[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-duke-s-bed-warmer":3,"chapter-the-duke-s-bed-warmer-the-duke-s-bed-warmer-chapter-109":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","The Duke's Bed Warmer",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1274323,1701,"Chapter 109: What’s Next?","the-duke-s-bed-warmer-chapter-109",109,"\u003Cp>Alina woke up. Austin was already gone, as usual. She hugged his pillow and lay in bed. The feeling from night was still there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had hoped sleep might make it easier to ignore but it didn’t. She sighed and sat up. For a moment, she wished it to turn into something simpler like attachment or fondness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But it was love. And that feeling wasn’t going anywhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At breakfast, she hardly ate. She kept thinking about this new feeling bubbling up in her chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She was in love with the man who had bought her and loving him was dangerous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was even worse because Austin hadn’t said anything. He had shown he cared for her but had never actually said those words.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She quickly finished the breakfast and left the hall. She needed to talk to someone. And right now, only one person would understand her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cecily was playing the piano when she entered. She stopped when she saw Alina.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What happened?\" she asked noticing Alina’s troubled expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina sat on the sofa and looked at the ceiling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m in trouble,\" Alina said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cecily moved closer and sat beside her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What kind of trouble?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina took a deep breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I think...I’m in love with your brother.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cecily’s eyes widened as she tried to process the words she had just heard. Then she grinned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I knew it,\" Cecily said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This isn’t funny.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This is the funniest thing ever,\" she laughed. \"You look like the world ended and the problem is you’re in love with my brother.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I didn’t realize until last night.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What happened last night?\" Cecily asked, curious.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina hesitated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He was removing parsnips from his food.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cecily stared at her in bewilderment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Parsnips?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Every course had parsnips. He was carefully removing them from his plate while discussing grain tariffs, and I was watching him, and I realized...\" she stopped and put her face in her hands. \"I realized I loved him... while he was fighting a root vegetable.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cecily burst out laughing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He has hated parsnips since he was a child,\" she said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then her laughter softened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He doesn’t know how to love properly,\" she said with a faint smile. \"He knows how to protect people and that’s how he shows he cares. But love...is different. And he doesn’t know how to show it yet.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So...what should I do?\" Alina asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"If you love him, you’ll have to teach him the difference between protecting and loving.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina leaned back on the sofa.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That sounds difficult.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He’s stubborn and a slow learner,\" Cecily replied. \"But he will learn.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina closed her eyes for a second.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Don’t tell him,\" she said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I won’t.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’ll tell him myself when the time is right.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And when will that be?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina thought for a moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"When there’s nothing between us. When it’s just us.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meanwhile, Austin stood by the window in his study with a report open in his hand. He hadn’t turned the page in several minutes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He kept thinking about Alina and what was happening between them. He exhaled slowly and put the report on the table.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was exactly what he had been trying to avoid. He had kept his distance for years from women, from attachments, from anything that could turn into something...complicated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wanted control and safety.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Alina had walked into his life and ruined all his plans without even trying. He walked away from the window and leaned against the desk.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I should have controlled myself, \" he muttered under his breath.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But even as he said it, he knew he would do everything he did for her again and again, without thinking. Because it was her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He closed his eyes in frustration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I need to fix this.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But then immediately, another thought came.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Do I?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that hesitation made him realize what he didn’t want to admit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From the east wing, Alina walked back through the castle thinking about the Cecily’s advice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reach him the difference between protecting and loving.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She passed the back corridor near the kitchen and saw Harwick there. He was sitting by the wall and meowed when he saw Alina.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She crouched and caressed his head. He purred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"He cares about you, you know,\" she said. \"He just doesn’t say it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He purred louder. She smiled, stood up and walked on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When she reached her room, a message arrived for Alina through a maid.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Her Highness requests your presence in the west gallery,\" the maid said politely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Audrey? What does she want now?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina nodded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m coming.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The west gallery was full of paintings of past rulers and noble families. Audrey stood near one of the windows and turned when Alina entered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What did you call me here, Your Highness?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Audrey instead of answering, gestured towards the paintings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Do you know who these women are?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina looked at the paintings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Duchesses,\" she replied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Some of them,\" Audrey corrected her. \"Others were women who never married.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then she walked slowly along the wall.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The castle remembers them,\" she continued. \"Even if history doesn’t.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina stayed silent. Audrey stopped in front of a portrait of a young woman, painted in soft colors, looking lost.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She was brought here from the eastern provinces,\" Audrey said. \"For a political arrangement.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina raised her brows.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What happened to her?\" she asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She learned very quickly how things worked here,\" Audrey smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And what did she do?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She adapted,\" Audrey replied. \"She became exactly what the court wanted her to be.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And you called me here to tell me this?\" Alina asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No,\" she replied. \"I called you here because I think you’re making things harder for yourself than they need to be.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There it is.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m fine,\" Alina replied.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But there are constant whispers, and rumours about you,\" Audrey said, tilting her head slightly. \"That must be exhausting.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina didn’t answer. Because it was true. Audrey took a step closer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You’re strong,\" she continued. \"You fight back. You prove people wrong and hold your ground.\" A small smile touched her lips. \"It’s impressive.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Alina frowned because it definitely didn’t feel like praise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But this isn’t a battlefield,\" Audrey added. \"It’s a castle. In a battlefield, strength wins but in a castle...acceptance does.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Can you be direct?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Audrey’s expression softened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I just want to tell you...you don’t have to fight so hard to stay here. Not when there are easier ways.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And if I don’t want easier ways?\" Alina asked, crossing her arms.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Then you might win small battles but you’ll lose the war without even realizing it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1091,"2026-06-05T16:48:17.185Z",1,"novelbin.me","045ef58cf042a6a002015bab623983f39bbec99ddfa494cc49318c440add8819","the-duke-s-bed-warmer-chapter-110","the-duke-s-bed-warmer-chapter-18",192,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-duke-s-bed-warmer-cover.jpg"]