TYWAUOM 08

Chapter 8

‘Tomorrow… no, even if I come another day, will I be able to say it?’

Aisha, who had been smiling to herself while thinking of Ian, wiped the smile from her face as she remembered the reason for her visit. She had confidently declared her intentions in front of her family, but in truth, her heart had been pounding the entire ride over in the carriage.

‘We were in the middle of discussing the engagement when he suddenly left on a trip…’

Aisha had two reasons for visiting the Marquis of Lloyd’s estate. One was to apologize for the incident at the recent charity party. The other was to bring up the issue of their stagnant engagement. Up until Ian suddenly left for his trip, there had been occasional talks about their engagement—but ever since he departed, it was as if all communication had been cut off.

In fact, this wasn’t the first time such a thing had happened. Both families had verbally agreed to the engagement since Aisha was a baby. However, the late Marquis and Marchioness of Lloyd passed away in an accident, and whenever the engagement was mentioned, Ian would avoid the topic by secluding himself or going off on a journey.

Count Graham of Farden had always patiently tried to reopen the discussion with Ian. But this time was different. When Ian left six months ago without a word, the count told Aisha that the Farden family would not mention the engagement again—unless she herself took the initiative.

Though Aisha felt her world collapse, she understood her father’s position and nodded in agreement. Honestly, after three years, it wouldn’t have been strange if her father had grown angry about it.

‘I have to consider Father’s position… If I want to be engaged to Ian, then I need to be the one to settle things.’

Aisha was fully aware that her actions now bordered on desperation. But when it came to Ian, she could set aside her pride and resignation. After all, he hadn’t outright rejected her, and hadn’t he—though rarely—said some positive things before?

As long as he didn’t flat-out refuse her, Aisha was willing to bring up the engagement again and again.

Knock knock.

Just as she braced herself once more, there came a knock, and a familiar-looking butler appeared. His neatly slicked-back gray hair and slightly apologetic face greeted her as he stepped forward.

“Young Lady, sorry to keep you waiting.”

“It’s fine. More importantly, James—it’s been so long.”

“My apologies for not greeting you sooner, this old man is slow.”

James had served the Lloyd family since Ian’s grandfather’s time. Having been the head butler for over twenty years, he had watched Aisha grow up and always doted on her. Seeing the familiar warmth on his face, Aisha smiled brightly.

“It’s really alright. Actually, I think I’ll head back now. It’s almost dinner time, and Ian seems busy… But I’d like to schedule a time to meet. Do you think there’s a convenient time for Ian?”

At her question, James’s face darkened. Since Aisha’s arrival, he had relayed her presence to Ian multiple times. But his young master merely told him to leave things be, giving no instruction to send her away or to make her wait—just burying himself in work. Occasionally he asked for tea or smoked a cigar, so it wasn’t as if he had no time. Why he was being so contrary, James couldn’t understand. He sighed inwardly.

“I’m terribly sorry, Young Lady. As you know, the master only recently returned from his travels… If you go back for today, I’ll be sure to set an appointment and send you a message.”

Aisha managed to hide her disappointment and tucked a strand of her light brown hair behind her ear as she nodded gently.

“I understand. Then I’ll be counting on you.”

“Would you at least like something to eat before you go?”

“How could I, when I haven’t even gotten his permission? It’s alright—I came by carriage, so I can return quickly.”

“But…”

“I’ll be going now. I’ll see you again soon, James.”

As Aisha turned to leave, she pressed a hand against her pounding chest. She could feel James flustering behind her, but she didn’t turn around. If she saw his face now, she felt like she might cry.

“Young Lady!”

Just as she was about to leave the parlor, a servant came rushing down the stairs in a near sprint. Seeing the unseemly haste, James shot the servant a stern glare.

“What’s the matter?”

“Well… the master has asked that the young lady be brought to the small reception room on the second floor.”

James turned to look at Aisha. She had already spun around, her face lighting up. Seeing her so cheerful made James feel oddly uneasy.

“This way, please. I’ll escort you.”

Leading her up the stairs, James glanced upward. At the second-floor railing stood the young master, leaning idly as he watched them both.

The small reception room James led her to was designed as a private room, meant for discreet conversations between the host and guest. Once she was alone with Ian in the closed-off space, Aisha fidgeted nervously.

