the Villainess they took for granted

It took several minutes before everyone finally settled.

Marian was given a seat near the windows, a fresh cup of tea placed in her hands before she had even finished answering the last of the questions directed at her.

Clara sat beside her.

The others gathered around them, filling the room with the easy noise of people who had known one another for years.

There were familiar faces everywhere.

Some had married.

Some had remained unmarried.

Some had spent the past year quietly at their family estates.

Marian listened to their stories, laughed when appropriate, and asked questions whenever someone mentioned a name she no longer recognized.

It was easy.

Comfortably familiar.

Eventually, the conversation turned toward the coming months.

”The Season is going to be enormous this year,” one of the ladies said.

Marian looked at her.

”I’ve heard.”

”Everyone has,” Clara said. ”After the last two years, it’s hardly surprising.”

Marian smiled faintly.

The Season two years ago had ended abruptly.

Everyone knew why.

There was no need to discuss it.

Last year had been different.

”What was last year’s Season like?” Marian asked.

”Quiet,” Clara said.

”Very quiet.”

”There were still dinners and receptions,” one of the ladies explained. ”And some balls, of course. But everything was restrained.”

”It hadn’t even been a full year since the Emperor’s death,” Clara added. ”The Imperial household wasn’t going to host anything particularly extravagant.”

Marian nodded.

Of course.

She understood the protocol well enough.

The court’s tone naturally set the tone for the rest of society.

”Most families followed the same approach,” another lady said. ”And quite a few simply postponed their plans.”

”Especially marriages.”

”And several young ladies who were supposed to make their debut decided to wait.”

Marian looked around the room.

That explained the excitement surrounding this year.

The capital had spent the previous Season holding itself back.

Now everyone seemed determined to make up for it.

”There are so many families returning to the capital already,” Clara said. ”Even those who usually spend most of the year at their estates.”

”Everyone wants to be here.”

”Especially families with unmarried children.”

Marian raised her brows.

”That sounds ominous.”

”It is,” Clara said solemnly.

The women laughed.

”My mother has already received invitations for three dinners next week.”

”Only three?”

”Three so far.”

Marian smiled.

The capital had clearly decided that it had spent enough time being quiet.

Then Clara added,

”But there is another reason this Season is going to be particularly interesting,” Clara said.

Several of the women exchanged knowing looks.

Marian noticed.

”The Emperor?” she asked.

A few pairs of eyes turned toward her.

It was only natural.

Everyone in the room knew her history with Adrian.

They had known her since childhood. They had watched her grow up as the Crown Prince’s intended, and they had known when that engagement had ended.

Clara gave her a small smile.

”Yes. The Emperor.”

”The Council has apparently been pressing His Majesty to marry,” one of the ladies said.

Marian nodded slightly.

That was hardly surprising.

”And he has agreed,” Clara added.

”Really?”

”That is what my father heard.”

”So did mine.”

The women immediately became more animated.

”Then this Season will be even more competitive.”

”Every family with an unmarried daughter will want an opportunity.”

”And not only the families who have daughters making their debut.”

Marian smiled.

”I’m sure His Majesty will survive the attention.”

”He’ll have to.”

”And there will be plenty of jealous ladies.”

”Plenty,” Clara agreed.

Marian laughed softly.

”Well, I wish them luck.”

Clara gave her an amused look.

”Which brings us to you.”

Marian looked at Clara.

”What are your plans for this Season?”

The question was casual, but Marian understood what Clara was really asking.

She glanced around the room.

There was no reason to pretend with these women.

”To be honest,” she said, ”I’m looking too.”

For a moment, the room went quiet.

Then Clara’s eyes widened.

”You are?”

Marian laughed.

”Yes.”

A smile immediately spread across Clara’s face.

”Oh, this is excellent news.”

”It is not news.”

”It absolutely is.”

One of the women leaned closer.

”Does that mean you’re actually considering gentlemen this time?”

”That’s generally what looking means.”

The room broke into laughter.

Marian shook her head, smiling.

”I’ve been away long enough. I think it’s time.”

Clara pointed at her.

”Then I need to tell my brother.”

”Clara.”

”What? He’ll want to know.”

”He can find out like everyone else.”

”He won’t forgive me if I don’t tell him first.”

Marian laughed.

The teasing continued, but she could already see the change in the room.

They were excited.

Not merely because she had returned.

Because Marian Valmont was finally available.

Truly available.

”Although,” one of the ladies said, ”you may frighten half the gentlemen away.”

Marian raised a brow.

”Why?”

”Your first fiancé was the Crown Prince.”

”And your second was the Duke of Ashford,” another added.

”They’re going to think there’s some impossible standard they have to meet.”

Marian laughed.

”Then they’ll have to decide that for themselves.”

She wasn’t offended.

If anything, she understood the concern.

She wasn’t looking for another great romance.

She had already had one.

She had loved Cassian, and she had chosen him knowing exactly what she was choosing. She had never regretted that.

But she was no longer a girl dreaming about the kind of marriage that existed only in romantic stories. She had a duchy to consider, a family whose finances needed strengthening, and a future that could not be built on affection alone.

The man she married needed to be wealthy enough to stand beside her without becoming another burden to House Valmont. He needed a position that would make sense for her family, a character she could respect, and a temperament she could actually live with.

That last part mattered more than she once would have admitted.

She had no desire to spend the rest of her life trapped beside a man she could barely tolerate simply because his name was impressive.

If she could respect him, enjoy his company, and imagine waking beside him for the next thirty or forty years without wanting to escape, that would be enough.

And if love came afterward—

Well.

She would not refuse it.

But she was no longer going to build her future waiting for it.

The women continued chatting, already discussing which families had returned to the capital and which unmarried gentlemen were expected to attend the coming events.

Marian listened.

She didn’t need to say anything more.

The important part had already been said.

She was looking.

Her friends knew it.

And before long, everyone else would too.

That was exactly what Marian wanted.

If she was going to find a husband, she needed to know who was available.

And she needed them to know that she was available too.

--

Tbc