Chapter 20
“I wasn’t even on the terrace in the first place. I made it up after hearing how calmly you explained everything.”
What…? I was so stunned that my mind went blank.
What did he just say…
This man, who had said he wasn’t the kind of person who’d lie to protect someone, had just lied—without changing his expression at all.
Wow… I let out an involuntary gasp of disbelief. Then I snapped back to reality and stood up, slamming my palm down on the table.
“What were you going to do if you got caught lying?!”
Sure, I’ve got a bad reputation, so maybe it wouldn’t hurt the Vissen family or Harold too much. But if Harold got caught lying…
The thought alone made my face go pale as a sheet. Harold, meanwhile, calmly held his wine glass in his right hand and rested his chin in his left. His chin tilted up slightly.
“Do I seem careless enough to get caught lying?”
“…”
I sat back down slowly.
Right… Harold wouldn’t handle things so carelessly. My worrying was unnecessary.
“I’m lucky to have such a capable husband. I feel relieved now.”
“Only now do you realize how lucky you are?”
With my worries melting away like snow, I couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
I glanced past the terrace and suddenly remembered last night. I’d been practicing dancing in my pajamas.
“I practiced so hard for today… but now, because of those two, I’m just sitting here. Well, it’s not like today’s the only chance.”
With my mind now at ease, a casual complaint slipped out. Thinking about how much time I spent practicing made me pout a little, but honestly, my legs felt so weak now that going to the party and dancing would’ve been impossible. I’d probably make more mistakes than I did during practice.
I also wanted to get a bit closer to Lady Mayer, but… hopefully, today’s mess doesn’t push her away from me.
Sigh.
“You’re sighing deeply,” Harold noted, narrowing his eyes as he set down his wine glass.
He stood up, and with a few long strides, he was in front of me.
“…Harold?”
He gently took my hand, which had been resting quietly on the table. Then, he raised it to his lips and kissed it softly.
“Shall we have a dance?”
My eyes went wide.
“My legs are too shaky; I’ll mess up for sure!”
“As if you wouldn’t mess up even if you weren’t shaky.”
Ugh, this guy.
I stood up, glaring at him while he smiled that annoyingly beautiful smile.
“I’ll show you what perfect dancing looks like tonight!”
“We’ll see if you can manage that by the end of tonight.”
I grabbed his hand and shoulder with a determined look in my eyes. Perfect timing—music started playing from the party hall.
As we danced, I paid close attention to each of my movements. So far, so good—no mistakes yet.
Feeling proud of myself, I flashed Harold a grin, but my gaze drifted past him to the beautiful night sky, and I found myself thinking of last night again.
Last night, I was dancing on the terrace in my pajamas. Tonight, here I am all dressed up, dancing properly.
The situation was kind of funny in a way, but I didn’t feel bad about it.
The night sky was lovely, the sound of the orchestra mixing with the chirping of crickets was nice… it was all quite romantic.
Thud.
“Ah!”
I accidentally stepped on Harold’s foot and quickly stumbled backward in shock.
I glanced around nervously, trying to gauge his reaction.
“…”
“…”
“Is your foot okay? Should I treat it?”
“Heh. You really are bad at dancing.”
I clenched my fist in frustration.
“If I wasn’t so shaken up from earlier, I would’ve danced perfectly.”
Even I knew it sounded like a lame excuse, so I turned my head in embarrassment.
“Really? If nothing had happened earlier?”
“Yes.”
Probably.
At that moment, Harold gently grasped my chin, making me face him.
He slowly leaned in, his dark eyes drawing closer, making it impossible to tell what was on his mind.
“Shall I get revenge?”
The cold night air mixed with the sweet scent of wine, and it wrapped around me. Suddenly, I felt warm all over, probably thanks to the lingering buzz from the wine.
“Hmm? Diana, do you want revenge?”
His voice was soft, almost teasing, as he adjusted his grip on my chin. His fingers brushed against my lower lip for just a second.
I flinched and pressed my lips together. He had only touched my lips, but it felt like something else in my body was being tickled.
