The Possessive Lord's Contract Wife

An hour later, Damien and Aiden carried all that Eloise had bought on impulse. To spare both men from having to walk around with her belongings for much longer, Eloise decided to return to the carriage for a moment to sit there so they could be away from the crowd.

As Aiden loaded the items onto the carriage, Eloise and Damien sat inside with the door open, watching the crowd from a distance.

Eloise poked at her shoes, which had started to pinch her feet.

Without a word, Damien lifted her feet onto his lap to remove her shoes. He was careful with her dress, positioning her feet so her legs wouldn’t be exposed to the crowd outside.

Damien rubbed Eloise’s feet, bringing her momentary relief. The tension in her toes slowly eased.

"You should have told me your feet were aching. I would have carried you," Damien said, his hand moving gently along her sore feet.

"That would only bring us more attention. The crowd has moved on from what occurred earlier. We don’t need any more eyes on us," Eloise replied, her fingers digging into the cushion as Damien’s touch felt too wonderful.

"Let them watch. They’ll end the night feeling envious."

Eloise shook her head, her laughter slipping free. "You truly are confident. I cannot deny that is why I have come to love you. It is so interesting how, in one moment, you can enjoy the attention, but in the next breath, you hate it."

"I don’t enjoy it now. They are going to look regardless, and I know the emotion behind their gaze. You must learn how to ignore it, and at times, it’s fun to put on a little show to get under their skin," Damien shared.

"Oh, I see. What excites you is spoiling their night. Well, it is a harmless way for you to have fun, so I won’t stop you."

Eloise turned her gaze to the busy festival, the warm glow of lanterns catching her eye. "I am still amused by the look on the vendor’s face when you said you wanted all the lanterns. I must confess that it feels good to be spoiled. Once before, I could not imagine spending so much money in one night."

"It is exciting and wonderful to be so carefree at times. I forgot there are troubles we must go back to," Eloise said, wishing the moment would carry on a little longer. "To add to this good night, I must give you this," she said, reaching for the headpieces.

Eloise leaned forward to place the first piece on Damien’s head. He frowned, but didn’t remove the flowers. "You’re the man I am smitten with tonight and forever. The only one who shall receive them from me tonight," she said, adding the three others to his head.

Eloise clamped her right hand over her mouth, entertained by how silly Damien looked.

Damien sighed, enduring the way in which Eloise tortured him.

Never had he been so decorated with flowers, and he wasn’t fond of it, but had Eloise offered them to any other man, his jealousy would never have ended.

"I feel very loved," Damien responded. He raised his right hand to touch the headpieces as they began to lean.

"You can take them off if they make you feel silly," Eloise offered.

Eloise took one long look at Damien, enjoying the moment while it lasted.

"I will keep them on a little longer to show just how much you love me. I see men walking around with only one, and others with none. Yet I have four from my lovely wife," Damien said, wanting others to see how much Eloise loved him.

"Well, I actually made one for Aiden-"

"The tale I am telling is far better than the truth. You made each one with me in mind. That is now the truth," Damien said, unwilling to surrender it.

Eloise chuckled, and for now, she would allow Damien to have his way. "Yes, I made each one with love for you. Even if we don’t come back here often, I will make it a tradition to make one for you every year. It shall be another way of saying I love you and I appreciate you."

"That means I will have to keep plenty of flowers in our garden. I want five or seven pieces next year." 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

"You are one man with one head. There is no need for you to have so many to prove my love for you. If anyone asks or doubts our marriage, I will speak loudly of how much I am in love with you. What you must worry about is Jane. She made two," Eloise said, shattering Damien’s plans.

Damien stared at Eloise for a moment before his smile fell into a frown. Not once had he thought of who Jane would offer her pieces to.

Eloise raised her brow, surprised Damien didn’t climb out of the carriage. "You are not going to search for Jane to discover who she intends to hand them to? That’s surprising."

"We are leaving the countryside tomorrow night. Whoever Jane sets her sights on will be days away from the estate, and all letters sent there go through me first. Any romance she has here ends tomorrow night," Damien said, not the least bit concerned.

Still, Damien looked out of the carriage, trying to find Jane amongst the crowd.

Eloise could only shake her head. She wondered how Damien would be if they had a daughter, or two.

Damien was used to handling boys, and whilst Jane was present, all she cared about now were dresses and the idea of marriage, but the time for her to truly want it was coming quickly.

"Jane will have to marry at some point-"

"We have not gotten there yet, and I don’t want anyone to rush her," said Damien.

"How interesting. You keep telling Jane that she can do as she wants when she finds a husband or has her own home, yet you are not ready to let go of her. It is not even her season, and yet you already worry," Eloise said, realising Jane’s season would be one to look forward to.

"I should make it a rule that Jane is not allowed to wed unless Kyle and Quinn have taken wives," Damien considered, not yet ready to see Jane entertain the young men in town.

"I would be on Jane’s side to be angry with you. You must face the fact that Jane is quickly growing up, and young boys will have her attention. If you stop her from marrying, she shall spend the rest of her life with us at every turn-"

"Perhaps it would be best to hand her to the highest bidder," Damien said with a mischievous smile.

"Damien!" Eloise gasped.