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Her gasp is heard by the entire wedding party. It is not the gasp itself that captures their interest, but rather the tone of it. After all, what bride gasps in horror at her own wedding upon seeing her fiancé's hands?
Yet Edwina Sharma cannot control her reaction or the dread that follows. On the well-sculpted, large fingers of Anthony Bridgerton lies a band—one that glows with a lustrous gold color, a material no man could ever craft with his own two hands. No, this is a soulmate band, a sacred and revered symbol for which many have risked their lives in vain, hoping for its appearance.
While it is not unusual for couples at the altar to have golden bands, a soulmate band always has a twin. Always. No soulmate band appears without its counterpart. And as Anthony Bridgerton’s band shines brighter than ever in the chapel, forever etched into his skin, Edwina Sharma’s fingers remain bare.
The origin of the golden soulmate band is unknown—or so they say. It is whispered that the knowledge of how the soulmate bond and its accompanying band work is so well protected that the band itself prevents humans from learning. Everyone has a soulmate band, but not everyone is fortunate enough for it to appear. Without the presence of a soulmate, the band will not manifest.
When Edmund Bridgerton met Violet Ledger, he felt a burning sensation on his index finger that night and discovered a gold band had formed there. By morning, however, it was gone. During their courtship, the band would flicker and fade, sometimes staying for days. It was only in the fifth week of meeting her that the band became permanent, darkening to a bright gold. Edmund knew then that Violet was the only one who would claim his heart forever.
Madhav Sharma had a gold band on his ring finger since he was eight years old when he met Carina Saravannan. When she died, the band faded, leaving a red mark—a claim, a memory of a heart that had found its pair.
While Edwina knew that her parents,Madhav and Mary, were never soulmates, she also knew they had loved each other deeply. The absence of the soulmate band on her fingers during her courtship did not bother her; she believed deep down that one day it would appear. She never imagined, not even in a million years, that he would already had have one.
Surely she would have noticed this before? Come to think of it, she had never paid much attention to his hands, but missing something as monumental as a soulmate band seemed impossible.
Yet she appeared to be the only one in shock, as Lord Bridgerton gazed at the band with an air of calm, the kind of calm that only someone who had known about its appearance—and its pair—would possess. His eyes lock onto something, or someone, behind her, and for the first time in their acquaintance, she sees his eyes fill with desperation and longing.
Edwina doesn’t want to turn around; she doesn’t want to see her sister; she doesn’t want to confirm what she suspects deep down. An inkling of dread forms in her stomach as the puzzle pieces fall into place: her sister favoring thicker gloves, refusing mehendi on her hands, favoring her left hand over her right, and the way Kate had spoken of love at the Haldi ceremony. The way she had looked over the past month, as if she had written the final footnote of her life.
But surely, Kate wouldn’t do that? Surely, she knew better than to deny a soulmate band, an act considered the highest sacrilege. To possess a soulmate band and marry another was said to bring about the worst omens.
Yet hadn’t Kate promised to give Edwina everything her heart desired, even at the expense of defying universal laws?
So she turns and looks. She looks at her sister’s face—the face she thought she knew—and the person staring back at her is not her sister at all. Her sister’s eyes are filled with tears, not of heartbreak and sacrifice, but the person behind her, in a lilac dress, twisting her bangle and clutching her fingers together, is.
Edwina runs—she runs as fast as she can out of the chapel.
Kate knows what Edwina knows. She can see it in her sister’s face and in Anthony’s eyes.
She hadn’t dared to believe it was true, hadn’t let herself hope. A soulmate band always has a pair. Always. She had foolishly thought it had been one of the many suitors Lady Danbury had introduced to distract her. Yet none of them had sparked anything in her.
Deep down, where love still resided in her heart, she knew her soulmate band was meant for Anthony. It had become permanent after she said goodbye to him in the woods. Through the blur of her tears, she had seen the band darken.
To hide it, she had lightly singed her fingers over a candle, so she could wrap them in gauze. "It will pass," she had thought, but it didn’t. The mark of a soulmate band, once permanent, could not be removed—not even by death.
As she enters the dressing room, Edwina glares at her. Not even the sound of the Bridgertons' thundering footsteps can save Kate from her wrath.
"Edwina, I—" Kate whispers, tears threatening to spill. She barely registers Anthony moving behind her to steady her.
"Remove your gloves," Edwina growls.
