PLMYP 50

Please Let Marriage Be Your Payment!,

Chapter 50 —

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“Why didn’t you say so earlier?”

Irenea placed the shawl from her shoulders on the table and slipped off her robe. Underneath, she was only wearing a long negligee that reached her calves.

The silk negligee wasn’t so thin that it showed everything, but it wasn’t thick enough to keep her warm either.

In short, her shivering shoulders didn’t look like she was pretending.

“Ah, it’s cold. I’ll catch a cold like this.”

“……”

“Why are you just staring like that? This is your chance to give your fiancée your jacket…! Kyaa!”

Irenea let out a high-pitched scream because Leonard suddenly lifted her up in his arms.

It happened so quickly that she only realized she was holding onto his neck after he stepped out of the room.

Of course, she didn’t dislike it. In fact, she liked it. But the situation was so unexpected that even breathing felt careful to her.

“Wh-Where are we going?”

“To the bedroom. Unfortunately, my fiancée isn’t dressed warmly enough to avoid catching a cold with just a jacket.”

The hallway was dark and quiet since all the servants had gone back to their quarters. The only sounds in Irenea’s ears were Leonard’s footsteps and her own pounding heartbeat.

“And just how are you planning to warm me up in the bedroom?”

“In a way only a fiancé can.”

“What?”

Only a fiancé could do that?

Irenea’s eyes wavered like water. She swallowed hard.

‘Tomorrow is… our wedding day anyway.’

Spending the wedding night a day early wasn’t really a problem. As soon as she thought that, Leonard laid her down on the bed.

But instead of him climbing over her, what covered her body was a warm blanket. It was enough to chase away the cold.

“…You said it was something only a fiancé could do?”

Her eyes glared sharply, like broken pieces of expectation.

Leonard answered in a plain tone, as if her glare didn’t bother him at all.

“Who else but a fiancé can carry you into the bedroom, lay you on the bed, and tuck you under the blanket? Who is it?”

“……”

She couldn’t argue, which made her even more frustrated.

Her lower lip stuck out in a pout, and Leonard couldn’t help laughing. He pressed down her lip gently with his finger, as if telling her to put it back in.

“You really are sisters. Miss Elizabeth also pouts like this.”

Sitting by the bed, Leonard looked down at her with warm and gentle eyes, without a single shadow in them.

Maybe… the reason she came back to the past was to see this face. Irenea smiled quietly.

“Didn’t you say you’d call her Elli from now on?”

“You heard that?”

“Just what you said before parting. I didn’t hear what you two whispered by the pond. What secret were you sharing so quietly?”

“We were planning to elope tomorrow night.”

“This man, seriously.”

She gave him a side glance, and Leonard burst into laughter.

His laugh was pleasant to hear, and his crescent-shaped smile was lovely to see. Irenea couldn’t help but laugh along with him.

“Maybe it’s because we’ve lived together for about a month, but I think you’re finally getting comfortable with me.”

“What do you mean all of a sudden?”

“You didn’t notice? You make more jokes than before.”

“……Me?”

Leonard frowned slightly, as if replaying his words in his head. Lying sideways so she could see his face better, Irenea reached out and smoothed the crease between his brows.

“Charlotte keeps saying you’re cool, so I think she likes you as her brother-in-law. Elli also seems to have opened her heart to you now.”

“……”

“Now, it’s just you who needs to finish adjusting. So, I have a suggestion.”

“What is it?”

With a light smile, Irenea said,

“Let’s talk comfortably when it’s just the two of us.”

Her unexpected request made Leonard raise an eyebrow. Irenea, playing with his thick brows, whispered,

“I don’t want you to be too formal with me.”

“If you tell that to a former mercenary, you’ll regret it. I might really start treating you roughly.”

“That would be good. Actually, I prefer men who are a bit rough.”

“You prefer rough men…”

Leonard suddenly grabbed her hand, stopping her from tickling him.

“Who was the man that made you realize that preference?”

“Huh?”

Her fingers twitched in his grip, caught off guard.

Feeling like she was trying to pull away, Leonard held her tighter.

“Whether rough or gentle, you must have had someone in the past to figure out that preference. Am I wrong?”

“Well… do you really need to date someone to know? You can just imagine the type you’d like.”

“So you’ve never had a man before?”

At that moment, Irenea instinctively avoided his eyes.

She quickly looked back, but Leonard didn’t miss that brief flicker.

Narrowing his eyes, he made her flustered.

“I can tell you this clearly. For me, the only man is you, Ray.”

“You don’t need to convince me like that.”

“But still…”

“Lin, I only want to know one thing. Tomorrow, I’ll be your husband.”

He brushed his thumb over the gemstone on the ring on her left hand—the same color as his eyes.

“Even then, if someone shows up later saying that spot is theirs, should I step aside?”

Ah, so that’s it.

That’s why this house still didn’t feel like hers. That’s why even the wedding tomorrow didn’t feel real. Because she wasn’t sure if this was truly where she belonged.

“…Would you really give up if I told you to?”

“Of course.”

“Why? Why is that so obvious to you?”

“Because…”

Our marriage was decided by your will alone. If you don’t want it, then canceling it is only right.

Even though he didn’t say the words, Irenea seemed to hear them.

She smiled—but her face didn’t look like smiling at all.

“I know it’s early to ask, but I’ll ask anyway. Don’t you desire me?”

“……”

Leonard didn’t answer right away.

But since he didn’t say “no,” Irenea leaned against his chest, satisfied with that.

Burying her face against him, she took a deep breath.

She wanted to feel the heat of his strong body and breathe in his unique scent deep into her lungs.

“I want you to desire me. If someone tries to take me away, I want you to keep me, even if you have to kill them or lock me away.”

“…Your sister said persistent men aren’t popular.”

Leonard’s expression grew complicated.

“Looks like you really do prefer rough men.”

“Yes. And one more thing. I want someone who will live longer than me, even if it’s just for one more day.”

Rubbing her cheek against his chest like a spoiled child, Irenea rested her ear over his heart, as if it had always been her place.

“I want someone who’ll be with me until the moment I close my eyes for the last time.”

I hope it’s you.

She whispered softly, then tilted her head to kiss his chin.

And she smiled—sweet and aching at the same time.

“I’m yours.”

“……”

“Just like you’re mine.”

Did she know?

That saying “you’re mine” shook Leonard’s heart more deeply than saying “I’m yours.”

He had been abandoned by his parents, sold, left behind, forced to move endlessly. And now, she said she would claim him and keep him until death.

For someone who had never truly belonged anywhere, being bound like this…

Didn’t feel bad at all.

His heart beat so hard it almost hurt.

“Lin. Do you know what it means when we say we’re each other’s?”

“Of course. Even if you abandon me, as long as I don’t abandon you, you’ll never leave my side.”

She was exactly right.

It meant that even if one day she abandoned him, as long as he never abandoned her, she would still be his.

‘Mine.’

Just like she always did, Leonard pulled Irenea tightly into his arms.

Now he understood why she always hugged him this way.

Her warmth spread into him, filling his empty chest to the brim.

“You say all these things to stir me up… You’d better not change your mind later.”

“Didn’t you just tell me not to say such things?”

“That was before.”

“And now?”

Now, if you try to leave me, I’ll want to lock you away.

But he only shrugged, keeping that thought inside.

He gently laid Irenea back on the bed and kissed the gemstone on her ring.

The only thing left from his mother. For the first time, Leonard found himself liking the rare color of his eyes.

Because with this ring, no other man would ever doubt who its true owner was.