“You look a bit pale. Waiting this long must’ve been tiring.”

Ian spoke without looking at her, lifting a teacup to his lips. Snapping back to attention, Aisha saw that James had thoughtfully prepared tea and light refreshments on the table.

“Ah… thank you, Ian.”

As she reached for her teacup, she instead picked up a cookie. It felt a bit greedy, but having eaten less than usual that morning, her stomach was on the verge of growling. And the buttery white cookies—her favorite—smelled too tempting.

From behind his cup, Ian furrowed his brow as he watched her, then put the teacup down. Though the sound was soft, his annoyed expression made Aisha silently put the cookie back. As she anxiously gauged his mood, Ian let out a mocking snort.

“Why did you wait for two hours? Most people would’ve just left.”

“I planned to wait from the beginning. I had no other plans today, so I had plenty of time…”

“Is that so?”

His voice was as flat as usual, but Aisha could sense his displeasure. Ever since childhood, Ian bit his lip slightly when in a bad mood. When her gaze reached his lips, he furrowed his brow and leaned back on the couch, crossing one leg over the other. His pose, though lazy, exuded a sensual air that made Aisha drop her gaze in embarrassment.

“Ian… are you angry because I waited?”

The silence stretched on, and Aisha, nervously staring at the tip of his shoe, asked. Her cheeks had grown faintly red. Ian curled his lip, replying bluntly:

“Why ask something so obvious?”

“…What?”

Her face instantly drained of color. Ian crossed his arms and watched her reaction without flinching. His tapping foot hinted at his irritation.

“You may have had plenty of time, but I didn’t. Being forced to deal with an unexpected guest like that is uncomfortable for me.”

“…If you’d told me to leave, I would’ve.”

“It’s impolite to tell someone who came all this way by carriage to leave. I figured if I said nothing, you’d get the hint and go.”

“……”

“You’re as clueless as you were at the charity party. Must be all that pampering.”

At his cool tone, Aisha’s shoulders trembled. Ian kept his gaze locked on her until she finally met his eyes.

“…I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking.”

Unable to endure the tension, Aisha apologized with her head bowed. Ian felt strangely about her apology. Was he still annoyed? Yes—but seeing her so submissive didn’t make him feel bad. He uncrossed his legs and leaned forward.

“Forget it. What’s done is done. You came here for a reason—go ahead. I made time before lunch just for this.”

His tone, as if granting mercy, was arrogant. Following the slight nod of his head, Aisha clasped her hands tightly. The gesture looked as though she were summoning courage. Ian smirked and picked up a cookie—just like the one Aisha had chosen earlier—and took a bite.

“First… I wanted to apologize about the party. You gave me a heads-up not to come, but I didn’t get the message. I heard from Sophia that my showing up made things difficult for you.”

“Difficult? Why would I be in a difficult position because of you?”

Still chewing, Ian tilted his head, and his golden hair shimmered as it fell. His confusion seemed genuine, prompting Aisha to hurriedly explain.

“You had someone else as your partner… I thought maybe my presence made things awkward for you…”

“So Sophia ran her mouth again.”

Ian finally understood and straightened his posture. Finishing the cookie, he gave her a cold look that resembled a midwinter frost.

“Don’t worry about useless things. There’s nothing going on between you and me, so nothing about you could ever cause me trouble.”

At those words, Aisha felt her heart drop. She should have been relieved… but why did it feel like her chest was caving in? She nodded slowly, pressing her hand against her tightening throat.

“…I see. That’s good.”

For a fleeting moment, Ian’s icy blue eyes shimmered. He crossed his arms again and asked casually:

“Is that all you came to say?”

“No… there’s something more.”

As Aisha shook her head, he gestured with his fingers for her to continue. Frozen with hesitation, she finally spoke.

“Ian… about our engagement…”

“……”

“Before you left on your trip, the talks were getting serious. I wasn’t there, so I don’t know the details, but from what my father said—”

“Haa…”

Her sentence was cut off by Ian’s sigh of displeasure. Startled, Aisha looked up at him, only for him to twist his lips into a mocking smile.

“Do noble ladies now go around arranging their own engagements? How shameless.”