I Became The Mother Of the Male Lead Who Lives With An Adulterous Man

She wondered if it would be possible to leave in disguise, like Cian, but in the end decided against it. It was ridiculous for Rachel, who had never practiced stealth, to take young Graham out with her without anyone knowing.

Rachel apologized with a sullen expression.

“Hmm… What should I do? I think it will be difficult to go out today. Mom’s sorry.”

Graham’s eyes widened in surprise, perhaps because the apology was unexpected.

“No, Mom! It’s not that I want to go outside, I just…”

It broke her heart to see him look so lost. She was thankful for the child’s willingness to be considerate of his mother without complaint.

She held Graham tightly in her arms.

“Thank you and I’m sorry. I’m so glad I have Graham.”

“Mom…”

“Later, when everything is over, let’s go outside. We’ll go for a walk in the park and eat ice cream. Okay?”

“Yeah! Definitely! Let’s go eat ice cream together!”

It was lovely to see Graham smiling and being able to embrace him tightly.

“What should we play today? Would you like to draw?”

“Okay, sounds good!”

Graham drew two people on a piece of paper. There was the very pretty Rachel and the adorable Graham. When she asked, ‘Why isn’t there a father?’ He replied, ‘I forgot,’ and put a little dot in the corner.

 

After Rachel had beed playing with Graham for a while, an employee came into the room and held out a silver tray.

“My Lady. Archduke Cian Dicarsignac has sent a letter.”

“The Duke?”

Rachel opened the letter and checked its contents.

 

[Dear Countess Elrosa,

This is Cian Aisa Dicarsignac.

I would like to meet you personally and chat before you are officially called to the council of elders.

There are many eyes watching the Count’s mansion, so please take the carriage we send and come to the Dicarsignac mansion.

It is excellent at avoiding the unwanted gazes and preventing others from following you, so you can use it with confidence as it is the carriage I use for stealth.

P.S. I heard that most of the people who worked in the mansion were fired. If you don’t have anywhere to leave your son, bring him. My daughter would enjoy it.]

 

She folded the letter and cheered silently.

Graham and Dolorosa’s love affair was something she’d been planning to take her time with after her divorce from Theodore.

‘Oh my, I never thought Cian would take the initiative to arrange a meeting between Graham and Dolorosa!’

Plus, this way she would also be able to take Graham outside the residence as well. Since the carriage was sent by Cian, there was no need to worry about being followed!

Her shoulders lifted with excitement.

Graham, who was looking up at his mother beside him, pouted his lips.

“Mom, do you like the paper more than me?”

“Huh?”

Did she look too excited?

Hmm, she cleared her throat and calmed her expression.

“You were sad because of mom? I’m sorry for making you misunderstand. I’m just glad something good happened to Graham.”

“Something good happened to me?”

“Yes. A very, very good thing.”

“What is it?”

Graham blinked as if he didn’t understand.

Rachel smiled brightly and stroked Graham’s head.

“His Highness the Archduke invited us to his residence. We’ve been wanting to go out, Graham, and we’re going to sneak off in a special carriage to the Archduke’s mansion.”

“Who’s the Archduke?”

“Um…….”

She resisted the urge to tell him he was his future father-in-law.

“He’s incredibly handsome, has a great personality, and a high rank. I think he’d be right up your alley, Graham.”

Graham’s face darkened at the compliment, but the excited Rachel didn’t notice.

 

Elrosa’s mansion was very large and beautiful for a Count’s mansion, but it was still only a Count’s mansion. It didn’t compare to Archduke Dicarsignac’s mansion. The residence was more like a castle.

“Wow, Graham. Look at that. It’s so much bigger than our house.”

“Yeah.”

Throughout the carriage ride, Rachel was excited to have Graham and Dolorosa meet, but Graham was strangely depressed.

“Graham, are you ill, you don’t look well.”

“I’m fine, just……. I’ve got a lot to think about.”

“I see.”

She had no idea what the four-year-old was thinking.

When they got off the carriage, Cian greeted them.

“Welcome, Countess Elrosa. Thank you for accepting the invitation.”

It is a pleasure to meet Your Highness, Archduke Cian Aisa Dicarsignac. It’s an honor to be invited.”

Rachel then bowed to the girl standing next to Cian.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Princess. I am Rachel Elrosa.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Dolorosa Dicarsignac. Please take care of my father.”

It was a polite and courteous greeting. As expected from the original female protagonist, she was different from other children.

Dolorosa was a beautiful child with cyan hair and sparkling golden eyes. Her chubby cheeks were so cute and adorable that she wanted to pinch them.

Graham puffed out his cheeks as he saw Rachel smiling brightly at Dolorosa.

Who is this little girl that makes his mom laugh so easily?

Graham was jealous of Dolorosa, not realizing that he was younger than her.

