Hey guys! So I am honestly so so sorry for the long wait! The time honestly got away from me, but I am back with the next chapter and hope that you all enjoy it :)
Standing by the Serpentine in Hyde Park, Caroline felt her heart rapidly beating in her chest. As she waited, she felt like he wasn't going to come.
Sighing heavily, she sat down on a rock and rubbed her hands together to ward off the sudden chill that was permeating through the park.
Then, she rested her hands on her skirts and hoped to God that it was dark enough and the Duke that has been plaguing her every waking moment as well as her every sleeping moment would not notice the dirt smudges on her skirts.
Though, Mrs. Higgins urged her to go back into her mother's bed chambers in order to find another dress, the blonde told her no. It was true that she felt like a princess when she wore her mother's gown the night before, but she wouldn't disturb the room any longer.
The next couple of minutes were spent in silence and soon enough, she stood up intent on going back to the place she called home.
"My lady?" A voice came from behind her and she turned on her heel with a gasp.
"You-your grace!" The blonde cried out as she blinked a couple of times to make sure that it was truly the Duke that stood before her.
"I must say that when I received your missive, I was quite surprised." He told her as he put his hands behind his back and made his way over to her.
"I'm sure," she said as she bit down on her bottom lip and swallowed the lump that was forming in her throat. "I do thank you for meeting me here, but perhaps this wasn't such a good idea." The blonde admitted as the light of the full moon passed over her face.
"You still wear your mask?" He questioned, the surprise evident in his voice as he closed the space between them.
"I have to go." She told him, taking a couple of hasty steps backwards. Before she could stop herself, however, she felt the rush of cold water and the sudden chill on her skin.
"Bloody hell," Klaus said before he himself dove into the Serpentine, knowing that he had to get to the masked beauty before she went under.
After all, the river's movements began getting far more rapid than before.
Taking long strokes, he finally caught up to the girl and wrapped his arm around her midsection. As he got her face above water, she began coughing and heaving.
"It's okay, it's okay. You're safe," he cooed, like a mother would to her crying babe.
Taking in greedy gulps of air, Caroline gave him a weak nod and he exhaled a breath of relief.
Then, he swam to the edge and came out with the blonde leaning against his chest. Walking a couple of feet away, he set her down and noticed that the mask she wore was still on.
Reaching for the mask to remove it from her face, he got one finger at the back, but she moved away from him.
"No," she said, sounding more firm in her words than before. "I want my mask to stay on."
"But why continue with this? The masquerade ball has ended and there is nobody here but you and me... I don't see why you wish to keep your face hidden."
"You wouldn't understand." She sighed. "To be honest, I do not even know why I sent you that letter. Perhaps I thought you wouldn't show."
"But here I am... You have captivated me, darling... And I would really like it if we continued our acquaintance."
"I do not think that that is possible, your grace..." Caroline whispered as she looked down at her feet and kicked at the dirt.
"What if I told you that I was interested in courting you- would you allow that?" He asked as he undid his cravat.
"I would," she replied before she could stop herself. "But that is not possible and with those final words, I believe I should be on my way." The blonde added as she took a couple of steps away from him.
"No," he shook his head as he held onto her wrist. "At least allow me to get you a change of clothes. My sister has plenty of dresses that she can part with."
"As nice as your offer is, I believe it wouldn't be prudent for this acquaintance to go on any longer."
"But what if you catch a chill? I'll not have that on my consciousness- after all you fell into the river because of me."
"I am a generally clumsy person, your grace. I thank you for your kindness, but again tis not prudent."
"Prudency be damned. I give you my word that as soon as you have changed dresses, I will personally escort you home and nobody will know of our meeting."
"It is not my reputation I am scared for, your grace. It is yours- you are a good man and I am not even worth the dirt on the bottom of your hessians."
"Whyever would you say something like that, darling? He questioned, genuinely confused.
"Goodbye, your grace." She curtsied before she sidestepped him and made her way past him.
Grabbing ahold of her wrist, he stopped her in her tracks and twirled her around.
"You don't have to tell me your name or take off your mask, but please… I would feel much better knowing that you were in some dry clothing rather than in this wet clothing of yours." He told her, hope filling his stormy blue-gray eyes.
Looking down at the ground, she bit down and her bottom lip before she looked up at him and gave him a tiny nod.
"Wonderful," he sighed, reassured before he held out his arm for her.
Looking down at his arm, she slipped her hand into his and the Duke couldn't help but notice just how wonderful they fit.
Then, they made their way towards his carriage, but he stopped when he didn't see another carriage nearby.
"Did you walk here?" He questioned, the curiosity evident in his voice.
"I- uh, yes." She admitted. It wasn't like a carriage would magically show up…
"Why? The air is crisp and surely your parents or guardian would not want a lady of the nobility walking around by herself."
"I needed to clear my head, your grace. I simply walk sometimes and forget just how my life is… It helps me look forward to another day, you see…" She declared, immediately regretting her last few words.
"Darling, are you unhappy with your situation? Is there something that I can do to help? Surely, you understand that I have much power over many matters."
Smiling, she shook her head before she exhaled a sigh.
"Thank you, but I have resigned myself to my life and there's no point in hoping for a change." She told him as he helped her into the carriage and followed her inside.
Sitting across from her, a crease appeared between his eyebrows as he watched her intently.
Feeling uncomfortable, Caroline flinched in her seat and wrung her fingers together nervously.
