The Sins of Duke Evander (BOOK III)

Chapter 36- To Be You for a Day

--Alina POV--

I've never been very good at reading people, and therefore, I've never been good at judging people. And with the fear that I was doing something wrong, it always took me some time to get close to someone.

Ian and Lina are my two best friends in the world, they were understanding, and I'm always grateful for having been able to meet them.

My father was a protective man from the moment I was born, and my mother was my comfort; the group of people I was associated with was very small, but I had no complaints. I was introverted, and I didn't think I would have to change.

But then I met my husband, and my husband was no ordinary man. He was a Duke, and as a Duke, it was clear that he had many responsibilities. I do remember in the time that we had been dating that I had been worried about becoming a Duchess, but he was always there to assure me that it would all be alright. And I believed him. And I'm glad I did.

I married that man, and I'm living a happy life with him. And to uphold the name of the Dukedom, I've also worked hard to become a good Duchess.

Never once would I have thought that my life would become as dramatic as it has become. It turns out that every marriage has its secrets, even our beautiful one.

My husband was not one man, but two; He has dissociative identity disorder, he was both Alvise, and Evan, and I loved them both. And I believed that we could work to get over his lies, and continue with our happy marriage.

But then I was being held under a knife, and I got thrown over a balcony, lost one of my children to death, and fell into a 5-month coma.

And now that I've woken up, and I'm finally relearning how to walk once more, I learn that the nanny I've been so warm, and welcoming towards... is a complete weirdo.

"What are you thinking about?" Evan asked as he got into bed, pulling the blanket higher up my body to keep me from getting cold as I smiled gratefully at him.

"The nanny... At first, I thought she was a nice person, she reminded me of how I used to be,"

"How you used to be?" He asked, turning to face me, but I didn't look away from the ceiling, trying not to think too hard about it.

"Shy, and quiet... All the lessons I took to become a good Duchess really paid off, and helped me with my confidence that I almost forgot about how shy I used to be. But seeing that nanny reminded me of my old self,"

"Is that what you're so lost in thought about?"

"Not exactly," Sighing, I turned on my side to face my husband who was already looking at me.

"I often catch her staring at me, and not in the way that I've gotten used to. She has a weird sense of... I don't know how to put it, jealousy? Radiating off of her... And maybe I'm just overthinking things, but sometimes I feel as though she could be trying to replace me..." I drifted off, realising how silly I must have sounded.

Nevertheless, I peered up at Evan, and once he caught my gaze, he smiled a small smile, leaning forward to press his lips against my forehead.

"You're not the only one thinking that. Have you not been listening to the gossip going around the house? No one in this estate likes that woman because of the same reason that you're suspecting... But that woman's got another thing coming her way if she really believes that she's capable of replacing you,"

"I... didn't know that," I guess I really am quite naive.

"Before anyone gets hired in this estate, they go through intense interviews, and other meetings to make sure that we, the residents of this estate, don't have to feel like our privacy is being undermined. We have to make sure that no one tries to make money out of our lives by taking hidden videos or even robbing. We get background checks taken on every worker to make sure they're trustworthy, and up to our standards,"