Teacher Carol carefully picked tea leaves, making sure her legs didn’t brush against the Duke’s.
She decided she would just brew the tea and leave.
“Would lemon balm tea be okay?”
“I’d appreciate that.”
Carol put the chosen tea leaves into the teapot and poured hot water.
The sound of pouring.
She placed the teacup on the saucer and handed it over.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
“Have you made up your mind about extending the contract?”
It was a topic she had been consciously avoiding. It was a narrow space where she couldn’t pretend not to hear.
“That…not yet.”
“If you’re worried about the long term, we can adjust it to a few months at a time, like now.”
If it was for money, as she had told Mrs. Wells, without a purpose, it was an offer she couldn’t refuse. There wouldn’t be another employer who would consider her convenience to this extent.
“I appreciate your generous offer.”
She didn’t say she would do so until the end. The Duke held back from saying another word.
“Alright. Think about it.”
She didn’t want to make it burdensome. But if her sincerity showed, it would inevitably become heavy, so she had no choice but to beat around the bush.
“Well then, I’ll be going…”
As Carol was about to leave, the Duke held her back with a regretful voice.
“The guest hasn’t arrived yet.”
The Duke has never held her back. Even though there were times when she lost track of time during their conversations and left work late, the Duke was a good employer who didn’t ask her to do anything beyond her duties.
Carol looked at the Duke’s complexion, wondering if he was feeling unwell.
He looked more composed than usual, so she hadn’t noticed.
“Could it be… are you feeling anxious?”
At Carol’s words, the Duke touched his forehead and let out a wry laugh.
“Oh dear. I didn’t want to be found out.”
Rather than feeling bad about being exposed, he seemed pleased that Carol had noticed.
“I may not be of much help, but…”
“Don’t say that.”
The Duke reached out towards Carol, but soon withdrew his hand.
He had just rejected her, but he almost touched her again.
“Just being by my side is a great help.”
“…Yes.”
As Carol stood still, the Duke asked with a puzzled expression.
“Why are you standing?”
“…Because I’ll only be here for a moment.”
“…Do you dislike being close to me that much?”
Even when they were doing tactile training, he could feel her body flinch every time their hands brushed.
“No! It’s not that, I just thought the space might be too narrow…”
The Duke laughed bitterly and took a sip of his tea.
Contrary to his bitter feelings, the tea had a sweet smell.
“If that’s the case, sit down for a moment. Unless you want to make me a cruel employer.”
Carol had no choice but to sit next to the Duke.
To reduce the area of contact, she hunched her shoulders.
“Would you like more tea?”
“That would be nice, thank you.”
The sound of pouring.
She had just emptied the cooled tea and was brewing a new one.
The Duke licked his lips.
“Did you put on perfume?”
Being close, the scent sharply pricked the Duke’s nose.
Having lost his sight, his other senses had become sensitive.
Especially his sense of smell.
She always smelled like well-dried firewood, but now that scent was completely covered.
“…Yes?”
“It smells like flowers.”
It was the scent of flowers that had fully absorbed the blazing sun.
A scent that didn’t match the winter.
It was similar to the scent of the young ladies at the social parties.
He didn’t dislike the smell.
“Yes. I put some on.”
“Do you like this kind of thing, Teacher?”
“Yes. Do you dislike it, Duke?”
“Not really, but…”
The Duke naturally took Carol’s hand and brought it to his nose.
‘It’s just that the source of this perfume bothers me.’
And naturally, why she chose to wear this perfume today, of all days, when she was with the young Viscount Walden.
Did she put it on after leaving her bedroom last night?
The Duke took her hand, turning it so that the palm was visible.
“It doesn’t seem to suit you.”
As soon as the Duke’s breath touched Carol’s hand, she reflexively shook his hand off.
Swoosh!
‘I put it on because I didn’t shower!’
As she felt his breath about to touch her wrist, Carol held it with her other hand and guarded against him.
“I tried it on to change my mood.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, it was a gift.”
“A gift?”
“Such a high-end perfume, it doesn’t suit me, right? Really.”
“No, that’s not what I meant…”
Carol rubbed the nape of her neck, where she had sprayed the perfume, with her sleeve.
“Uh.”
She rubbed it so roughly that the sleeve button left a small scratch on her neck, but Carol didn’t care.
Or more accurately, she couldn’t care.
Carol was just pouring all her nerves into the fact that she had suddenly been caught spraying perfume.
