CHAPTER 2 — HE CAME BACK THE NEXT MORNING

The snow continued throughout the night.

Bellmere remained trapped.

No carriages could leave.

No merchants could enter.

And the market was almost completely empty.

Elena arrived before sunrise as usual.

She expected another difficult day.

Instead, while she was lighting the fire, she heard footsteps behind her.

She turned.

The duke was standing there.

Alone.

Without his carriage.

Without his servants.

And without the expression of impatience he had worn the day before.

Elena blinked.

“You came back.”

“I did.”

“For soup?”

Adrian hesitated.

“Perhaps.”

She smiled.

“Then you’ll have to wait.”

“Why?”

“It’s not ready.”

Adrian looked at the empty pot.

“I see.”

“You can wait.”

The duke actually laughed.

It surprised both of them.

Elena had never heard a nobleman laugh like that.

He pulled a wooden crate closer and sat down.

“You don’t have to sit there.”

“I know.”

“People will stare.”

“They already are.”

Indeed, several merchants were staring.

A duke sitting beside a poor soup seller was not something one saw every day.

Adrian ignored them.

“What is your name?”

“Elena.”

“Elena what?”

“Marlowe.”

He nodded.

“Adrian Vale.”

“I know.”

His eyebrow lifted.

“You know?”

“Everyone knows the Vale family.”

She stirred the onions.

“My mother used to work at your family’s estate.”

Adrian became still.

“She did?”

“Years ago.”

“What happened?”

“She died.”

His expression softened.

“I’m sorry.”

Elena shrugged gently.

“That’s life.”

He watched her work.

She moved with quiet confidence.

She knew exactly when the onions were ready.

Exactly how much salt to add.

Exactly when the bread should be placed into the bowls.

“You learned this from your mother?”

“From my mother and grandmother.”

“Why onion soup?”

Elena smiled.

“Because onions are cheap.”

Adrian laughed again.

“And because you can’t afford anything else?”

“That too.”

When the soup was ready, Elena gave him a bowl.

This time, Adrian didn’t eat like a hungry traveler.

He ate slowly.

He wanted to remember every flavor.

But he soon realized something.

The soup tasted even better than yesterday.

Perhaps because he wasn’t eating it alone.

Perhaps because Elena was sitting across from him.

“Why did you really come back?” she asked.

Adrian looked into the bowl.

“I told you.”

“For soup?”

He raised his eyes.

“No.”

The wind moved Elena’s scarf.

For a moment, neither spoke.

Then Adrian said quietly,

“I came back because I wanted to see you.”

Elena’s hand stopped.

She looked away.

And for the first time in years, the cold winter morning seemed strangely warm.