The Silent Observer

Clasping her pounding heart, Jessamyn slowly opened her eyes only to meet with a pair of emerald eyes filled with mirth. 

How did he catch me? 

It might have been ableist for her to wonder that, but truthfully, that was her first thought. He walked with a walking stick. She saw his leg. He must have great upper-body strength to manage to catch her. 

She decided to ignore it. Those men who fought in wars were built differently. Her husband was the same. He greatly surprised her with his strength and agility; especially on the bed.

Once, he caught her in the library when she slipped from the ladder. She thought she was finished but he caught her in the nick of time. Her heart was pounding and he made it race more by pressing her on the shelves and taking her there without letting her feet touch the floor. 

That was her punishment for being careless. It made her chuckle whenever she thought of his weird punishments. He needed a reason to "tangle" with her and most times he didn't need a reason. He didn't care for the customs, the time, or space. 

They had wild times together. Time slowed down when she was with him and yet it rolled away like passing clouds. It was unexplainable. 

I can't believe you are my wife, he'd say. Each time he said it, his eyes would cloud with tears. To think someone had loved her that much for years when she didn't even think of him… 

She only wanted to live the rest of her life thinking of him just like he did. 

Jerrick saw the smile on her face and his heart skipped a beat. She was staring at his face and smiling. 

But he didn't dare to get happy. She did a lot more than smiling at him and that ended up with his heart getting shredded to pieces.

Those blue eyes on him still made his heart skip a beat. When his heart started to beat, it beat to the rhythm of her name. Everything else disappeared. Only she was in his thoughts. It was magical then and it was now. 

Jessamyn eased out of her pleasant memories back to reality. Once again, she was thinking of her husband while she was in another man's embrace. It irked her. No one else had made her lose her awareness around them. She didn't want to be at ease around this man. 

The smile on her face disappeared and she tried to get out of his embrace. She had forgotten the presence of the third person in the room.

William observed the two, quaint as a painting, staring at each other. At once glance, anyone would say that they were so in love. 

But one was adamant he was not in love with her and the other was famously in love with another person. What fate was it to separate them when they were so good together? Didn't they deserve happiness?

He watched as Jessamyn did her best to get out of Jerrick's embrace. Jerrick was not letting go of her even when she pushed and shoved until he safely placed her on the couch. With a glass of scotch, William safely retreated to become a wallflower to watch the dynamics between them.

"Sit!" Jerrick commanded when she tried to stand up. "You're hurt!"

Jessamyn turned her face away, scoffed, and stood up. With extreme disregard, the command of the Legion Commander of the elite squad—The Scorpions—was ignored by the petite woman who didn't even reach his chest.

William was stunned by her reaction. He had known her for almost ten years. She would attend the Royal Balls with her husband Hector. She raised many an eyebrow with shock as no one knew that Baron Beaumont's daughter was drop-dead gorgeous like a painting of goddess Levana—as mystical as a celestial and as graceful as a swan. She didn't put one wrong foot. 

She was kept from the high society until her marriage. William was told that she was a shrew, knew no manners, and was raised as a man-adjacent rather than as a lady. The only person who knew her never revealed anything about her. Jerrick used to have a meaningful smile whenever he asked about the rumors around her. He understood the meaning behind his smile only after he saw her.

Her divine beauty dismissed all the previous rumors about her. Even the Crown Prince expressed his regret that he didn't meet her first. Well, that was another story. 

In the ballroom, she acted with such elegance, William wondered who the "shrew" everyone talked about was. When she attended the tournaments to support her husband, she was such a pleasant presence that lifted morale in the vicinity. Men couldn't keep their eyes off her and women were jealous of her beauty.

Hector was a deterrent and protected her like a dragon guarding its treasure. Lady Jessamyn, however, never parted from her husband even for a second leaving no room for another between them. 

William wondered how the woman he knew was the same in front of him. Maybe, the name shrew was not an unfounded rumor. 

Well, maybe shrew was a bit too much. The pout on her face was adorable. She didn't look arrogant. Being assertive was not a bad trait to have even for a lady. Beautiful people could get away with many things. 

William didn't expect another shout demanding obedience from the Legion Commander. He had a feeling it wouldn't work on that defiant little lady.

 Jerrick walked away leaving her to her devices. Jessamyn tried to walk away but maybe she was hurt badly, she couldn't walk much. William couldn't believe Jerrick was giving up that easily and followed him with his eyes. 

Jerrick brought out a thick wolf-fur coat and wrapped it around Jessamyn's shoulder. She couldn't walk with that weight on her shoulder and Jerrick picked her up and placed her on the couch once again. He then rolled her inside the coat. 

"Stay warm," he said and walked to the door once again.

Bundled in the thick coat, she couldn't move and she still didn't stop struggling. It was funny to watch her giving her best to get out of the coat. Her nose flared and her small lips were pursed to a dot. She looked like a cute little bird. 

William couldn't help but chuckle when her attempt to stand up failed. His laugh might have alerted her; the pretty blue eyes landed on him and widened. 

After staring at him unblinkingly for some time, her eyelids fluttered in succession, like the wings of a butterfly. 

What a beauty!