“Uh, um… I mean…”
Revenge. He said revenge, right? The word echoed in my mind like I was drunk, even though I hadn’t had that much to drink. It must be because his absurdly handsome, beautiful, and slightly decadent face was so close to mine.
I’ve said it before, but I’m really weak when it comes to his face!
I raised both hands to cover my eyes.
“Pfft.”
Harold laughed out loud and let go of my chin. His soft voice had a musical quality that was oddly pleasant to listen to. Peeking through my fingers, I saw Harold’s smile—it was even more beautiful than the night sky.
“You can just look at me directly.”
“…”
I quickly closed the gap between my fingers and pretended not to hear him.
“Oh? Do you enjoy peeking instead? You really are a pervert.”
Not wanting to be labeled a pervert, I quickly lowered my hands.
“Diana.”
“Yes?”
“You’re actually pretty amusing.”
Does he think I’m a joker? I pushed my lips out in a pout. Harold just chuckled, clearly entertained, as he took a seat at the table.
“Diana.”
“Again, what?”
“Did you know? Even if you had told me not to take revenge, I would’ve done it anyway.”
Harold tilted his head, giving a sly smile.
“I can’t stand seeing the people who mess with what’s mine walking around like nothing happened.”
‘Mine.’
The possessiveness in his words was intense. Not that I minded too much—it was probably just a temporary thing while I was still helping him recover.
“So this wasn’t a proposal, it was an announcement.”
“Pretty much.”
I nodded. I wasn’t so soft-hearted that I’d feel any pity for the ones who had maliciously trapped me. And besides, if I thought about the real Diana, maybe those two deserved a little punishment.
“Go all out. I’m sure you’ll handle it well, Harold.”
As I sat down, he raised his glass.
“I won’t let my wife down.”
***
Kaiden gently laid Ella across the seat of the carriage. Her golden hair spilled messily over the seat, yet her beauty remained striking, even with her hair in disarray.
Seeing her pale skin under the moonlight reminded him of when she’d been poisoned. After taking the antidote and recovering, Ella had been shocked to learn that Diana was behind it.
‘Diana tried to…’
Though she was terrified that her friend had tried to kill her, Ella initially begged Kaiden not to take action against Diana.
‘Don’t be too hard on her, Kaiden. I’m fine.’
‘You’re trembling like this and you’re fine?’
‘…Diana liked you so much. I can understand why she’d do this to me. Sniff…’
Her golden eyes welled up with tears.
‘…I’m scared of Diana now, but I’ll try to understand her.’
‘You’re too kind.’
It was hard to believe how she could forgive someone who had nearly killed her out of blind love. Kaiden admired her for it. Ella possessed things Diana—who followed him like a shadow—lacked: a supportive network, beautiful looks, and a heart so wide it seemed able to embrace anything.
This is what a duchess should be like.
Kaiden had chosen Ella as his partner and treated her as such. And after much consideration, he decided to eliminate Diana for trying to harm Ella.
‘No matter what you say, I won’t forgive Lady Diana.’
‘Kaiden…’
‘There’s no point in trying to stop me.’
‘…Alright.’
In the swirl of his memories, Kaiden’s expression tightened. He instructed the coachman to set off. A butler from the Mayer family had suggested waiting until Ella woke up before departing, but Kaiden had politely refused.
As the carriage started moving, Kaiden’s face hardened.
“Ella.”
“…”
In the quiet, secluded space, his low voice rang out, carrying an ominous tone.
“I know you’re awake.”
“…”
“I saw everything. The way you treated Lady Diana—or should I say, the duchess.”
He had followed her to the garden while she searched for Harold and had seen everything. Gritting his teeth, Kaiden felt a burning sensation in his chest.
“Why did you do it?”
Ella opened her eyes and sat up, meeting his gaze. Kaiden’s eyes were frozen with quiet fury, a look that only came out when he was genuinely angry.
“Or is that just the kind of woman you are?”
Ella bit down on the inside of her cheek, trapped in the very situation she had dreaded most.
