#022
“I came by to see if you’d like to have afternoon tea together. Are you very busy?”
“Your Grace!”
A cute little cake box dangled from his hand. Eliana smiled as she accepted the cake box wrapped in a sky-blue ribbon.
“You two seem to be getting along very well.”
Madam Quarnet spoke with an enraptured expression.
Though known as the Empireās most infamous rogue, he was also its most popular man. His looks certainly contributed to that.
And Elianaās beauty went without saying. Madam Quarnet couldnāt take her eyes off the image of a refined gentleman with such a beautiful woman.
“Oops, pardon me. I must have been intruding on your time together.”
As she hastily tried to gather her thingsā
“You seem to have gotten quite close to Madam,” Gredy said, wrapping his arms around Elianaās waist from behind and resting his chin on her shoulder. His breath on her earlobe made the tiny hairs on her neck stand on end.
“We were talking about you.”
Eliana ran the back of her hand along his cheek to push him away as he hovered, close enough to kiss.
Though a fierce battle of nerves was underway, Madam Quarnet only saw a lovesick couple who couldnāt keep their hands off each other. The sensuality of Gredy kissing Eliana’s neck left Madam Quarnet breathless.
Eliana, turning her head as if tickled by the kiss, looked utterly adorable. In reality, Gredy was biting her nape out of frustration he couldnāt unleash on Viscount Hoffmanābut Madam Quarnet, who preferred comedy to tragedy, only saw what she wanted to see.
“Ah!”
“You were talking about me? What could such beautiful ladies possibly be saying about a lowly man like me?”
Eliana grimaced and shoved his cheek away with force. But with his arms still around her waist, she couldnāt easily escape.
Madam Quarnetās hands slowed as she packed. Instead, her ears perked up like a rabbitās, fully focused on their conversation.
“Yes. Specifically, we were talking about your meeting with your father. What did you decide to do with the Marquisās estate?”
‘Not youāyour inheritance!’
“Heh.”
As Eliana pulled tightly on his cravat, Gredy exhaled sharply and released her waist.
“The Marquisās estate, you say?”
“Yes. The funeralās over, so shouldn’t that be dealt with next?”
Eliana asked sweetly while smoothing out the wrinkles on his cravat, but the glare she gave him was sharp.
“Ha!”
Gredy gently caressed her cheek, sighing in disbelief. He looked as if even chewing her out wouldnāt be enough.
“Madam Quarnet, the exit is this way.”
Emma, seeing Madam Quarnet still lingering even after packing, kindly opened the door for her.
“Iāll take my leave now. Iāll return once the final fitting is ready.”
Madam Quarnet bowed slightly toward Eliana and Gredy.
“Thank you for your efforts. Also, please send the bill for the dress to Viscount Hoffmanās household.”
“Pardon?”
“Oh! My father is still staying at the Marquisās estate. Please send it there.”
“ā¦Yes.”
Madam Quarnet, flustered and darting her eyes around, quickly lowered her head and withdrew.
Once the door shut, the expressions on both their faces changed instantly. As if rehearsed, they turned their backs on each other.
“Never thought Iād live to be manhandled by a woman.”
“Same here. Never imagined I’d be bitten by a person.”
“Didnāt you like it?”
Gredyās shameless face made Eliana pause for a moment.
When sheād first met him, she still bore the whip marks from her second husband.
Maybe this was the result of not clearly answering his serious question about whether that was her “thing”?
As Eliana fell deep into thought, Gredy plopped down in a wingchair without hesitation and propped his feet up on the table.
He clearly had no intention of showing gentlemanly manners in front of her.
As Eliana hesitated, Emma entered to set out the cake and tea Gredy had brought, then left again.
The afternoon sunlight streamed through the tall windows, casting its warmth over the two of them.
“I didnāt expect you’d go to your father for a dowry.”
“Iāll open an account for you.”
Gredy spoke casually as he ate the cake on a white plate.
“An account?”
Eliana tilted her head and sighed softly.
He was too fast. For someone like Eliana, who had just escaped Viscount Hoffman and was trying to start a new life, it felt overwhelming.
“Iāll open a secret account for you at Paras Bank. Whether we divorce or I die, youāll need money, right?”
He leaned back as he muttered, his tired face fully revealing his exhaustion.