He didn’t like both the Archduke, who could make his mother laugh with just a piece of paper, or the little girl named Dolorosa.

He raised his head and looked up at Cian.

Unlike his father Theodore, the man before him was elegant and held dignity in every word and action. He was thoughtful and handsome.

Even in the eyes of young Graham, he was cool.

He also saw Dolorosa standing in front of him. Marsha sat Graham down once and told him what a child should be like, and she fit the bill perfectly. She looks cute and cuddly, but also calm and obedient.

‘What if mom likes the Archduke or the little girl more than me?’

He was scared.

Graham had to be the best he could be for his mom, and he had to be the one to make her laugh. If she liked someone else, he would be abandoned.

Because that’s what his dad did.

Cian’s gaze landed on a sullen Graham. Instead of reprimanding his child, he greeted him first.

“You must be Graham Elrosa.”

“Yes.”

Graham slightly raised his head. The gazes of the two met in midair.

A glint of admiration flashed in Cian’s eyes.

‘I heard he’s only four years old, but his gaze is deep and mature. Is it because he grew up watching an immature father?’

Cian saw Dolorosa in Graham.

Dolorosa was only seven years old, but she spoke and acted like a teenager. People praised her for being mature, but he thought differently. He felt sorry that her mother’s absence had caused the child to grow up too fast.

He also felt sorry for Graham, who was in a similar situation to his daughter. He was proud of the child who grew up and persevered through difficult situations.

Cian leaned down and held out his hand.

“You must have worked hard to protect your mother on behalf of your father.”

It was the highest compliment for Graham.

Graham’s dull eyes sparkled, and his hunched shoulders straightened. He took Cian’s outstretched hand and nodded.

“… That’s right. Thank you for noticing.”

What was that? Thank you for noticing?

Rachel almost burst out laughing at the cute response, but she barely held it in because Cian and Graham were so serious.

The two exchanged glances for a long time. It was surprising that Graham, who was normally very shy, made eye contact for this long with someone he was meeting for the first time, so Rachel waited without disturbing him.

It was Cian who looked away first.

“You say hello, too, Dolly.”

“Hi, Graham. I’m Dolorosa.”

Rachel smiled at the cute, simple greeting.

Graham’s expression, which had relaxed, hardened again.

“…”

“Graham? You should say hello too.”

“…Graham Elrosa.”

The greeting was far from polite.

Rachel patted her chest, grateful that Cian and Dolorosa were not too concerned with status or politeness. They could have gotten into trouble if he’d acted like this in front of another noble.

“Graham, your mother needs to speak with the Archduke today, could you wait with Princess Dolorosa for a moment, it won’t take long.”

“What?”

Graham’s eyes widened in an instant. His eyes trembled as if the child would burst into tears at any moment.

“Uh, weren’t you going to come with, mom?”

“Did you want to play with mom?”

Graham pursed his lips and nodded.

She was sad to see that, but at the same time he looked cute and lovely, so her heart ached.

Rachel lowered her body, making eye contact with Graham and asked cautiously.

“I thought Graham wanted a friend. That’s why I tried to introduce you to Princess Dolorosa. Did mother get it wrong?”

“I said I didn’t need any friends.”

It was a stubborn and resolute refusal.

If Dolorosa and Graham were to become lovers, it should be solely because they wanted to. She didn’t want to force them together, no matter how much they loved each other in the original story.

Maybe it wasn’t time yet.

After a moment of thought, Rachel nodded.

“Okay. I’m sorry I acted without your consent, why don’t we go back home?”

Graham opened his mouth to say yes, but then froze.

Graham thought about Rachel, who had been excited all the way to the Archduke’s mansion. He also recalled her smiling brightly while looking at the piece of paper.

She needed to talk to the Archduke. He didn’t know what they were talking about, but he thought his mother would be very happy after that.

“Ugh…….”

His tiny hands clenched into little fists.

Graham loved his mom, and he knew that when you love someone, you have to do things you don’t want to do to make them happy.

In the end, Graham shook his head.

“No. You said you wanted to talk to the Archduke, so……. I’ll wait.”

“Are you sure?”

He just nodded without answering.

Dolorosa, who was watching from the side, smiled brightly and grabbed Graham’s limp hand.

“I will take care of Graham, so you two can talk properly.”

“Thank you, Dolly.”

“Thank you, princess.”

Graham kept looking back with regret as he was led into the mansion by Dolorosa. As soon as the child was out of Rachel’s sight, he slapped Dolorosa’s hand away.

Dolorosa’s eyes narrowed as she looked at her slapped hand.

“You have a very bad temper, don’t you?”

“……I don’t know.”

“Your Mom won’t like it. You should be a good boy.”

She was right.

Graham clamped his mouth shut.