Reborn: The Duke's Obsession
Chapter 85 - Eighty Five

Chapter 85: Chapter Eighty Five

Delia came down the grand staircase, her heart beating a little faster with every step. She saw him standing in the main hall, looking out the large front window. He turned as he heard her approach.

"You came," she said, her voice soft.

Eric’s tired, worried expression from the last two days was gone, replaced by a warm, genuine smile. "You called," he replied simply.

She took his offered coat, her fingers brushing against his as she did. The simple touch sent a jolt of awareness through her. They walked to the drawing room together and sat down, a comfortable silence settling between them.

"So," Eric began, breaking the quiet. "What have you been up to these past two days?"

Delia smiled, a real, happy smile. "I went out with Grandma," she said. At his surprised look, she explained, "Her Grace, the Dowager Duchess. She told me to call her Grandmother from now on. We are going out again today, too."

"Oh?" Eric asked, looking pleasantly surprised. "What’s the occasion?"

"Well..." Delia began, her own smile fading as her expression turned serious. She looked at him directly, her gaze unwavering. "First, I owe you an apology, Your Grace. I’m sorry. For the other night, and for how I acted. I was inconsiderate and careless."

She continued, her voice gaining strength with a newfound resolve. "You were right. I was drawing a line between us. I was running away. I was so focused on my own past, my own pain, that I didn’t even consider yours. Telling you to stop avoiding your problems without any real knowledge of what you’ve been through... that was wrong of me. So, I want to lead by example. From now on, I will stop running away. I will confront everything I am facing, head on."

She looked at him, her blue eyes shining with a fierce determination. "I believe that’s the only way I can truly save myself. And maybe," she added, her voice softening, "it’s the only way I can help you save yourself, too. Save both of us from the abyss we seem to have fallen into."

Eric was confused, taken aback by her sudden, deeply thoughtful speech. "Delia, what are you talking about?"

Just then, a polite knock came on the drawing room door. Mr. Rye entered. "My lady," he said with a bow. "The Dowager Duchess’s carriage has arrived to pick you up."

Delia smiled and thanked him. "I’ll be out in just a moment, Mr. Rye." Rye bowed again and left.

Eric looked at her, still a little bewildered. "Where are you going?"

"I’m going out with Grandmother, I told you earlier," she explained, standing up. "She says she wants to show off her new granddaughter-in-law to her friends." She smiled at the thought. "And then I need to see someone else after that. But I’ll be back before you know it, I promise."

She went to change into a suitable dress, leaving Eric sitting in the drawing room. He watched her go, a slow, happy smile spreading across his face. He didn’t fully understand her sudden change, but he saw the new light in her eyes, the new strength in her voice. He was happy just seeing her happy.

~ ••••• ~

The sun was already setting by the time Delia’s day was over, casting long, purple shadows across the city. The hired carriage she had taken stopped in front of her grandfather’s house. She watched it leave. "It will be dusk soon," she thought. "Eric must be waiting for me. I don’t want him to wait for long."

She knocked on the heavy oak door.

"Who is there?" a familiar voice came from inside.

"It’s me, Mr. Preston," Delia called out.

The lock clicked open almost immediately, and Preston, her grandfather’s butler, let her in with a warm smile. "Good evening, my lady. It is good to see you."

"Good evening to you too, Mr. Preston," Delia replied. "Is my grandfather in his room?"

"Yes, my lady. He wasn’t expecting you," Preston nodded.

" I know," she said as she thanked him and went up the quiet, familiar staircase to her grandfather’s bedroom. She knocked softly.

"Enter," his voice answered.

Baron Edgar’s face lit up with pure joy when he saw her. He got up from his armchair and hugged her tightly. When they sat down, Delia brought out an elegant, embossed invitation card from her small reticule and handed it to him.

Edgar read it, his eyes shining with unshed tears. "My Delia," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "You are really getting married."

"It’s all thanks to you, Grandfather," Delia replied softly. "For your approval, for your support. I promise I will pay you back for everything you have done for me."

Edgar carefully put the invitation back in its envelope and set it on the table as if it were a precious jewel. "Don’t worry about any of that, my dear," he said, waving her thanks away. "It is nothing. But... I do have something for you."

He stood up and went to the large, dark wood drawer in his wardrobe. He brought out a small, velvet-lined box. He gave it to Delia. Inside, resting on the dark velvet, was a small, simple necklace. It was a single, perfect pearl on a delicate silver chain.

"It belonged to your mother," Edgar said quietly.

Delia stared at the necklace, her heart stopping in her chest. "My mother?" she whispered.

Edgar nodded his head, his own expression sad. _{f\ree webn ovel(.)com}

"But I thought she left me," Delia said, the old, familiar story tumbling from her lips. "I thought she kept me in Father’s care and then just... ran away."

"That," Edgar said, his voice full of a deep, old guilt, "is what Augusta wanted you to believe."

The words hit Delia. Tears welled up in her eyes as she looked from the simple pearl necklace to her grandfather’s sad face.

"Then... why are you the one with this?"

Just as she asked the question, a loud, angry voice could be heard from the hallway.

"Baroness, please, he does not wish to see anyone today!" It was Preston’s voice, full of a frantic urgency.

Augusta’s voice followed, sharp and imperious. "Out of my way, you old fool! Don’t make me push you out of the way myself!"