Chapter 1112

Just as Hazel was trying to make sense of everything, she felt Frederick’s large hand wrap around hers. His fingers were cool to the touch, a faint chill seeping into her skin. She turned her head and met his eyes, taking in the sculpted lines of his face—but something in his expression was different today. It was unusually tense. Before she could stop herself, the words she’d been holding back spilled out. “Frederick, let’s not go to your family’s old estate.” She hesitated, then added with deliberate firmness, “I’ve changed my mind. I want to go back to the capital.” Frederick’s expression softened. With long, defined fingers, he gently pinched her cheek. “I still want to take you there,” he said, his deep, magnetic voice sending a flutter through her chest. Hazel had once feared she was just a stand-in for Jane, a shadow of someone he’d once cared for. But as she looked into his eyes now, all she saw was herself—clear, certain, undeniable. He wasn’t seeing Jane. He was seeing *her*.