Carol entered first, and the Duke followed her, holding a champagne glass.
Click.
The Duke closed the door and handed the glass to Carol.
“Here.”
“Thank you.”
Carol leaned against the railing and took the glass. A cool breeze brushed her face. Only then did she realize her cheeks were flushed.
She became aware of how tense she had been only after the tension was released.
“How was it?”
The Duke took a sip of champagne while waiting for her answer.
The social world the Duke had shown her was more beautiful and glamorous than she had imagined.
“The clothes are really uncomfortable, and the chandelier is too flashy.”
But the discomfort hidden behind the glamour was also beyond her imagination.
“Haha.”
The Duke burst into low laughter at Carol’s words, which came from a completely new perspective.
Carol laughed along with his pleasant laughter.
Then, suddenly remembering something worrisome, Carol buried her face in the Duke’s shoulder and expressed her concern.
She felt his firm arm around her head.
“But is it okay to lie like that to His Highness the Crown Prince?”
“Do you want to take back the announcement of our engagement?”
“It’s not real, after all…”
At first, she thought it was just putting a face to something they had agreed to do someday, but when she actually saw the Crown Prince, she wondered if it was okay to play such word games with the royal family. The Duke had spoken so nonchalantly that she thought it would be fine, but earlier she had experienced her heart shrinking to the size of a bean. So she couldn’t help but worry.
As Carol trailed off, the Duke raised an eyebrow and asked accusingly,
“You’re not a scoundrel who’s thinking of taking my body and leaving, are you?”
“What? Scoun-what?”
Carol stammered at the unfamiliar expression, and the suspicious gaze intensified.
“I- I would never do that!”
“You’re stuttering.”
“That’s because I’m flustered. How can you say such things so loudly in the royal palace!”
Carol’s face was burning red. She lightly slapped the Duke’s arm in mock annoyance.
“Haha-!”
The Duke finally burst into loud laughter.
“Then that’s a relief.”
“…You were teasing me again, weren’t you?”
“A little?”
The Duke wrapped his arm around Carol’s round shoulder. The moment she felt the warmth on her shoulder, a sensation that was warm, even hot, settled on her lips.
Carol’s hand holding the glass stopped in mid-air.
The Duke guided her by the shoulder, and Carol’s body tilted until she was leaning on him.
“Mmph.”
The Duke devoured her breath as if he could never get enough of her. It was an affectionate yet persistent kiss. But she didn’t seem to mind, willingly accepting him.
Their hot breaths carried the scent of champagne. The wind blew from behind her, causing her hair to tickle his cheek.
As their lips parted briefly, with only their foreheads touching, she belatedly asked,
“…Is it okay to do this in the royal palace?”
“If they arrest me, I’ll gladly be taken in.”
The Duke’s lips once again covered hers.
Their kisses had changed dramatically since that day.
Even before, she had felt dazed from their passionate kisses, but compared to after they spent the night together, those seemed like mere child’s play.
‘We won’t be able to go back in right away.’
Carol thought, touching her still-warm cheeks. The heat she thought would quickly cool in the cold wind persisted longer than expected.
She glanced at the Duke’s face from the corner of her eye. His complexion was more flushed than usual, thanks to her biting.
“By the way, I didn’t know you both were that close. Have you been in contact separately?”
The Duke naturally started a conversation. Carol covered both cheeks with her hair, resting her chin on the railing as she spoke.
“No. I guess I was just too happy to see a familiar face in an unfamiliar place. Was I too much?”
She worried that her behavior might have been excessive. If it was rude, she wanted to apologize.
When they met in the North, she had looked anxious, her face uneasy at the thought of losing the only thing she had.
But now it was different.
‘Besides, she could be the lover of my only friend…’
Carol blushed at that thought.
“No. It wasn’t too much.”
“That’s a relief.”
“I’m not questioning your behavior, rather the opposite.”
“Pardon?”
“Didn’t she take the initiative to support you in front of others?”
Although she worked with the Duke, the kindness she showed wasn’t because of him.
Carol had vaguely thought so, but the Duke’s words made it even clearer.
“I should express my gratitude separately later.”
“Yes.”
“At first, we couldn’t have had a good relationship, but after meeting at the lake before, my thoughts changed a lot. Is that alright with you?”
