Chapter 223: Unwanted visitor
I sit at my desk, staring at the map laid out before me. My fingers drum against the surface, my mind running through the details. The Remiro estate has been tolerable, but it’s never felt like home—not truly. It’s not ours, not mine and Noelle’s. It belongs to another family, another legacy, and while Duke Remiro has extended every courtesy, I can’t shake the feeling that we need to leave.
Especially now.
I glance at my marked locations, each one a secluded island off the coast of Vitra, technically still part of the kingdom. But with Remiro holding so much influence, and once the king is gone, securing land for ourselves will be easy. And I need this. Not just for me, but for Noelle, for Mimi, for the family we’re building.
My gaze flickers toward the parchment holding my notes. There’s an overwhelming likelihood that Noelle is pregnant again. His heat, my rut—it was different this time. More intense, more consuming. It has to have taken.
And this time, no one will take that experience away from us.
I push back from my desk, standing abruptly. I need to speak with Duke Remiro. If I play my cards right, securing one of these islands will be a simple matter of negotiations, and by the time our second child is born, we’ll have a home that belongs to us.
I stride down the hallway, my steps purposeful. The estate is quiet at this hour, most of the household either resting or going about their duties. As I near Remiro’s office, however, the hushed yet heated conversation filtering through the heavy doors tells me that the duke is not alone.
I pause just before knocking, my instincts sharpening. Whoever is inside, Remiro doesn’t sound pleased. His tone is sharp, clipped, and while I can’t make out the exact words, there’s a tension to it that immediately puts me on edge.
A small scowl tugs at my lips, and I rap my knuckles against the door—a firm, deliberate knock.
No response.
I exhale sharply, patience already fraying at the edges. Instead of waiting, I push the door open and step inside, only for my mood to sour immediately at the sight before me.