Chapter 28 The New Suitor

Chapter 28 The New Suitor

Janelle

I'm scrubbing the kitchen grease pit when I hear my name called. The voice is unfamiliar, cultured, and definitely doesn't belong to Mrs. Crawford or any of the other staff who usually bark orders at me.

"Janelle?"

I look up, squinting through the steam and smoke, my face streaked with grease and sweat. Standing in the kitchen doorway is a man I don't recognize, tall, dark-haired, with kind brown eyes and clothes that scream nobility. He seems completely out of place in the servants' domain.

"Yes, sir?" I scramble to my feet, wiping my filthy hands on my already-stained apron. "Can I help you with something?"

He steps closer, seemingly unbothered by the kitchen's chaos and my disheveled appearance. "I'm Lord Darius Blackwood. I've just returned to court, and I was hoping we might speak."

Cook Martha drops her ladle with a clatter, and the other kitchen maids stop their work to stare. Nobles don't venture into the kitchens. They certainly don't ask to speak with lowly servants by name.

"I... I don't understand, my lord." My voice comes out smaller than I intended. After days of being treated like dirt, this unexpected kindness feels like a trap.

"May I?" He gestures toward a quieter corner of the kitchen, away from the prying eyes and ears of the staff.

I glance at Cook Martha, who nods frantically, clearly not wanting to risk offending a lord by refusing his request. I follow him to the corner, acutely aware of how terrible I must look and smell.

"I heard about your recent... difficulties," Lord Darius says quietly, his voice gentle. "How are you feeling? You look like you haven't been sleeping well."

The genuine concern in his tone nearly undoes me. It's been so long since anyone has asked how I'm feeling, since anyone has looked at me with anything other than contempt or indifference.

"I'm fine, my lord," I lie, though we both know it's not true. The dark circles under my eyes and the way my clothes hang loose on my shrinking frame tell a different story.

He reaches into his jacket and pulls out a small glass vial filled with clear liquid. "This is for pain and sleeplessness. My grandmother's recipe, chamomile, valerian root, and a few other herbs. It should help with... whatever's troubling you."

I stare at the vial, afraid to take it. "My lord, I don't understand. Why are you being kind to me?"

"Do I need a reason to show basic human decency?" He places the vial gently in my palm, his fingers warm against my cold skin. "You've been treated abominably, and no one deserves that."

The unexpected kindness makes my throat tight with unshed tears. "Thank you," I whisper.

"There's something else I wanted to ask." He glances around the busy kitchen, then back at me. "Would you do me the honor of showing me the castle gardens? I've been away for months, and I'd love to see how they've changed. If you can spare the time, of course."

"The gardens?" I repeat, certain I've misheard. "My lord, I don't think.."

"Please. I find court conversations rather tedious, and I suspect you'd be far more honest than most nobles."

Cook Martha appears at my elbow, her face flushed with excitement. "Go on, child. Lord Darius is being very gracious with his invitation. I can manage without you for a bit."

Before I can protest further, I find myself being ushered out of the kitchen and into the bright afternoon sunlight. Lord Darius walks beside me, seemingly unbothered by the stares we attract from passing servants and nobles alike.

"Tell me," he says as we enter the garden proper, "what's your favorite flower?"

The question catches me off guard. "My favorite flower?"

"Yes. You must have noticed them while working. Which ones draw your eye?"

I consider lying, giving him some safe, conventional answer, but something about his genuine curiosity makes me honest. "The wild roses by the eastern wall. They're not as perfect as the cultivated ones, but they're... resilient. Beautiful despite the thorns."

He smiles, and it transforms his entire face. "Resilient beauty. I like that. Show me."

We walk through the carefully manicured paths, and for the first time in days, I feel almost human again. Lord Darius asks thoughtful questions about the plants, listens intently to my answers, and treats my opinions as if they matter.

"You know a great deal about gardening," he observes as I point out different varieties of herbs.

"My mother taught me before she died. She said plants are honest, they show you exactly what they need, and if you pay attention, they'll thrive." I pause, realizing I'm sharing something personal with a virtual stranger. "I'm sorry, my lord. You probably don't want to hear about.."

"About your mother? About the things that shaped you into the remarkable young woman you are?" He stops walking and turns to face me fully. "Janelle, I find you refreshingly honest compared to the court ladies I usually encounter. They speak in riddles and half-truths, always calculating how their words might benefit them. You speak from the heart."

Heat creeps up my neck. No one has ever called me remarkable before. "You barely know me, my lord."

"True. But I'd like to know you better, if you'd permit it."

