Chapter 329: Back To Me
Rose sat close to the fireplace in the small tearoom. Even though it was small, it was clearly bigger than the main room in her house. The chairs were comfortable and had cushions on all of them. This room was also covered in portraits; it seemed not a single room was spared. There was a faint smell of cinnamon in the air.
Servants quickly set the table as Rose and Lady Eden settled down. A hot kettle was placed right at the center with two teacups right next to it. The ceramic teacups had a similar design to the kettle.
Rose thought the tea set was beautiful and wondered if it was imported because she had not seen teacups with such a design before. The ceramics were white with pink floral designs that stretched down the sides and disappeared underneath. The rims were golden and so were the handles.
"Pretty, right?" Lady Eden asked as she noticed Rose’s stare.
"Yes, it really is," Rose admitted easily, a little shocked that the baron’s wife had noticed her staring.
Lady Eden nodded in approval, clearly proud of her tea set. "They were imported from Lystern. The merchant imports items from all sorts of places, but ceramics from Lystern stand out. I always make sure to get a set or two. I particularly like the teacups."
Rose was familiar with Lystern—it was one of the neighboring countries around Velmount—but right now that wasn’t what she recalled. Rather, she remembered that Caius was engaged to the third princess of Lystern.
"Sugar or honey?" Lady Eden asked with a smile.
Rose narrowed her eyes. This was getting a little too weird. "Honey," Rose replied.
"Wonderful choice. I, for one, like to take my tea plain. I fear the sweeteners take away from the taste of the tea and the fragrance."
Rose nodded in agreement as though this was a normal conversation—and it would have been if Rose’s circumstances weren’t completely different from the baron’s wife’s.
She also didn’t know why she was here, and Rose was seriously starting to suspect poisoning or something along those lines because there was no possible reason why Lady Eden needed to offer tea.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t rush the lady to find out what this was about. She would have to wait for her to offer the information in her own time.
The servant handed her the teacup with the brown liquid mixed with honey, and Rose was hit with the aroma. It smelled like honey, cinnamon, and a herb she didn’t recognize. The teacup was heavier than Rose had anticipated. It was clearly well-made.
Rose was a little hesitant to take a sip, but there was no way she could avoid it when Lady Eden’s eyes watched her like a hawk. She smiled tightly at the lady and took a tiny sip but pretended to take more by holding the cup to her lips longer.
"Hmm," Rose said as a bit of the warm liquid poured down her throat.
Lady Eden’s eyes sparkled. "It’s good, right?"
"Yes," Rose admitted.
"I grow the tea leaves myself. If you’d like, I can show you my indoor garden."
The light dimmed out of Rose’s eyes. She wasn’t here for a tour, and it was annoying how she couldn’t exactly decline.
Lady Eden suddenly laughed at Rose’s expression. "I’m sorry, I get easily distracted when someone shows even the slightest interest in tea. I’m sure you’re wondering why you’re here. I shouldn’t have done all this, but I just wanted you to be comfortable."
She paused and took a generous sip of the tea. She placed it on the table and simply glanced at the maids, they quickly rushed out of the small room, leaving the two women alone.
"We received a letter from His Highness," Lady Eden’s voice turned serious.
Rose gripped the teacup tighter at the letter in Lady Eden’s hand. It was almost as though she had pulled the letter out of thin air. Rose hadn’t seen her take it out, as a maid had handed the letter to her before they left.
A letter from Caius! Rose internally panicked. She had thought she would never hear from him again.
"The letter arrived yesterday evening," Lady Eden added, watching Rose very closely. "I thought it was too late to request your presence, so I sought for this morning."
Rose’s grip on the teacup tightened some more, and the sweet taste of the tea suddenly turned sour. "I see," Rose replied. What could she possibly say to this?
"Would you like me to read it to you? I haven’t checked the letter prior. It would be rude considering it is addressed to you, but I understand you do not know how to read. I’d be more than happy to read to you what it says."
Rose wasn’t happy about this, but it wasn’t as though she had many options. The only other person was Madame Razel, and by the time she was done reading the letter, half the town would already know the contents.
"Thank you," she said and placed the teacup on the nearest table as she adjusted on her chair.
Lady Eden looked really happy about this and quickly pulled the seal away from the letter. She flipped it open and glanced at the writing before she began reading.
"Little Lady," she started with a soft frown of confusion. "By the time this reaches you, Thomas shall already be bound for Edenville to bring you back to me."
Lady Eden lifted her head to look at Rose and started to fold the letter.
Rose blinked. "Is that it?" Rose blurted out.
"Yes," Lady Eden said. "I—um... His Highness didn’t write anymore, only his title and seal. Would you like to see?"
"No," Rose said. "Thank you." She suddenly felt embarrassed by her outburst; she shouldn’t have expected anything less from the crown prince.
A part of her had been hoping he had forgotten about what he said and had decided to focus on his fiancée. It had been two full months since she last laid eyes on him, and she had thought he had all but forgotten about her—as she had tried to forget—but clearly, she never got whatever she prayed hard for.
Rose frowned; he didn’t say how many days she had. If they were coming from the castle, she had at most three days—less if the letter had set out just before they did. If it were Furtherfield, she probably only had a day left. Rose closed her eyes. He couldn’t even let winter end; he couldn’t even let her heart mend.
"It was my pleasure," Lady Eden was saying. "I always wanted to go to the capital, but unfortunately, Edenville is on the outskirts, and so is my hometown. Would you tell me all about it?"
Rose was taken aback. She had expected some kind of selfish request attached to Lady Eden’s invitation, but not once did she think it would be in this direction. She had expected more questions about the crown prince or something along those lines.
Rose tried her best to tell Lady Eden about the castle as well as she knew it. She answered all of the lady’s questions, and by the time she finally let Rose go, it was almost noon.
Rose slowly made the walk back home as her thoughts churned. She didn’t think she was ready to leave Edenville just yet. She had only just buried her mother, and the thought of her death made her want to cry each time. Unfortunately, as she had found, an order from the crown prince was not something she could refuse.
Rose, however, was curious. What could he possibly still want with her? He should have gotten his fill by now—or did he intend to keep her by his side forever out of spite?
Rose wrapped her arms around herself as she came onto her street. The maids had returned her coat, and the soft fur was oddly comforting. At least Lady Eden hadn’t made any comments about the coat, so things hadn’t been too awkward.
Rose walked into the yard when the door flew open and her father rushed out towards her. She was a little startled, but the look of worry on his face made her quickly forget her shock.
"Is something wrong, Father?" she asked as she closed the gap between them.
It wasn’t completely unusual for her father to be home. Sometimes he came back during lunchtime and then headed back out again after eating.
He quickly wrapped her in a bear hug as they stood outside the door. It took some time before he unwrapped his arms.
"I heard the baron called for you. I came here as soon as I heard," her father said, staring at her face.
Rose smiled softly as she realized what her father was so fearful about. "Yes, but it wasn’t the baron. It was his wife. Let’s go in. I will tell you all about it."
Rose didn’t like that they were already drawing attention. If news about her going to the baron’s estate had reached her father, who was in the forest chopping wood, Rose didn’t want to imagine how fast rumors would start swirling.