Lady of House Alba

The crying girl found comfort in the old lady's arms."Mama Juana, why is Mother mad at me again?""I'm sorry, Elena, it's because your grandmother didn't educate your father properly."The Earl vented his anger to his wife, and the Countess followed suit and vented on their 8-year-old daughter. It had been the same way even since Elena was old enough to walk.Although it was also understandable that after ten years her son was frustrated by the lack of a legitimate heir to the House Valverde, it still didn't justify his reactions towards his wife, who had just suffered another miscarriage, or their only daughter.“Mother said it’s my fault.”She should have been

“Elena, today you should go and buy yourself some suitable clothes for your brother's birthday party.”“Yes, mother.”“Mother, I also want to go for a walk.” The boy asked, pulling his mother's skirt “Can I go with Elena?”“It will be next time, Milan. Today is too cold, if you go out you could get sick.”Not cold enough to stop Elena from going out, though. The clear line Vivian Valverde drew between her two children couldn’t be more evident if she tried. And Elena knew her mother wasn’t really trying… it was just easy for her to forget about her eldest daughter, who’d caused her so many tears in the past, compared to the child that brought her happiness.

“It’s the Duke of Alba, my lord,” Vega spoke in a solemn voice. “He is waiting for you in the hall.”The shock was clear in everyone’s expressions after the butler mentioned the identity of the new visitor, and only at that moment did Elena recall the man she encountered at the door of the Made’s shoe store. She had not mistaken the coat of arms after all. That gentleman was too young to be the duke, but surely he was someone related to him. “The Duke of Alba? How can it be?” The Earl Valverde was already on his feet. “Excuse me, Marquis. I have to attend this matter at once.”“Of course, of course.” The Marquis exchanged glances with his daughter. “Who would have thought we’d get such distinguished company.”

No one else seemed to be troubled by the fact that this duke was much younger than he was supposed to be. Despite his imposing bearing, he barely looked a bit older than Elena herself, how could he be older than the Marquis?Were all the rumours false? Was this another child of the Grand-Duchess?Magic?It was highly likely he was a sorcerer, he was a man from Raeden after all, but this didn’t explain this appearance. She’d met some sorcerers before, and these people had an uncanny bond to nature that gave them the ability to summon rain or make the soil more productive, she’d even heard from some that could heal miraculously the most terrible wounds and illness, but they weren’t any less human. They aged and died, too.Perhaps this wasn’t e

A friend had kissed her hand once. She was fourteen then, and she liked him too, so the day he left she’d felt brave and gave it back to him with a peck on his cheek. Perhaps it was because those emotions had long faded away, but Elena did not think those demonstrations of affection had made her feel as agitated as she was feeling at that moment. The Duke greeted her by taking her hand to his lips, (they lingered on her fingers for longer than necessary, teasingly). Elena was sure he did not say good morning this way to every lady, it was his attempt to charm her, to test her. Did he want her to like him? His offer was good enough, but one thing he’d certainly not mentioned was affection. (Not that she expected it, because it’d be absurd for a noble to think about love when it came to marriage. Some were lucky to