I must have fallen asleep because when I opened my eyes next, the carriage had stopped moving. I immediately straightened up and suddenly felt something fall off my chest. When I looked down I noticed that someone had put the Duke's cape on me and I figured that it must have been Adaranth.
It was already dark outside and I spotted another inn in the darkness. The Duke came up to the carriage and knocked before opening the door:
"We are going to stop for today.
-Again?"
How slow were we going that we still didn't reach the Dukedom?
"You must be tired. Don't worry we only have a few hours of travel left.
-I am not tired. I slept for the whole day."
I looked outside at the knights:
"But you must be tired because of riding the whole day. I don't mind stopping here."
The Duke extended his hand towards me and helped me get off the carriage:
"Please try resting a bit. The carriage couldn't have been comfortable."
I nodded and followed him to the entrance. Just like the first time, the owner recognized Payne and bowed:
"I am deeply honored to have the Duke and his fiancé in my home."
I wondered how they had heard about our engagement so fast. Was it because of how slowly we were going?
"He is Mister Zeidan Gnash. He is his own person."
I rolled my eyes. Obviously the Duke wouldn't have liked people calling me his fiancé.
"I apologize. It is an honor to have Zeidan Gnash in here.
-The pleasure is mine."
Payne didn't seem to like this conversation because he rushed the owner:
"My fiancé has been traveling for two days."
The owner rushed back behind the counter:
"Of course, I am so sorry for making you wait. I will immediately take you to our biggest room."
Payne glanced at me:
"Would you be uncomfortable sharing a room with me?
-Yes."
He seemed taken aback by my honesty but I didn't care. I turned to the owner and asked:
"Could we have two rooms?"
The owner seemed surprised. It was obvious what he was thinking: why would engaged people sleep in separate rooms? If that came out it would have been bad for the Duke's reputation and even worse for mine. Fortunately I didn't care. Once again I shared my room with Adaranth and contrary to what I thought, I fell asleep fast.
When I woke up the next morning I felt energized and rushed down to get breakfast. Seeing the Duke there did cut me in my momentum but I decided not to let him destroy my mood.
"Good morning."
Hearing me, the Duke immediately jumped up. He waited for me to sit down before sitting back.
"Did you have a good night?"
I nodded.
"Yes. What about you?
-Thank you for asking. I slept well.
-Great."
The silence extended and I focused on the food. Once again I could feel Payne staring at me but I decided not to ask. When I came out of the inn, I felt something weird. The knights were still staring at me but it was different from before. I had no idea why and ignored them.
The Duke didn't lie. After only a few hours, I started recognizing the landscape. Just as I was thinking that, a knight appeared at the window:
"We are almost there."
I nodded:
"Thank you."
Soon trees gave place to houses and the carriage had to slow down to navigate through the crowd. A lot of people gathered to catch a glimpse of my face and to celebrate the return of their Duke. I didn't pull the curtain away and hid inside the carriage. I was far from happy seeing this place again and Adaranth could see it:
"Master Zeidan?"
I smiled:
"I am just tired. We have been traveling for a long time."
The crowd was never ending and I could feel my head pulsing because of all those cheers. Adaranth started massaging my scalp and long minutes later when the Duke knocked on the window he frowned seeing us in this position:
"Mister Zeidan? Are you okay?"
I nodded:
"Yes.
-Do you have a headache?
-It's nothing big."
The Duke pinched his lips:
"I am so sorry. We are almost there. I will call for the doctor as soon as we reach the mansion.
-There's no need. I am fine."
The Duke didn't seem convinced.
"Should we stop right now?"
I quickly shook my head:
"No. We are almost there. Let's just continue.
-Are you sure?
-Yes."
My headache was only getting worse but I could only think about finally getting out of that carriage and having a warm bath. I didn't expect this journey to take so long therefore I didn't pack enough clothes and started feeling very uncomfortable. The end was the worst. Apart from not wanting to arrive, I started feeling nauseous. Despite going way slower than the first time I made this journey, being shaken for three days started messing with my stomach and I regretted eating so much for breakfast. I wasn't used to traveling and if we didn't count my first time marrying the Duke, this was the first time I ever went so far. Moreover, being in the city, the roads were way more winding than before and I was scared that I would puke again.
My ego couldn't take puking in front of the Duke. I just couldn't take the idea of ridiculing myself in front of Payne Grimsbane and did my best to hold the food down. At some point my head ache couldn't divert my attention from the nausea and I had to grab the window to breathe fresh air. Adaranth immediately jumped up:
"Zeidan! Are you okay?"
The carriage suddenly stopped. It was so sudden that it was almost the last straw.
"Mister Zeidan?"
The carriage door opened and I almost fell out with it. Payne grabbed me at the last second, his eyes round:
"What's the matter? Is it your head?"
I couldn't answer because of the wave of nausea and the Duke panicked:
"Bring the closest doctor here!"
Now that the carriage wasn't moving anymore, I felt a bit better and pushed Payne away:
"I'm fine. Let's just go."
Payne didn't let me go and started touching my forehead:
"You are very pale. We should stop for a bit.
-No. I'm fine.
-You aren't.
-Let's just go.
-No. We are not going anywhere until you feel better."
I rolled my eyes.
"You are so stubborn."