Feeling the heat rise in her face, Carol fanned her face with her hand.
“By the way, it’s surprising that you’ve decided to meet someone else.”
“…”
“I guess because she’s your fiancée.”
The Duke was not a brute to the point of forcibly digging into a topic that a lady would avoid. The Duke gave up asking about the source of the perfume and responded to Carol’s words.
“That’s not the reason.”
“Then?”
In the original work, Margaret had gained courage from staying for a long time.
The Duke’s greatest fear was showing his current self to someone who knew him at his most brilliant.
“Thanks to you, teacher.”
In many ways.
The Duke swallowed the words that were about to come out.
From some point on, the things that had been his greatest fears had become faint.
He had been so afraid that rumors of him becoming a monster in the social circles of the capital would spread, but now he thought that the rumors would eventually die down.
‘What’s more frightening is…’
Carol suddenly leaving.
Because of her, he wanted to see a new world.
It felt like he had just started living like a human.
‘So this isn’t a light jealousy.’
He was afraid of losing the means to maintain human dignity.
So he had to know whether Carol was in a relationship that she regretted, as the rumors suggested, or a serious relationship.
‘And after all, a teacher wants to see a student who grows thanks to her.’
That was the main reason why the Duke took such a bold step.
Because she would be happy with the student’s progress as much as he was passionate.
Carol, who didn’t hear the words the Duke swallowed, persuaded the Duke that he could refuse even now.
“If you’re not ready yet, you don’t have to meet.”
Carol was serious, not even guessing what the Duke intended.
“I was curious, too. Isn’t this a good opportunity?”
“That… what are you curious about…?”
What was he curious about? Carol bit her lower lip.
Was he curious about Margaret, who had come all this way because she was worried about her fiancé? She was frustrated because she couldn’t understand why his mind had changed now.
It felt like if she could untie one knot, everything would unravel, but she couldn’t find the end of the knot and felt frustrated.
As Carol was about to lose herself in thought, the Duke spoke again.
“So, are you very close with the young Viscount Walden?”
“Pardon?”
“You came to his room last night…What happened after that?”
“Pardon?”
“Never mind. Let’s pretend I didn’t ask.”
Fortunately or unfortunately, before he could dig any deeper, the guest arrived at the banquet hall.
****
To others, it was explained that Carol, in exchange for receiving a high salary, had become a direct servant of Mrs. Wells.
The time was after the Duke had an accident and began treatment at home.
Mrs. Wells, on her own, had to find a person who was tight-lipped.
The detailed conditions were set to be non-disclosable at the time of the contract, and they agreed to keep their stories to this extent.
Knock, knock.
Four people, led by Mrs. Wells, entered the banquet hall together.
“I’m sorry for being late, Miss Carol.”
“Not at all.”
After Mrs. Wells apologized with her eyes, she naturally approached the side with the drape.
Dylan and Kevin took one side, and Margaret and Louis sat on the remaining side.
Since she couldn’t sit next to Margaret, Carol naturally sat next to Louis.
She was opposite the Duke.
Although there was the drape, she straightened her back, thinking that she would be visible from inside.
After Mrs. Wells prepared the food and tea to be served to the guests, she distributed them to each person.
“Thank you for your precious invitation to an uninvited guest.”
Margaret, who received the tea first, made a toast.
“Thank you for understanding of not greeting each other face-to-face.”
“Even though knowing the circumstances, you’re not impudent to demand.”
“Thank you for your generosity.”
“Being treated so generously makes my heart generous.”
“I’m glad you liked it.”
“I hope you recover soon. It would be nice to enjoy it with the Duke.”
Margaret blushed as if she was recalling the Duke’s most splendid appearance.
Louis, who had been quietly listening to the two’s conversation, belatedly greeted the host whom he’s indebted to.
“I’ll also become indebted for a while. I couldn’t let her go alone on a snowy day.”
“There are plenty of rooms, so you don’t have to worry.”
“That’s a relief. In fact, I wanted to stay longer because there is someone in the Duke’s Mansion who I’m worried about.”
The Duke was lost in thought, listening to the neat voice beyond the drape.
In some ways, it was less than he imagined, and in some ways, it was better than he imagined.
‘It’s less than I thought.’
Usually, a handsome gentleman’s voice tends to have a certain charm.
It was a plausible voice, but it was not as attractive as he thought.
