"I will have someone look into it." The Duke swore through the cold metal of the receiver pressed against the shell of her ear.
Augustus' voice was thick with exhaustion, his speech slightly muffled and the flow of his words stuttering as if he struggled to find them.
His state left her regretting calling him over what now seemed minor compared to whatever battle he was fighting in the capital.
"Are you alright, Augustus?" she asked softly, hands playing with the threads of the armchair she was leaned against.
The line went silent for a few moments, and she would have suspected he dropped the call if not for his gentle inhales and exhales tickling her ears.
"No," he confessed with a soft sigh.
Her arms twitched with the urge to pull him into her embrace, away from all that disturbed his peace.
It was an impossible wish, but love has a funny way of making the impossible seem only a step out of reach.
