The Duke's Bed Warmer

Chapter 92: Reunion

Austin’s words lingered in the air, heavy and impossible to ignore. He had to say it three times because apparently, twice wasn’t enough to make her believe them.

Alina stared at him, looking for any doubt or hesitation but there was none.

"You understand what this means?" she whispered.

"I do."

"Austin...," her voice sharpened. "Be serious. The king will consider it as a betrayal. He could ruin you, destroy..."

"The king needs Ravenmoor far more than Ravenmoor needs him. Without us guarding the southern border, his kingdom will collapse. At most, he’ll be angry."

"And Audrey?"

"I’ll deal with her."

Silence swallowed the room as Alina kept looking at him, trying to comprehend the scale of what he had just said. Austin had decided to dismantle the entire political structure of his duchy for her.

On one side, he was willing to risk everything for her, while she was hiding his biggest secret. It wasn’t fair to him.

"You’ve just... rewritten everything," she said softly.

Then she took a deep breath and steadied herself.

"We can’t have secrets anymore," she said. "From this moment onward...we need to be completely honest with each other."

"Fine," he agreed without any hesitation.

Finally, this was the time to tell him about Cecily without worrying about his reaction.

"Austin..."

"Hmm?"

"I need to tell you something," she curled her fingers tightly. "But promise me you will listen before you react."

"Alright," he replied warily.

"I know about Cecily," she finally confessed.

Austin froze.

"What?"

"I know your sister is alive."

The color drained from his face immediately. He looked terrified, angry, and suddenly in panic. He didn’t know how to react or what to say.

"You went... to the... east wing?" he stammered.

She nodded, tears already brimming in her eyes again.

"I heard the piano, weeks ago. I followed the sound and knocked at the door. At first, she didn’t talk. But eventually we started talking through notes. I’ve been visiting her almost every day since."

"You really..." he didn’t know what to say.

"Every afternoon, I bring her something from the kitchen and we talk with each other."

She had expected him to blast on her, get angry but instead of the fury, she got a question.

"Is she... how is she?"

Alina’s throat tightened.

"She is lonely," That’s all she could say.

A sob tore out of him as his shoulders shook.

"She told me about the fire," Alina continued.

His nails dug into his palms.

"But...despite being lonely for so long...she is still cheerful," A faint smile touched her lips.

He stared at her in disbelief.

"Cheerful?"

"I told her about the sewing circle stories. She laughed so hard that she had tears in her eyes."

"I haven’t heard her laugh in five years," he muttered. "Maybe because I never tried to make her laugh."

The realization hit him hard. For five years, he had protected her but had snatched everything else from her.

Austin stood up slowly from the floor. His shoulders stayed bent, as if the weight of five years was still pressed down on him.

"I was scared every single day," he said quietly. "I was scared that if anyone found out about her and the news spreads out...that person would try to hurt her again. I couldn’t lose her twice."

He then looked at her.

"But you... you made her laugh with your stories, bringing her little things from the kitchen. You gave her the thing she must be needing and wanting but still I refused to give it to her,

Alina stood up and took a step closer to him. She placed her hand gently on his chest and felt his heart racing fast under her palm.

"I did it because I saw how much you would risk for her."

Austin put his hand over hers, pressing it closer. They stood like that for a while. The weight of the secret felt a little lighter now.

"Then let’s stop hiding," he said at last, and walked to his desk.

He opened a drawer and took out an old and rusty key,

"Come with me," he said.

He led her through the narrow, hidden passages behind the castle walls that no one knew about. It was his private route; the one he used to go to the east wing.

They reached the corridor and stopped outside the door. Austin’s hand trembled as he raised his key. He hesitated for a second, then put it into the lock, turning it with a soft click and pushed the door open.

Inside, the hall was dim, lit only by four or five candles. Alina looked around and spotted a piano against a side wall. On the other side were the bookshelves. A sofa with a neatly folded blanket stood in the corner, beside a small table scattered with paper and pens.

Then a door opened, and finally Cecily appeared. She was even younger than Alina with the same grey eyes as Austin. She was beautiful, even with the scars that traced the right side of her face from her temple to her jaw.

Cecily stared at Austin as if he were a ghost. They both stood frozen. They hadn’t seen each other in five years.

"Austin..."

Austin without wasting a single second, walked towards her and pulled her into his arms.

Cecily couldn’t hold anymore and broke down. Austin held her fiercely as if terrified of ever letting her go again. His face was buried in her hair as his shoulders trembled dissolving his years of control.

Alina stood quietly at the door, watching them. As they hugged each other, she finally understood, exactly who Austin Moore truly was.

To the world, he looked strong and unbothered. But inside, he had been breaking every single day. He had given up parts of himself to keep his sister safe, and he had done it without ever letting anyone see his pain.

Alina’s eyes filled with tears again. She did not move or speak. This moment belonged to them. But deep down, something warm settled in her chest. She had seen the true self of the man she cared for so much, and surprisingly, it was far more bigger and fragile, than she had ever imagined.