Love's Unexpected Awakening Elowen's Choice novel Chapter 105

Chapter 105 A Chance Encounter

Suddenly, a hand appeared from her left, holding out a linen handkerchief.

A clean, pleasant male voice followed. “Are you alright?”

The voice was unfamiliar.

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Mindful of propriety between men and women, she did not take the handkerchief, instead turning her face slightly away.

“Please, don’t be scared. I am Kaelan Page, invited by Her Grace to Duskmoor Manor today. I mean you no harm,” he added, his tone earnest on the last words.

Elowen was taken aback.

Her tears had been few. She wiped them away with her sleeve, her face now clear.

She lifted her head to see if Kaelan looked as he did in his portrait.

He still held out the handkerchief, his gaze lowered to meet hers.

Her hair cascaded like a mass of glossy chestnut silk, and her skin glowed with the warm, creamy hue of well-tended ivory.

She’d shed a few tears just now; though she’d brushed them away quickly, her eyes still swam with mist-soft and blurred, like pink roses veiled in a fine spring drizzle.

A flicker of astonished admiration passed through his eyes, and for a moment, he couldn’t look away.

“You look even better than your portrait,” Elower spoke first.

Kaelan blinked. “You’ve seen my portrait?”

Elowen smiled, “Did your aunt not tell you she was bringing you to Duskmoor Manor for an introduction?”

Kaelan paused.

His aunt had mentioned arranging a marriage for him.

He had been somewhat resistant, having only recently passed the royal academic assessments and now assisting in the Royal Archives through his mother’s connections, with his sights set on the Imperial Scholarly Trials this year.

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19:19 Fri, Feb 13 TTD.

Chapter 105 A Chance Encounter

He worried about failing and had devoted all his energy to his studies.

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But his aunt had been so earnest, he couldn’t bear to disappoint her and had reluctantly agreed to come today.

Now, as he looked at the woman before him, a warm, unexpected feeling stirred in his chest.

Was she saying this because… she is the Lady Sylvia I was meant to meet?

If it were her, that would be… more than acceptable.

He lowered his hand, the tips of his ears turning pink. “My aunt did mention it…”

He glanced at her again. “May I ask your age?”

Elowen saw no reason to hide it. “Seventeen.”

“And what do you enjoy doing in your leisure time?” Kaelan asked.

Elowen found the question a bit odd, but answered truthfully, “Reading, writing, or sometimes baking pastries and sweets.”

Kaelan’s ears grew distinctly warmer.

This was precisely the kind of wife he had imagined.

Feeling even more pleased, he asked, “Do you like cats?”

Elowen nodded. “Quite a bit.”

She paused, then suddenly realized the misunderstanding. A soft laugh escaped her. “Mr. Page, my family name is Hale.”

Kaelan froze.

She wasn’t Lady Sylvia?

In Duskmoor Manor, named Hale, seventeen years old-there could only be one….

He seemed unwilling to believe it. “You are…”

Elowen nodded. “Yes. I am the Duchess of Duskmoor.”

Despair washed over Kaelan.

Only now did he belatedly notice the intricate styling of her hair-the manner worn by married women of Vanelle.

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19 20 Fri, Feb 13 TTD

Chapter 105 A Chance Encounter

He had been so captivated by her face that he had missed it entirely.

“Mr. Page, your aunt mentioned you were distracted by a kitten earlier,” Elowen said, changing the subject.

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“Yes… there was an orange cat under the rockery Kaelan replied slowly, his mind elsewhere. “It was my first time here. After seeing the cat, I got a bit lost.”

“Shall I show you the way?”

Kaelan looked at her, then nodded. “Thank you.

He hesitated over the form of address.

Elowen offered a kind smile. “Your Grace will do!

The words stuck in Kaelan’s throat. It took him a moment to force them out. “Your Grace.”

The title felt like a small, private heartbreak.

Why did she have to marry the Duke?

Why did I meet her so late?

He sighed inwardly.

Elowen led him back towards the pavilion, unaware of the wheelchair that had come to a stop behind a nearby latticework screen overgrown with vines and flowers, which mostly concealed Cassian’s form.

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