"I have only just met you, but I feel like I must help you. You are a young lady and you shouldn't have such a cynical view on the world… It's unheard of within the young ladies of the ton."
"I am apart of the ton, my lord, but not in the way you think. I don't attend balls or soirees, I simply exist in my home and do as I am bade."
"You are a young woman in your prime, love. You shouldn't simply exist- you should shine. People should see you for the diamond that you are.
With an unladylike snort, she shook her head.
"It's the second time I've been called a diamond in the past twenty four hours. Surely, there is something wrong here."
"I may not know how you look like, but I can tell that you are a good person. No matter how cynical you grow to become, there will always be that piece of you that dreams for something better and I can help you find that."
"You can help me find that? How is that? By courting me? As much as I long to accept your suitorship, I find that I can do no such thing."
"Why not? Open up, love. Tell me what plagues you and I swear that I will do everything in my power to help you however I can."
"I- I can't." She said as her bottom lip began to tremble and her eyes began to fill with tears. "Please, I- I cannot spe- speak of this." She told him as her voice cracked and she tried to get herself under control.
"I'm sorry," he apologized before he took a hold of her hand and simply held her hand, trying to do whatever he could to show her that he was there for her.
Though Klaus knew that he barely knew the girl, he understood that he wanted her protected no matter what. It didn't matter that he just met her a couple of hours ago- all he knew was that the life she was living now was not a life at all which was why he was going to make sure to get to the bottom of it no matter what.
For the next couple of minutes, they sat in silence as he drew little circles on her hand in order to comfort her. It was not fair that such a vibrant young woman was so unhappy with her life.
When they arrived at the Duke's home, he led her into his home through the backdoor and saw nobody as he led her up the stairs and shuffled her into his bedroom. Though it was not proper, he couldn't simply leave her in the drawing room.
"Stay here and I will ask my sister for a loan of her dress. She'll say yes, of course, but for now I recommend you sit by the fire and warm your limbs. You're shivering." He finished as a frown appeared on his lips.
"Thank you," she whispered. "And I am so sorry for the inconvenience… I truly do not know what I was thinking when I sent you that missive. It was an impulsive moment, one of a few that I have had in the past few days, actually." She finished as a tiny smile appeared on her lips.
"Being impulsive is good sometimes, sweetheart. And please, I do not want to hear an apology slip your lips again. You have nothing to be sorry about and please trust me when I tell you that if I didn't want to meet you, I wouldn't have."
"Truly?" She asked, genuinely shocked. After all, the man was a duke and wasn't it his duty to be on good terms with every person that he came by? Surely, that meant attending to missives whenever they were handed to him…
"I can see those pretty little wheels in your head turning, but trust me- I am telling you the truth." He reassured before he excused himself and slipped out of the room.
When Caroline was alone, she went over to the fire and sat down. As the warmth from the fire traveled through her veins, she sighed sleepily. It seemed like she was more exhausted than she thought, but really that was not a surprise at all… A dip in the Serpentine on a chilly night and heavy skirts would do that to a lady- no matter her station in life.
A small smile appeared on her lips as she looked around the duke's masculine bedchamber and her eyes landed on the dark mahogany four poster bed and a welcome shiver ran down her spine. Shaking those thoughts from her mind, she outstretched her hands and gave a tiny moan of appreciation.
Klaus made his way over to his sister's bedchamber and knocked before Rebekah allowed him entrance. When he was inside his sister's bedchamber, he spotted her sitting on a chair by the window with a book in hand.
"Everything okay?" She asked as she stood up and made her way over to him with a curious expression on her face.
"I need you to loan me a dress." He told her as he motioned towards her armoire and she looked over at him with confusion in her doe blue eyes.
"A dress? Why do you need to borrow a dress, big brother?" She wondered as she watched him as if his senses have left him.
"I met a lady tonight and she had an unfortunate incident. Now, the lady is wet and I do not wish her to catch a chill, so please loan me a dress. I'll buy you some more if you want."
"I have more than enough dresses, thank you very much, but I must say that I would love to meet this supposed lady of yours. Surely she is another one of your light skirts and if that is the case, you know where the door is." She shrugged.
"The woman that I am speaking of is a lady, Bekah. Actually, she is around your age and if you'd like to meet her, I can arrange that, but this girl isn't similar to your other acquaintances."
"Does this girl have a name?" Rebekah wondered as a plan began forming in her mind. It seemed like her big brother was wrapped around this girl's finger and Rebekah found that she wanted to help her brother find the happiness that he deserved- no matter how annoying he was and it seemed like he was enamored with this lady that happened to be in their home at the present time.
"It does not matter." Klaus told her, answering her question the best way he could. He couldn't exactly tell her that he didn't know the blonde's name.
"Fine, I will loan you a dress, but I want to meet her and I don't want you present."
"No," he shook his head. "Absolutely not! She is very shy and I do not want you scaring her away with your excessive conversation of your beaus and whatnot."
"I either meet her or she leaves in her wet clothing- it's up to you." She shrugged.
"Fine," he huffed, the annoyance evident in his voice.
Immediately, Rebekah clapped her hands together before she made a beeline for her armoire.
There you have it! So, I hope this was a good chapter and I made it just a little longer than usual so yay for that! In the next chapter our favorite blondes are going to meet and trust me when I tell you that Rebekah is going to be Caroline's own fairy god mother!
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~Hana :p