Divorce The Duke, Marry The King!
Chapter 76: Blue ring

Chapter 76: Blue ring

Rising to his feet, he scoffed and declared, "I have never lusted after your body, not then and not now. Belle, it’s called swaying when the feeling is mutual. I never agreed to never loving you, never did, never will. As long as you are still mine, I will never stop trying to win your heart." His voice was steady, and he stepped closer as he spoke.

"Why are you any different from him if you keep forcing your emotions on me?" She shot back, her words cutting deep. For a fleeting moment, guilt flickered across his face. Why hadn’t he realized how suffocating he had become? Was he truly any better than Quinn?

"Is that truly how you feel about me?" He asked, his voice quieter now, almost hesitant.

"It’s not about you," she replied sharply. "It’s men in general. What’s the point of falling for a king who will always put his kingdom before his family? And how could I trust a king who would eventually be surrounded by concubines?" Her voice rose as her frustration spilled out, the words she had buried for so long now rushing forth. Saying them aloud brought a strange sense of relief.

"It must have been hard keeping those words bottled up for so long," he said, surprising her. There was no anger in his tone, only understanding. He reached for her hand, his gaze softening as he continued, "But Belle, we all die in the end. A little risk can’t hurt. If you don’t give me a chance, how will you ever know that not all men are the same?" His eyes bore into hers, and her heart betrayed her, racing in a way she couldn’t explain.

"And what if you fail me?" She whispered, her voice trembling with doubt.

"You won’t need to lift a finger," he said with a faint smile. "Quinn will handle the ’dirty work.’" His teasing tone caught her off guard, and she burst into laughter despite being angry. The tension eased momentarily, but the mention of Quinn lingered like a shadow. That maddening man, he had truly left his mark, even here.

"Belle," Hezekiah said, his voice turning serious as he placed a hand over his heart. "I vow to never betray you if you give me a chance. I swear it on my life and my family’s honor. Should I ever betray you, may we suffer endless pain." His words were firm and resolute, a promise so heartfelt that her chest tightened.

Her heart skipped a beat. Not even Quinn had vowed like this when they were married. How could a man like Hezekiah exist? His sincerity seemed almost too good to be true. Fear began to creep into her admiration, and she quickly pulled her hand from his grasp.

"I will give you an answer before we mate next week," she said hurriedly, stepping back. "Trust me...for a while." Without waiting for his reply, she turned and ran from the garden.

She reached her room, shutting the door behind her and leaning against it, her breath coming in quick, shallow bursts. Sliding to the floor, she curled up and sighed, her mind spinning as she replayed his words.

There was no reason to reject him now, not when her path of revenge against Quinn seemed increasingly futile. If Quinn treated her with cold indifference forever, what purpose would revenge even serve?

Should she give Hezekiah a chance? Could she risk opening her heart again?

Staring at a box on her desk, Belle rose slowly and walked over to it. She sat down, tracing the edges of the box with her fingers before gently lifting its lid. Inside, she picked out a delicate blue ring and smiled faintly, memories of her mother flooding her mind.

If only her mother had still been alive when she met Quinn. She would have warned her against marrying him, her mother had always been an impeccable judge of character except when it came to falling for her father. It seems like the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree indeed.

"Mother," she whispered, her voice trembling, "I don’t know what to do anymore. I only came this far to make him pay for what he did to me, but now...I am not sure I want to." Tears began to stream down her face as she spoke, her heart aching with longing. She wished with all her soul that her mother could be beside her now.

"It’s so hard, doing everything alone without you. I am lost," she admitted, her quiet sobs breaking the silence. The truth she had always avoided admitting now spilled out of her. If only she were as strong-willed and confident as Mia, perhaps no one would have dared to hurt her.

Sometimes she wished she had been raised more strictly, with a firmer hand. Perhaps then she wouldn’t have grown so naive, so easily swept away by love. Even after enduring her father’s cruelty, she had only become more vulnerable, weak enough to fall for a man who didn’t love her back. Foolish enough to propose to him first.

Her gaze fell upon an old, faded letter resting in the box. Setting the ring down, she carefully picked it up and began to read.

The more she read, the more confused she became. The letter’s words were a tangle of cryptic phrases she had never been able to fully decipher, not even after her mother’s death.

One passage, in particular, stood out: *If you find him, you will know, for he shall not feel lonely when you meet him.* It was these words that had led her to foolishly believe Quinn was the one her mother had meant. But now...was she wrong?

There were so many unclear phrases in the letter, and Belle was starting to doubt it had ever been meant for her. Could her mother have left the wrong letter behind?

"Poke!"

Belle jumped, startled by the sudden jab to her cheek. She turned to see Mia grinning mischievously, bursting into laughter at Belle’s terrified expression.

"Why did you do that?!" Belle exclaimed, clutching her chest.

"What were you so lost in that you didn’t even hear me knock?" Mia teased. "I wasn’t even trying to sneak up on you, but you were completely zoned out." Her laughter grew louder until her eyes landed on the letter in Belle’s hands.

"This again?" Mia sighed, moving closer to inspect the familiar paper. "I thought you decided to stop trying to figure out what it means."

"Yes, I..." Belle began, only for her words to falter as Mia suddenly grabbed her cheeks, pulling her face closer.

"Did you cry?" Mia asked, her voice rising with anger. "Which bastard made you cry?!"

Belle flinched at her yell, startled by her intensity.

"Calm down!" Belle said quickly. "No one made me cry. I was just...thinking about Mother."

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