who was hiding behind Nia.

"Thank you, your majesty," he said, drawing my attention back to him.

I offered him an uneasy smile, knowing that clearing the subject would just lead to more misconceptions. "Lord Kendrick, I've purchased a tiny gift for you." I shifted the subject and took Lily's package to give to Kendrick.

"Thank you, your highness, you are too nice," he murmured, taking the box with a slight smile. At least one thing was done well, Melinda, Melinda, Melinda, Melinda, Melinda, Melinda, Melinda, Melinda, Me I boosted my confidence. But my joy was short lived when I noticed his grip on the box tightening.

His expression remained impassive, but I could see the boiling rage in his eyes, as I had tortured him for fourteen years. I recognise the slight differences in his reaction, but why?

I immediately chastised myself for failing to inspect what was in the box. And now, even if I tried to peek, it would appear that I was tormenting him even more.

This meeting was more difficult than I had anticipated; I was doing my best to keep a grin on my lips, but my face was stiffening as I watched his blank expression.

I looked at Nia, and thankfully, she recognised my signal and directed the servants to begin serving plates. "I had asked the chef to carefully cook these dishes for you, keeping your nutritious diet in mind," I groaned, and asked him.

"You are very nice, your highness," he answered, nodding once more.

I bit my lower lip at his pre-recorded response to each statement, but nodded and motioned for him to begin.

"Do you want to try Lord Kendrick?" I inquired, my gaze delicately fixed on him.

His perfect hand gestures, straight posture, and eating in silence demonstrate how effectively he was instructed.

He just nodded, as is customary when eating at a formal establishment, but I didn't want to make this morning formal, so I tried again, "do you enjoy these meals, Lord Kendrick?"

I could hear more whispering behind me, but the man whose voice I wished to hear still didn't appear. He only nodded when I asked him a question, but the whispers were getting louder by the second.

"Can you explain what just happened?" I returned my gaze to the maids of the lord's bedroom, but the instant I did, they were silent, as if they didn't have a voice.

I tilted my head to my staff, trying to receive answers, but their heads were hanging low. I couldn't see their expressions clearly because of the distance between us.

With a shrug of my shoulders, I let the matter go. I'm now working on a more vital project. That is to break down the barrier between me and Duke.

I began eating my food again, giving him as many smiles as I could in between to show him how grateful I am to be here, to spend time with him.

But my face paled as I ate the next meal, which he had been eating for some time and which I had personally served to him. I stared at Kendrick with wide eyes, but he was just sitting there in the perfect posture and eating his dinner as if nothing had occurred.

'Have I remembered incorrectly?' I asked, tilting my head and furrowing my brows in uncertainty as I watched him more intently. That's when I noticed his hands shaking.

And, with my jaw fell, I moved my hand and took the fork from his grasp. He looked at me, but his expression was the same as it had been before: no surprise, rage, or pain, just nothing. And, to be honest, that shattered my heart even more.

"Why are you eating when the meal contains berries?" I asked him the question that had been bothering me, as if my heart was breaking for him.

'Is it my punishment that no matter how hard I tried, I could never get things right?'

"How come you didn't stop eating Kendrick?" I inquired again, glancing at his stone face, but he remained silent.