“I never imagined that the money to fill that account would come from your father.”
Eliana sipped the subtly bitter tea and lifted the plate of cake. The fluffy cream on top piqued her curiosity.
“Do you not even realize how wealthy you are?”
“ā¦ā¦”
“Is your only interest seducing men?”
Gredy shook his head and looked at her with disappointment.
Eliana pursed her lips at the biting words but said nothing in the end.
She didnāt feel the need to explain. She had dragged another man into this again because she couldnāt protect herself alone.
Explaining herself to Gredy would only feel more humiliating. She didnāt want to be pitied by even him.
“My father managed all the finances, so I never really knew.”
The unnecessary excuse left her mouth out of sheer pride.
“You two got along so wellāwas there a falling out?”
His piercing gaze made her whole body tremble.
“The first time, maybe it was out of ignorance. But not the second. If it wasnāt your own will, why would someone with your looks marry a Marquis like him?”
Each of Gredyās words stabbed into her chest.
If she had been so broken and tamed like a beast that she hadnāt even considered escapingāwhat would he think?
Elianaās gaze drifted out the windowāto where Rodin had stood guard.
“Is my past a problem for our marriage?”
Her dry blue eyes turned to Gredy. Like the dry season before rain, the moment her teary eyes faded, it left only cruelty.
Overcome by guilt, Gredy looked away first.
“Letās just say I asked out of personal curiosity.”
“Please refrain from unnecessary curiosity. I havenāt asked you anything about your past loves either, have I?”
At her words, Gredy frowned.
“ā¦Alright.”
He answered after a while.
In that moment, an invisible line was drawn between them. A line they could neither cross nor retreat from.
“I hadnāt even thought about an account. Thank you.”
Eliana spoke up, unable to bear the suffocating silence any longer.
It wasnāt just empty gratitude. She had only been focused on running from Viscount Hoffmanāshe hadnāt thought about life afterward. That made Gredy’s thoughtfulness even more appreciated.
“No need to thank me. As I said, itās your money. And besides, you need a conscience to keep your pride, right?”
“ā¦What?”
Eliana, holding a cup of milk tea, lifted her head. Her trembling hands, unable to find warmth, shook the cup slightly with the movement.
“I donāt care about your conscience. Iāve long since abandoned mine. But pride is different.”
“ā¦ā¦”
“Youāll soon become the Grand Duchess of the Kraiber family, and stand before the Empire.”
“ā¦ā¦”
“Having married twice before will become a shackle that wounds your pride.”
“ā¦ā¦”
“Womenās pride battles are predictable, after all.”
“I didnāt expect you to care about my pride.”
“Donāt flatter yourself. I did it for me, not for you.”
Gredy set down the cake plate and rinsed his mouth with tea. His face, now cold and hard, was unrecognizable from earlier when Madam Quarnet was present.
Eliana pressed her lips together.
She was used to this kind of coldness. It didnāt warrant any emotional response.
But she couldnāt stop the ache in her chest.
“Then I suppose I donāt need to feel sorry.”
“You can say that if youāve fulfilled your duty.”
Gredyās gaze fell on Elianaāa gaze so intense it felt like it could burn.
Avoiding his unfamiliar stare, Eliana asked,
“What do you mean?”
“Thereās a new gambling ring in the capital.”
“ā¦ā¦”
“People are placing bets. Will Gredy Kraiber, married to Eliana Hoffman, live or die?”
His tone was melodic like a song, but his eyes were dark and still. His crossed leg swayed lazily in the air.
“Thatās ridiculous!”
“Two of Eliana Hoffmanās husbands have died already. Naturally, people are curious whether the third will survive.”
Gredy leaned back and closed his eyes. The warm afternoon sun bathed him in gold, but the air around him was chilling.
“ā¦ā¦”
“I have a question.”
Gredy still had his eyes closed. Eliana, who had been silent like a wax figure, looked at him.
“ā¦ā¦”
“Were you involved in their deaths?”
Her hands on her lap began trembling like aspen leaves. A faint metallic taste of blood came from her bitten lip.
“ā¦ā¦”
After waiting a long time for her answer, Gredy rose from his seat.
Then, without another word, he walked out of the drawing room.
Ughā¦. Seriously stop hurting each other š¤¦š»āāļøš¤¦š»āāļø