“You look like you just came back from a funeral,” Poe said in his usual matter of fact tone.
Ben did not even bother to look up. In his hand, there was a half filled glass of wine. He chose instead to take a sip. “Do I really?” He asked, not really interested in the answer.
“Well, you can certainly look a little bit more cheerful, for sure.” His friend replied, half serious and half mocking. “You did just get married to a stunning woman, by the way.”
Ben sighed. As a child, he had often wondered what type of woman he would get married to. Surely not his new wife, in any other circumstances. No. Rey Virens came from a good stock. A wealthy family with good connections that would have never considered Ben, the prodigal son of a family with a questionable history.
He never would have thought he would gain a wife and a stepdaughter when he received news that his cousin had joined his maker. He had been shocked then. He had nothing but good memories of Matthew. Ben remembered a young boy of twelve, four years older than him with a wide smile and the warmest set of brown eyes and he did not hesitate to pack his bags to make the journey to offer his condolences.
He did not plan to stay long for he never did like the old Skywalker manor with sprawling grounds and its maze-like interior. He had planned to stay until the funeral and go back to his burgeoning law firm in the city. But there was the matter of the last will and testament. The family solicitor, Mr. Landman, had asked him to stay behind. Ben was surprised that he was even included. A footnote perhaps. He had thought.
With a piece of paper, Ben was named the new head of the Skywalker household and was bequeathed everything that it entails. The old Skywalker Manor, the major trust funds and most importantly the family's thriving steel manufacturing business. He almost laughed at the absurdity of it all. He knew so little of the family business and now they were handing it to him just because he happened to have a cock.
"And what of Matthew's widow and child?" He had asked.
"They will be provided for, of course, but as the child is a girl..." Landman trailed off.
Ben's stomach had churned. The little girl was being denied her birthright. She and her mother were being cast aside because of something they could not help. Ben knew the feeling of being cast aside not because of lack of merit but because of something that you didn't choose to have. Those thoughts spurned him to make a decision.
In hindsight, it might have been a rash decision, asking Matthew's widow to marry him. But it was too late to back out now. The papers had been signed and he was a married man in the eyes of God and of men. He wondered if other men felt the weight of their wedding rings as heavily as he did.
He raised his wine glass to take another sip only to be disappointed that it was empty. But Poe was quick to take it and fill it up.
"Try and smile a little," His friend coaxed as he handed Ben his cup back. "That way your wife wouldn't think you poisoned the cake you'll feed her."