Kate’s blood runs cold at the demand. The existence of the band would cause a scandal, the kind of scandal that would be talked about for years and from which their families might never recover. "I—what?"
"REMOVE YOUR GLOVES AND SHOW IT TO ME! SHOW ME THAT IT EXISTS! PROVE TO ME THAT YOU HAVE BEEN LYING ALL ALONG!" Edwina screams, shocking Mary and the Bridgertons.
"Edwina, please," Mary pleads.
"Miss Edwina, Kate is not aware—" Anthony begins.
"No, Mama, you do not understand! SHE HAS A SOUL BAND ! SHE HAS A SOUL BAND , AND SHE'S BEEN HIDING IT FROM US! IT IS A PAIR TO HIS!" she screams, pointing at Anthony, who freezes.
There are several gasps across the room, the loudest from Violet.
"A soulmate band? Oh, my darling—"
"Anthony has a soulmate band?"
"Miss Sharma is his soulmate?"
“Kate is this true?”
Kate cannot speak; her heart is lodged in her throat as the voices around her grow louder.
"Yes, it is true. Miss Edwina is correct in her assumption. Anthony and Miss Sharma are indeed soulmates," Daphne Bridgerton confirms as all eyes turn to her.
"How—?" Kate and Anthony begin to ask simultaneously, but Daphne holds up a hand.
"I saw it. I saw your band flicker a few times at Aubrey Hall, Anthony. I noticed it the minute I arrived. At first, I wasn’t sure about Miss Sharma because I hadn't seen it on her, and you were desperately trying to convince me you were not in love. But I saw it the day she left, when i went ot fetch her when she was hiding in the gardens after your proposal to Miss Edwina. The band was so bright it could have lit up a room," Daphne's words astonish Violet, who feels ashamed for not noticing such an event in her own home.
"Why didn’t you tell him?" Violet asks.
"You don’t think I did? I told him many times until I was hoarse from shouting. But he would rather commit a sin than accept that he had fallen in love," Daphne snaps, glaring at Anthony.
"Do not presume to know or understand my intentions, Daphne. You cannot understand what it is like to lose a soulmate. I did not want one because I did not want them to suffer my death. So I chose someone who would not stir such feelings in me," Anthony retorts, his eyes filled with sorrow. He turns to Kate and takes her hand in his; she feels like she could break at any second.
"We need a moment alone. Let us sort this out between ourselves," Anthony pleads.
Exchanging dubious looks and glares (especially from Edwina), their families slowly leave the room. At last, they are alone. Kate wants to flee. Being in a closed space with him feels suffocating. Not quite drowning, more like sinking. She wants to run to him, throw her arms around him, and sink into his embrace. But that is just her fantasy.
Anthony steps forward, his dark eyes boring into hers. He looks as exhausted as she feels.
"I know you don’t want to be in the same room as me. I know you don’t want to speak to me. But please hear me out. I’m sorry I proposed to your sister that day. I’m sorry I put us in this position, knowing what we have done could ruin both our lives. But I was afraid of love, and I was afraid of being loved. I thought I could live my life without it until I met you. The day I met you at the park, my soulmate band appeared. It was only for a second, and I thought I had imagined it. But every time I saw you, my hands would burn. You never indicated you felt the same, and I foolishly thought you wouldn’t have my pair. I should have known better. You’re my soulmate; of course, you would run from love, just like me."
She doesn’t know what to say, doesn’t know if she can say anything other than—
"You love me?" she whispers.
"Kate," his voice breaks at her question. "Of course I love you. Everything I have done is for you. I stood at the altar even though everything in me was screaming for you. I did it because you love your sister and want to give her everything she desires, and I love you enough to give you everything you want."
What a pair they made! Two people torn apart by grief and fear, united by the same emotions. How had they not realized it sooner?
"Kate, will you let me see it? Will you please show me your soulmate band?"
She extends her arm forward, and he reverently takes it. He slips off the glove with the utmost care, as if handling fine china.
Kate's slim arm glows with her smooth brown skin, but it is her fingers that captivate Anthony: dainty and lithe, fingers he had dreamed of kissing. And he does just that. There, nestled on her ring finger, shines a band—permanent and powerful. The soulmate band glows, and Anthony slides his fingers across hers. As their fingers interlock, the soulmate band hums with a strange celestial energy. They know, without a doubt, that they have found their perfect pair.