It was a question close to certainty. Still, she asked just to make sure, in case it might be troublesome for the Duke.
“I’ve benefited just the same, so if you’re going to get a gift, let’s choose it together.”
The Duke answered with a gentle smile, and only then did Carol feel relieved and smile back.
“I’d be happy if you do that.”
“There’s no other reason?”
“Pardon?”
When Carol asked, not understanding the Duke’s question, he raised one eyebrow and said:
“For instance, because of the Viscount?”
Carol hesitated. Looking at his face, it wasn’t an innocent question.
“You knew?”
Since it wasn’t her story to tell, she hadn’t deliberately told the Duke. But since she had been keeping it a secret, Carol felt awkward and laughed uncomfortably.
“It was just a guess, but I’ve just become certain now.”
“Tch.”
As Carol glared at the Duke, he shrugged his shoulders mischievously.
How could the Duke be so nonchalant?
It felt like she was the only one fidgeting and being swayed in front of him.
Lately, this feeling had become even stronger.
Unlike herself, who was struggling to cool her reddened face, the Duke’s complexion remained unchanged, which irritated her.
“Ah.”
Suddenly, a forgotten memory surfaced.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s nothing.”
Carol shook her head, but once the thought arose, it wouldn’t leave.
The Duke, not noticing anything unusual, dismissed it casually.
In fact, when talking with Margaret at the villa, she hadn’t just listened to Margaret’s story. Margaret, who had nowhere else to confide, had shared her secrets, but it didn’t end there.
[It’s unfair if I’m the only one sharing.]
[‘Pardon?]
Though not as much as now, Carol’s concern was that only the Duke seemed at ease.
[Seeing that you can’t immediately say you have no worries, I guess you do have some?]
Faced with Margaret’s perceptive question, Carol had no choice but to share what had been bothering her. After hearing her concerns, Margaret laughed loudly.
[Why are you laughing?]
[I just realized you don’t know the Duke as well as I thought.]
[What?]
Carol was momentarily annoyed by Margaret’s attitude, as if she knew the Duke better, but Margaret quickly explained.
[Well, he probably hid it more because he wanted to look good in front of his lover.]
[…]
Margaret added that she certainly hadn’t seen his true face in a good way.
[I’m just a subordinate, so he didn’t need to look good in front of me.]
[…]
[Let me teach you one thing.]
Carol recalled the words Margaret had whispered in her ear.
“Huu.”
She took a small deep breath, thinking that perhaps the champagne she had just drunk was stronger than expected.
The Duke, oblivious, was leaning on the railing, looking up at the night sky.
“Shall we go back inside?”
It was when the Duke said this.
“Duke.”
Carol called him with a rather solemn tone.
“Why are you call—mmph!”
Before the Duke could finish his response, Carol grabbed his shirt as if clutching his collar. The Duke’s eyes widened in genuine surprise. Carol squeezed her eyes shut and pulled him towards her. Caught off guard, he was helplessly drawn in by her lead.
[The Duke rarely gets flustered when he initiates action because he calculates everything, but…]
Chu.
Hot lips met again. The scent of champagne, stronger than before, brushed her nose.
[When an action outside his calculations occurs, his true expression that he’s been hiding comes out.]
Margaret had said that the reason he could always maintain a calm expression wasn’t because he felt less emotion, but because he had been trained since childhood not to show his feelings outwardly.
The moment their lips met was just a flash.
‘Is this not enough?’
Carol wanted to make it last longer, but this was her best at the moment. When there was no reaction from the Duke for a while, Carol slightly opened her tightly shut eyes.
“…Huh?”
The Duke’s face had turned bright red.
“…Ugh.”
“Duke, your face…”
The Duke turned his gaze to the side, but it wasn’t enough to hide his reddened face.
“I know.”
After staring blankly at this never-before-seen expression for a moment, Carol’s face soon flushed as well.
Compared to earlier, it was just a childish kiss, but she felt incomparably more embarrassed than before.
If the Duke had truly reacted, she had planned to smile confidently, but all those plans went to waste. Carol hid both her cheeks with her hair again and mumbled.
“…Shall we stay a bit longer?”
“I’d be grateful if we could.”
The Duke also murmured, covering his face with his large hand.
The two had no choice but to stay on the terrace until their bodies cooled down completely.
