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Isabelle Dniester stopped in the middle of the second floor balustrade overlooking the grand hall. The waltz melody played in the chamber orchestra aroused the mood of the spring night. The crowd drew together in pairs and with laughter and chat, danced about the hall.
“Your first party is quite the success,” she spoke the words of praise in a soft and warm manner.
“Thank you Your Majesty, it’s mostly thanks to Mrs Fitz’s help.”
“Strange, Mrs Fitz said that this was all thanks to your indomitable effort. I also heard that you had visited the Duchess Arsene every week, to convince her to come, as a present for Bjorn.”
“Oh, ah, yes,” Erna said shyly.
“Thank you so much, Erna,” Isabelle Dniester said, turning to face Erna.
She didn’t have high expectations for her daughter-in-law. She had been sure that Bjorn would never marry again, but Erna had changed his heart. All the Queen had ever wanted was for her son to live happy and well, she didn’t ask anything more of Erna, but she never thought the child would be such a gift.
“I owe you a great debt,” the Queen said.
“No, really, I liked visiting the Duchess. I almost felt like I was visiting my maternal Grandmother every week, in Buford. Bjorn’s grandmother was kind to me.”
“Now that you mention it, why didn’t you invite the Baroness? It would have been nice if we had been together.”
“I wanted to, but my Grandmother refused,” Erna became visibly sullen.
“Then why don’t you go to Baden Street with Bjorn?” Isabelle suggested, impulsively. She could understand, if only a little, why the Baroness would stay away from the city, so as not to become embroiled in scrupulous rumours too.
Isabelle’s heart became heavy when she thought of the kind old lady wishing her granddaughter well from so far away. She couldn’t even believe that Erna had not yet visited Baden Street in all the time she had been in the city. It was hard to decide which one to be surprised at most, Bjorn, for his nonchalantness, or Erna, for her indomitable patience.
“Really, may I?” Erna said in disbelief, “It would be nice to visit, but the foundation festival is soon and the summer season…” Erna trailed off.
“Would you like to let go of all that worry? The absence of the Grand Ducal couple would not interfere with the festival, or the summer’s social season,” Isabelle smiled softly.
She felt sorry for the child, who was placing her royal duties before her desire to visit Baden Street. It would be easy for her to endure the glares of those eager to find fault with the Grand Duchess. She let out a long sigh as she thought about the kind of pain Erna endured, to be compared to Princess Gladys in every detail and bear all the arrows of criticism directed at Bjorn.
“Forget about things for a while, go and see your Grandmother. Think of it as a gift from the King and myself, in return for the gifts you have given us.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty, thank you so much.”
Erna showed complete joy. For a moment, Isabelle couldn’t take her eyes off the child before her. She still felt sorry for her and her joyless smile. She needed to put a very harsh bridle on the child who knew nothing.
Difficult thoughts weighed heavy on her heart, but it was fortunate to have this child by her son’s side and she hoped she would continue to love him, as she did now.
Yes, she was a selfish mother.
*.·:·.✧.·:·.*
The terrace, which connected to the hall, where the party was in full swing, was crowded with gentlemen sitting in clustered groups, smoking cigars.
Bjorn sat in a spot where he could better hear the fountain and looked out over the garden. The mood of the spring night gradually deepened as the smoke rose up into the night sky and disappeared.
“Hey Bjorn, Viscount Hardy seems to be very interested in you,” Peter jested.
“I know,” Bjorn said, letting the cigar smoke escape his lips.
Walter Hardy had been trying to struggling to get Bjorn’s attentions all night. It was a fruitless effort, one that Bjorn had no interest in. He just smiled, welcomed and sat with him at the same table. Bjorn was already getting tired of his inexhaustible shadow. He was only here because Erna invited him.
She had not bared the thought of walking the aisle with her father and yet, she had invited the whole Hardy family to save face with the royal family. So he put up with them, to honour his wife’s intent.
When Bjorn no longer showed any interest, the party goers returned to their usual topics of conversation. Horse racing, the foundation festival ball, or which socialite was currently enjoying the lime light of fame. Although Bjorn showed disinterest, he still listened in to the conversations.
