Chapter 58

MAGNOLIA SAT NEXT TO THE MARQUISE WHO GREETED HER WITH A WIDE SMILE. "How have you been, dear?" she asked.

"Great, how about you?" Magnolia returned her smile.

"Tired, but happy," the marquise confessed. "I began to think that I will only have one daughter-in-law until I die," she joked.

"Florence is a sweet girl," Magnolia told her. "Regardless of what happened," she whispered the last part.

"I know that, and I am hopeful that Henry will see that too." Lady Flock patted her hand, while wearing a gentle expression.

"Good afternoon, ladies." The voice got both their attention.

"Ah, Lord Saknas, welcome." The marquise pushed to her feet to greet the baron. Magnolia also stood, being between the two.

"Her Majesty sends her regards and best wishes for the bride and groom," he said as he kissed her hand.

"It is an honor to have you attend, Lord Saknas."

"And who might this lovely lady be?" Fred asked as he glanced toward Magnolia.

"Please, allow me to present Lord Fred Saknas, Queen Monika's only nephew," Lady Flock introduced. "Her Grace, Magnolia Van Konigl, Duchess of Salicera."

Fred's eyes widened, before his lips curled up. "I have heard about Your Grace, but your beauty is far more breathtaking than the rumors lead to believe."

"You flatter me, my lord," Magnolia said, trying her best to hide her discomfort at his words.

'How could he say that to a married woman?'

Magnolia was startled when the man grabbed her hand to kiss it.

"I must dance with Your Grace at the banquet," Fred said against the back of her hand. Magnolia's stomach turned at the sensation. It reminded her of her dead husband.

"I am afraid I am an awful dancer," she said with an awkward smile on her face, quickly pulling her hand away from Fred's grasp.

"That is not accurate, Your Grace. Your dance with the duke is still brought up till this day."

Magnolia was even more disgusted when she saw the man's grin. She wanted to run away, he was too close, too arrogant, and too gross.

Her eyes unconsciously traveled to Daniel. She found his murderous eyes fixated on Fred.

"In any case," the baron said after Magnolia's prolonged silence. "I will ask again at the banquet."

'What? No, I already refused. Did he not understand that?'

"Please, have a seat," Fred added. To her dismay, he sat right next to her.

It was becoming harder to hold Daniel back. "Calm down, Daniel," Richard said. "We don't want to ruin Henry and Florence's wedding."

'Right, the wedding.'

Daniel took a deep breath, closing his eyes and trying to calm down. He will deal with that bastard later, he promised himself.

The ceremony went smoothly. Florence was a gorgeous bride and despite Henry's face being stern the whole time, he also made a handsome groom.

The whole time though, Magnolia shifted in her seat. Lord Saknas was even more disgusting than she thought. The man was such a pervert, he sat with his legs wide enough to touch hers.

She was sitting as far away from him as possible, but he still found a way for their legs to touch. Even through the thick fabric of her dress and her petticoat, the action still made her cringe.

As soon as the ceremony was over, Magnolia found Daniel and linked her arm through his. He looked at her for a moment, he could tell something was bothering her.

"What happened, are you alright?" he whispered in her ear.

She just nodded her head with a smile. He was not going to push her, but when he felt her falter when they approached Fred Saknas, his blood boiled. He narrowed his eyes at the man then looked back to his wife.

"What did he do?"

Magnolia's blood froze and color left her face. "What are you talking about?" she asked, but her voice betrayed her.

"Magnolia." Daniel turned to face her fully, not even caring about the crowds of guests who were waiting for their carriages around them. "Did he bother you in any way?"

She looked around as some people glanced their way, then back at Daniel.

"No. Please Daniel, you are making a scene. Please." She squeezed his arm and prayed that he would drop the subject.

The duke pressed his lips together, annoyed with his wife's care for what others think.

"Fine," he said, then turned to search for their own carriage.

The ride to the Flock's estate was silent. Daniel's anger was simmering, and Magnolia thought of ways to avoid Lord Saknas for the rest of the party, especially that he wanted to dance with her.

She reckoned she just had to stick to her husband, even though he looked mad. She glanced in his direction to confirm.

'We cannot ruin Florence's wedding, there are already too many rumors about them. Today should be a happy celebration that people will remember as such. She took a deep breath.

The train of carriages from the temple finally arrived at the Corossa Estate. The castle was decorated with flowers and flowing fabric everywhere. The afternoon sun made everything look even more beautiful.

The guests entered and the music started to play immediately. They also had food tables spread around one of the rooms where finger foods, fruit, sweets, and small snacks filled the tables.

Servants were scattered around the rooms, holding trays of chilled champagne and bourbon and offering them to the guests. Everything was dreamlike.

Magnolia stayed next to her husband, arms locked, as they socialized with other guests. She had hoped that he would stay by her side the whole banquet, but after a while, he was called by Marquis Flock for some urgent business.

"I'll be right back." He was reluctant to leave her himself. She had never clung to him as much as she did tonight.

"Alright," she answered, already looking for someone she knew to hang out with until Daniel returned.

She immediately spotted Lady Flock, but as soon as she took a step toward her, she felt a cold hand on her arm.

"Your Grace." Magnolia sighed in relief when she saw who it was. "Would you be a darling and help me walk out to the garden? I need some fresh air."

"Of course, Lady Kalwen." Magnolia offered her arm for support. "Are you feeling ill?"

"I just think I'm still tired from our journey here, I'm afraid I might be too old to travel long distances."

"I'm afraid age has nothing to do with it, my lady." Magnolia smiled. "Last time we visited your castle, I could have slept for a week after, that's how tiring the journey was to me." The dowager countess laughed.

The two women walked a little until they reached a bench. Lady Kalwen sat with a sigh and Magnolia joined her. The woman looked a bit pale, so she was worried about her.

"Have you had anything to eat, my lady?" she asked her.

"Now that I think about it, I only had some tea for breakfast."

"That's not good, Lady Kalwen," she reprimanded. "I will fetch you a plate then, you must eat something." Magnolia pushed to her feet and headed back toward the house.

"I was looking for you, Your Grace."

Magnolia jumped in surprise. It was Lord Saknas. "I apologize but I am in a hurry." She tried to take a step past him but he grabbed her arm. "What are you–"

"We all know that you are but a commoner, so how dare you disrespect me like this. I am the queen's nephew."

'Disrespect? Is he serious?'

Magnolia tried to pull her arm, but he only squeezed harder, making her wince.

"Please, release my arm."

"Maybe if you apologize and dance with me." He grinned as he stepped closer to her.

For a second, she considered burning his hand with magic, but her mind reasoned against it.

'What is wrong with this bastard?'