Graciella Was Definitely Better

Oscar had finally convinced his father after several days, that Graciella was the woman for him. He had been confined to his home with no news of anything outside of the Dukedom since his annulment. Olivia had likely gone to the southern convent by now, so he knew he didn't have to worry about running into her and making things awkward. This was the first place he came to when he was released from his confinement.

He was now a single man, and Graciella was a single woman who fit his ideals of what a woman should be. She was demure, and beautiful. Her fragility was there under the surface, showing a certain innocence around her like a budding flower in spring. She was the type of woman who needed to be protected.

He knew he was just the man to protect her too. He could provide her with everything she could ever want. Once he became the Duke in full capacity… He would have more money than most of the Nobles combined. He just needed his father to cede the dukedom to him. It was only a matter of time.

Now he would pursue Graciella with everything that was in him. He had to win her heart before one of the many men that wanted to marry Graciella won her over instead. This was the major difference between Graciella and Olivia. Men wanted to bed Olivia, but they wanted to wed Graciella.

Oscar just hoped Graciella wouldn't think of his previous engagement to her sister too deeply. He never had a choice in the engagement as it had been decided when they were still children.

Oscar had never been nervous when it came to girls or women. All you had to do was say what the lady wanted to hear with a right placed grin or a wink, and that was it. Women also flocked to him because he was going to be the second most powerful man in the kingdom after his cousin.

All women followed this same pattern. All of them except Olivia and Graciella. Olivia was too assertive with what she wanted. She was way too flamboyant, and dressed too sultry. She needed attention from her at all times when she went out. She thrived on attention. She didn't seem to flirt with men publicly though, which was the only reason their engagement lasted as long as it had. She was the exact opposite of Graciella.

This was the first time he had been grateful that he was engaged to Olivia instead of Graciella. His cousin Adarian Caliban, King of the entire country, had been seeking revenge. Oscar knew this was why Adarian had bedded Olivia. It was to humiliate him publicly for sleeping with Rosamund. Poor sweet Rosamund, who never got an ounce of Adarian's love. He doubted Adarian even remembered his first wife's name. Oscar heard that she was with child when she died in that accident, he knew the child was most likely his own.

He doubted Adarian knew what to do with a girl back then. But he obviously knew now. He had dragged Olivia into this grudge, but Olivia could take care of herself. That night at the ball he saw the coquettish way she blushed when the king kissed her, and the provocative way she leaned into Adarian so he could have a better look at her chest. Then the little witch dared to send him a seductive glance, as if to show off that she could seduce a man more powerful than himself.

He didn't know why he even cared. Olivia was never who he wanted anyway. She was too tough. He wanted a soft girl, like Rosamund, like Graciella. Graciella always acted with dignity.

If he wanted to please Olivia, he was sure that all he had to do was buy her something nice. Graciella was much harder to figure out. But he realized Graciella was kind to those under her. She liked to take care of little animals. She couldn't go and visit the sick, or the poor, but she was always donating to their causes. He had seen the brokers come and collect from her. She told him she always made a donation every month, but that she wished she could do more. There was no way her father would let her do that though. There was always a risk she could get sick if she did things like that. She had been so sick when they were younger. He didn't want her to face any more hardship either.

Graciella's kindness extended to even the smallest creatures. This made him fall for her more than anything else. She was such a soft hearted person. In spite of the way she was treated by her sister Olivia, and in spite of the fact that her parents didn't buy her as much as they did Olivia, Graciella had a heart for the people.

He knew deep inside that Graciella would make a great Queen. But he didn't want Graciella to be tied to his cousin in marriage. He wanted Graciella tied to himself in marriage. He knew his cousin would have to take responsibility for tarnishing the Praxis family name. For a king to do that to a noble family was… Well he would lose a lot of support. This was a thing Oscar wouldn't mind. So he decided that he would become the one to save the Praxis family honor. He could marry the woman of his dreams, and take the support from under his cousin in one fell swoop.

So here he sat, in the withdrawing room of the Marquis home, waiting on the girl of his dreams. He could only hope that Graciella could give him a chance.

…

…

Graciella watched Oscar sit nervously fidgeting on the sofa. He had been given tea, but hadn't touched it. She could see his thoughts turning in his head, and she knew he was thinking of courting her.

This was good. Olivia had angered her by running away. She didn't want to reveal too much about herself to society, so Oscar would make a good distraction. He was a childhood toy that she had trained since young. He didn't ever need punishment or coercion like Olivia. He always did exactly as she said. She only ever needed to tell him once.

If she thought too much about how Olivia ran away, she would get so angry she couldn't hide it. She needed something to take her mind off of other people playing with her things. He would make a great distraction. Such an obedient distraction.

"Oscar," Graciella called out softly as she finally entered. "I didn't expect you to visit today."

Oscar stood to greet her, "Miss Praxis, You look more lovely every time I see you."

Graciella blushed, and looked down bashfully. It was almost like this was the first compliment she had ever heard. Her reactions were so very fresh. Olivia never blushed when he told her she looked lovely. In fact the first time he had told her, she paled. He thought for a moment that Olivia had gotten sick. He never knew it was because Graciella had just threatened to kill her cat if anyone admired her favorite dolls beauty without permission. In fact the cat had died that very night. Olivia never got another pet after that.

In Oscar's mind Olivia just didn't think he was good enough for her. Why else would she turn sick from him complimenting her? Now he knew, it was just because his status wasn't big enough for her. Why have a lowly duke compliment you, if you could seduce a king.

He knew it. Graciella was definitely better than Olivia. Graciella didn't have any problems with his status.

"I'm here to ask you permission to court you, my lady," Oscar got right to the point.

Graciella smiled at Oscar, "That would be lovely. If anyone wants to court me he'll need my father's permission first."

Oscar took that as a yes. He knew that the Marquis would definitely not have any objections to his courtship with Graciella.

Oscar had completely and totally deluded himself into believing that Graciella loved him. She was not like Rosamund who was just using him to curb her loneliness either. For a short while he had fancied himself in love with Queen Rosamund. But then her abrupt death came along and he realized that if he had been in love with her, he would have been much more depressed at her passing than he was.

Looking at her blushing figure before him he realized even more how much paler his feelings for Rosamund were compared to his feelings for Graciella. Graciella brought life and color into the room simply by walking into it. Graciella was like a dream. She had plenty of other suitors who were pursuing her. But she had chosen him. Finally Oscar was somebody's first choice.