Sophie thought she was dreaming, but she was not.
All this didn't feel real.
"Nic." The name slipped out of Sophie's trembling lips. Along with that, tears started to fall down her cheeks.
When he saw the woman in front of him crying, Nicholas spontaneously took out his handkerchief and handed it to Sophie.
"My lady..." he spoke gently with a handkerchief outstretched. His pair of amber eyes stared intently at Sophie. "Please, take this."
Karenina looked super annoyed when she saw Nicholas easily give his handkerchief to another woman. Even she had never received any from the king. Her hatred for Sophia Romanov became even deeper.
Meanwhile, Sophie turned to Leland and ignored the handkerchief Nicholas was handing out to her. Then, with a stammer, she asked Leland to take her home because she wasn't feeling well.
"C-can we go home now…? I am not feeling well…" she muttered weakly. "Please...?"
Before Leland could say yes, Sophie suddenly fell unconscious. Fortunately, Nicholas who was closer to her was quick to catch her body before she hit the hard floor.
"DON'T TOUCH MY WIFE!" Immediately, the dark duke's roaring voice filled the air, shocking everyone.
Leland pushed Nicholas violently and grabbed for Sophie. He took Sophie in his arms and walked out with long strides.
Luciel and Jan immediately followed behind. Before they disappeared behind the doors, the two children looked back.
Everyone who saw them was stunned. Something in their brains suddenly clicked. They had just realized that the two children looked very much like the king.
Oh, this felt so surreal.
Nicholas kept looking straight until the figure from the Romanovs disappeared from view. His expression was blank and he was in a daze. Somehow, the young king felt like his soul was somewhere else.
Pain. Sadness. Anger. Disappointment.
So many feelings were raging inside Nicholas.
Why? Why did it hurt so much to see Sophie being taken away from him? Why did he feel so sad? Why did he feel so lost?
He didn't even know Sophie Romanov at all, but why did he feel devastated when she was gone?
Inwardly, Nicholas cursed himself. What on earth was he doing? He was ashamed for desiring another man's wife. No wonder Duke Romanov was so hostile.
Nicholas couldn't lie to himself. The way he acted around the beautiful duchess was inappropriate. He could feel all pairs of eyes in the room now were looking at him with astonishment and inquiring expressions.
Karenina was no exception. The girl frowned and looked at Nicholas' face which still looked blank. She then remembered the look in Sophie Romanov's eyes on the king just moments before she passed out.
Karenina sensed that something unusual had happened between the three people, King Nicholas, Duke Romanov, and Sophia Romanov, the Duke's wife. She suspected that the Romanovs and King Nicholas were hiding something.
What secret were they hiding?
She had to find out!
Karenina met her father's gaze. Viscount Verhoven was standing in the corner of the room, watching everything unfold. The viscount immediately nodded in understanding.
Viscount Verhoven would send his trusted man to investigate who Sophie Romanov really was. They must know what the hell was going on between King Nicholas and the Romanovs.
"Your Majesty," Karenina put her arm around Nicholas' waist, who was still unmoved.
Nicholas' thoughts were elsewhere. So, he didn't notice when Karenina's arm was wrapped around his waist.
If Nicholas realized that, then he would have definitely escaped from her embrace. He always felt uncomfortable when the woman acted all touchy-feely around him.
In his mind, they were just engaged on paper. He never had the intention to follow through with it. He only stalled until his mother passed away.
After the engagement event, he never even thought about it. And now, suddenly it was already five years. Where did the time go?
Karenina, who didn't get the usual rejection, looked at Nicholas with sparkling eyes. With a big smile, she made Nicholas face everyone who now stared at the two of them.
"I wanted to thank everyone for coming and..." Karenina paused to look at Nicholas. "I am also very grateful to Your Majesty, King Nicholas Hannenbergh, who has been so kind as to throw a festive birthday party for me. I am very happy and will never forget this day."
Karenina was beaming in happiness as she cast her gaze over the guests.
Of course, she would not forget this day because today was the day she would make sure the king would belong to her completely. Once and for all.
Karenina called a servant who brought several goblets of red wine on a tray. For a moment, Karenina looked at the servant and specially gestured to her.
The servant's eyes glanced at the goblet on the right side. Karenina glanced at it and smiled faintly when she saw a small mark on the goblet.
Karenina took two goblets of red wine from the tray. One of them had a small mark on it. She then gave it to Nicholas.
Nicholas was not focused, still lost in thoughts about why Duchess Romanov cried earlier and if she was okay. He also heard her call him 'Nic' if his ears weren't playing tricks on him.
Did he hear correctly? Did she really call him by his childhood name?
With all the thoughts raging in his mind, Nicholas didn't pay much attention to other things. He simply took the goblet and downed its contents until there was nothing left.
He was feeling frantic because of what had just happened, and he just wanted to vent his frustration by drinking whiskey. However, because there was only wine, he drank the contents of the goblet straight away in one gulp.
Karenina was very satisfied to see that. Her plan went smoother than she had anticipated. She initially thought it would be difficult to persuade Nicholas to accept a drink from her, much less to finish it.
However, this time luck was on her side.
Now, she only needed to wait for the aphrodisiac that had been mixed into the red wine to work.
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