“Honestly, I didn’t think our prince would do so well, with a woman he had won on the gambling table,” Leonard said, “you should thank me, because that whole bet happened because of me. I’m the number one contributor to his marriage, ain’t that right?”
“Shut up, Leonard,” Bjorn said with a smirk, the rest of the table burst into laughter.
“I wont ask for anything in return, just give me some investment tips, maybe. We served as bridesmaids so that she would marry the Poisonous Mushroom Prince, so you should show us some gratitude at the least.” Leonard did not shut up.
“I know. Tell us the truth, it was a bet that you won not because you did well, but because the rest of us are so damn hideous,” Peter said, everyone else rankled.
“What are you talking about, you crazy bastard? I’m no where near as ugly as you are,” Leonard said.
The conversation grew heated as the men exchanged insults in a joking manner.
“Erna!”
The shout came just as Bjorn was putting down him drink. He looked up to see Walter Hardy shouting. When Bjorn turned to look where Walter had been shouting, he saw Erna coming out onto the terrace. Walter was about to approach his daughter, pretending to be a doting father.
Bjorn stood up without hesitation. Erna had been anxiously looking around, looked at Bjorn with relief softening her worry.
“Erna,” Bjorn said.
As he approached and called her name, Erna hurried over to his side. Bjorn held his wife’s hand tightly and he glared at Walter Hardy.
“Ah, Your Highness, you’re here also,” Walter’s face went servile, “I was having a chat with my daughter, whom I have not seen in quite some time.”
Bjorn wished they were living in a more barbarous time, so that he could swat this insect away and no one would bat an eye. He would probably even be praised for the act. Bjorn grieved anew and forced a smile.
“I see,” Bjorn simply said, in his usual, nonchalant manner.
“If you don’t mind, I would really like to talk to my daughter.”
Just as he was about to tell the man to leave, Bjorn’s attention was dragged away by Erna’s sudden coughing fit, he noticed the cigar in Walters fingers.
“I’m sorry, but as you can see, my wife is not feeling well, so you will have to postpone the conversation for another time.” Bjorn ended the conversation with a snap of his chin.
His father-in-law is always blinded by greed and was very good at getting scammed, so much so that he has amounted a huge amount of debt and tried to sell his daughter to get out of it. Leonard was partially right, but the chief contributor to driving Erna into Bjorn’s arms was Walter Hardy, not Leonard. A terribly hunter, who had driven a baby deer out onto the hunting grounds. There was no reason why he couldn’t show a little patience for such a worthy person.
Bjorn left the terrace with Erna linked into his arms, leaving Walter Hardy to stare dumbfounded at their backs. Once they were down the last flight of steps and out into the garden, Erna stopped coughing and although her eyes were watering, and her nose was red, she still smiled.
“Bjorn, the Queen said it would be okay to go and visit Grandma with you. If you wanted?”
“Do you want to go?” Bjorn asked, even though he knew the answer.
“Yes, if you don’t mind.”
Erna took a step closer to him and she reached up to adjust his bow tie. He had spent ages trying to tie that knot and smiled despondently. As Erna wriggled it straight, it felt like the knot was mocking him.
“I won’t take up too much of your time, okay?”
Erna’s eyes became desperate as she took his prolonged silence as a rejection. He really liked those eyes. Beautiful, sparkling eyes that only stared at him. Erna, who cried and laughed all because of him.
Bjorn readily admitted that he was enjoying this moment of petty control as he watched her. It was like he didn’t have any regrets about the crown and was just happy, here, with this woman. It was funny even so, the fact that the marriage hadn’t been that bad made Bjorn laugh.
Bjorn smiled and nodded. The wind smelled sweetly of spring flowers and then Erna laughed. The throne and the crown shone in her eyes brightly. She was his beautiful little kingdom.
Bjorn stretched out a hand and brushed her cheek as she finished with his tie. He leaned in and kissed her on her forehead, then the bridge of her nose, then eventually her lips. She shrank into his arms. Bjorn couldn’t deny it, everything had worked out in the end.
He was the king of his kingdom and he really loved it.