Something in his tone makes me look up sharply. There's an intensity in his brown eyes that makes my breath catch, not the desperate, consuming fire I felt with Adrian, but something warmer, steadier.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I'd like to call on you again. To continue our conversations, to learn more about the woman behind those honest eyes."

My heart stutters. "My lord, I'm just a servant. Surely you can't mean.."

"I mean exactly what I said." His voice is firm but gentle. "Your station doesn't diminish your worth, Janelle. Not to me."

A movement catches my eye, and I glance up at the castle windows. There, framed in one of the upper windows, stands Adrian. Even from this distance, I can see the rigid line of his shoulders, the way his hands are clenched at his sides. Our eyes meet across the garden, and for a moment, the world narrows to just that connection.

But then Lord Darius notices my distraction and follows my gaze. He raises a hand in a cheerful wave toward the window.

"Your Highness!" he calls out. "Beautiful afternoon for a garden stroll!"

Adrian's jaw visibly tightens. Without acknowledging the greeting, he turns sharply away from the window and disappears into the shadowy interior of the castle.

"Charming as ever," Lord Darius murmurs, but there's something calculating in his tone that makes me wonder if the wave was entirely innocent.

"He has many responsibilities," I find myself defending Adrian, though I'm not sure why.

"Indeed he does. Including his upcoming wedding to Princess Sophia, I hear. They make a striking couple."

The words hit like a physical blow, even though I already know about the engagement. Hearing it spoken aloud by someone else makes it feel more real, more final.

"Yes," I manage. "They're well-suited."

"Are you all right? You've gone quite pale."

I force a smile. "Just tired. It's been a long day."

Lord Darius studies my face with those perceptive brown eyes. "Perhaps I should escort you back. But first, may I have your answer? About calling on you again?"

The smart thing would be to refuse. To thank him politely and retreat back to my proper place in the servants' quarters. But the memory of his kindness, the way he looked at me like I mattered, makes the words stick in my throat.

"I... yes. If you truly wish to."

His smile is radiant. "Wonderful. Tomorrow afternoon, perhaps? After your duties?"

"Tomorrow," I agree, though part of me wonders what I'm getting myself into.

He offers me his arm as we walk back toward the castle, treating me like a lady despite my servant's garb and work-stained hands. Several nobles pause in their conversations to stare as we pass, their expressions ranging from confusion to barely concealed disgust.

We're almost to the kitchen door when a familiar voice stops me cold.

"Janelle."

I turn to find Princess Sophia approaching, resplendent in a gown of deep blue silk that brings out the color of her eyes. Her smile is sweet as honey, but there's something sharp underneath it that makes my skin crawl.

"Your Highness." I drop into a curtsy, acutely aware of how ridiculous I must look next to her perfection.

"Lord Darius." She inclines her head gracefully. "How lovely to see you've returned to court. I trust your travels were pleasant?"

"Very much so, Your Highness. The kingdom grows more beautiful each time I visit."

"How gallant." Her laugh is like silver bells, light and pretty. "I see you've been exploring our gardens. I do hope our staff has been... helpful in your tour."

The way she emphasizes the word 'staff' makes it clear she's putting me firmly in my place.

"Miss Janelle has been an excellent guide," Lord Darius replies smoothly. "Knowledgeable and charming."

Something flickers in Princess Sophia's eyes, surprise, perhaps, that he's defending me. But her smile never wavers.

"How wonderful. Though I must steal Lord Darius away now, my mother wishes to speak with him about tomorrow's hunt."

"Of course." He turns to me with a warm smile. "Until tomorrow, Janelle. Don't forget to use that medicine."

He follows Princess Sophia toward the main castle, leaving me standing alone by the kitchen door. I'm about to escape inside when Sophia's voice floats back to me.

"Oh, Janelle?" She's turned back, still wearing that perfect smile. "I see you've found more... appropriate level of male attention. How wise of you to finally lower your expectations."

The words are delivered with such sweet venom that it takes a moment for their full impact to hit me. She's telling me, in the most polite way possible, that I'm finally accepting my place, pursuing someone who might actually be interested in a servant instead of reaching above my station.

"Your Highness," I murmur, not trusting myself to say more.

"Do enjoy your... friendship," she continues, her smile growing sharper. "Lord Darius is such a kind soul. Always so charitable toward those less fortunate."

With that final barb, she sweeps away, leaving me standing in the garden w
ith my cheeks burning and my heart pounding with a mixture of humiliation and rage. Charitable. She called Lord Darius's interest in me charity…