Chapter 155. Did You Know That Fact?!
“Um, Jade…….”
A morning spent together after quite a long time.
At around the time the meal was nearly finished, Jade turned his gaze to the right at the sound that reached him.
“Yes, Deborah.”
As he lightly nodded his head, the lips that had been hesitating finally began to open slowly.
“Starting tomorrow, perhaps…… may I go back to the bookstore again?”
He had already found it strange.
Throughout the meal, she had stared at him several times, and she looked as though she had something to say, but he could not very well bring it up first, so he had simply waited and watched.
Waiting for her to speak first.
Yet to think that was the reason behind her mysterious behavior—it was enough to make a laugh escape him in disbelief.
“Isn’t it still a time when you should be careful?”
He did not know much about it, but he had heard that the early stages of pregnancy were the period that required the most caution.
He had seen couples who pushed themselves too hard and suffered unfortunate consequences, so naturally he could not help but worry.
At his concerned reply, Deborah quickly shook her head.
“It’s okay. I asked, and they said the most critical period has already passed. And…… working at the bookstore isn’t really that strenuous.”
Words she did not need to say.
She knew it was somewhat inappropriate to say such a thing in front of her employer, but Deborah added those words after much consideration, worried that he might oppose her.
—I’ll help you. Until the baby is born.
That had already been two weeks ago.
That night when she had gone to the study, after Deborah had cried silently for a long time, Jade had said those words to her.
That he would help her until she gave birth.
In her hopeless situation, with no one to rely on, those words had been an indescribable comfort.
So much so that every time she recalled them afterward, she inevitably became emotional.
But that did not mean she could simply continue relying on those words.
She knew his offer to help was sincere, but no matter what, she could not burden him to that extent.
Most of all, the baby would be born soon.
Her child.
No matter how pathetic she was, she could not raise her child on someone else’s support.
That was the conclusion she had reached after several days of deliberation.
For now, she had to save as much money as possible before the baby was born.
There were countless things she needed to prepare, but the most urgent matter was securing a place to live after giving birth.
The problem, however, was that there were hardly any places willing to take in a pregnant woman.
No, in truth, there were almost none at all.
Since employers could not make her work freely as they pleased, and because it would become troublesome if she miscarried while working, they would reject a pregnant woman from the outset.
“Actually…… they said that moving around moderately is better…….”
Growing anxious because of his continued silence, Deborah cautiously added what she had heard from Lea.
She knew it was shameless of her to act this way now, but she had no other option.
“Deborah.”
His previously closed lips finally parted, but for some reason, his voice sounded unusual.
And with that serious expression as well.
Without realizing it, she swallowed hard.
“Yes…….”
She nodded with a tense expression, but what was strange was the silence that followed once more.
Could it be that he had already found someone else?
Or perhaps he simply did not want to entrust the bookstore to her again…….
Various thoughts tangled together, making her mind even more complicated.
Just as her anxiety was steadily growing, wondering what he found so difficult to say—
“Perhaps, perhaps, you see. If I…… if—”
“…….”
“I mean, if I were to, Deborah—”
That was when she sensed something strange.
The repeatedly broken words.
At first she thought he was merely answering her question, but a strange feeling began to creep over her as she realized that was not the case.
“……Jade?”
Unable to endure it any longer, Deborah finally called out to him.
“What’s wrong? Is something…… bothering you?”
Perhaps because she had already heard such a shocking story recently, she thought there was nothing left that could surprise her.
Yet her heart grew anxious without her realizing it.
After waiting in that tense state for some time,
Jade finally broke the long silence and spoke.
“No…… it’s nothing.”
Although he shook his head and denied it, Deborah somehow found it unconvincing.
It felt as though he clearly had something he wanted to say but was hiding it.
She could have simply let it pass,
but once again, Deborah could not hold back and asked.
“……Wasn’t there something you wanted to say?”
If he was hiding it because he thought she might be shocked, she was telling him it was fine and that he could speak.
He seemed to hesitate for a very brief moment, but in the end, Jade shook his head again.
“Later, later.”
“…….”
“When the right time comes, I’ll tell you then. Not now.”
“…….”
He could not say it now, but he would say it when the time was right.
Perhaps because of those suspicious words, her brows unconsciously furrowed.
Seeing her expression, laughter suddenly burst from Jade’s lips.
It was so loud that several people standing around the table flinched in surprise.
Not long after that, Jade finally gave the permission she had been waiting for.
If she promised not to overexert herself, she could return to the bookstore.
Overwhelmed with happiness, Deborah completely forgot
what it was that Jade had been trying to tell her moments earlier.
—
“My Lady, you have arriv—”
The Marchioness swept past the butler who bowed in greeting.
As if that were not enough, she flung open the office door without even knocking, causing not only the butler but also everyone inside to turn toward her in shock.
“My dear, what on earth—”
“Leave us.”
After striding over to the desk where the two men were seated, the Marchioness cut off her husband’s words of reproach and addressed the aide standing beside him.
Her profile was so cold that even amid the situation, the aide could not help but wonder.
What in the world had enraged the usually gentle Marchioness so much?
Enraged.
It was a word that seemed completely unsuited to the Marchioness, yet looking at her now, there was no word more fitting.
Although there were still many documents left awaiting approval, the aide instinctively sensed that now was the time to withdraw.
“I shall return shortly.”
After respectfully bowing to the Marquis, the aide also greeted the Marchioness before quickly leaving the office.
“What exactly do you think you are doing?”
It was something he had never experienced before.
At the first display of such ill-mannered behavior from his wife, who was always elegant and refined, Marquess Constant’s face twisted harshly.
Ordinarily, she would have immediately looked troubled at such an expression from her husband, but she continued glaring at him with unabated fury.
Only then did Marquess Constant realize something was wrong.
During the twenty years of their marriage, he had never once seen his wife angry.
Occasionally she had expressed disappointment, but even that was something she only showed when they were alone.
When such a wife behaved like this in front of the servants, there was always a reason.
And the Marquis knew very well what that reason was.
His previously twisted eyes gradually narrowed.
“Did you know that fact?”
“That fact? I have no idea what you are talking about.”
At his shamelessly calm response, the Marchioness’s eyebrow twitched.
“I mean the reason Duke Cheister postponed the engagement.”
As though swallowing down her anger, she forced out each word.
The situation was unfolding exactly as he had expected, and a click of the tongue escaped the Marquis.
‘After all the effort I put into making them keep their mouths shut—.’
Instead of answering, he merely clicked his tongue, causing the Marchioness’s anger to grow even stronger.
The emotions she had suppressed all the way here finally exploded.
“I asked you to answer me!”
Bang—!
At the sound of her fist striking the desk, one of the Marquis’s eyebrows twitched.
“I’m asking whether you knew that Raymond von Cheister…… postponed his engagement to our Olivia because of nothing more than a maid he kept around for amusement!”
Watching her tremble with rage, the Marquis thought to himself.
After all the trouble of separating him from that girl and finally securing the engagement, it seemed everything might be ruined because of something entirely unexpected.
Then again, she was the kind of woman who would leap into a pit of fire without hesitation for her daughter.
She had already harbored resentment toward the ducal house for repeatedly delaying the engagement, so learning this fact as well made her reaction understandable.
However, no further unnecessary discord could be allowed here.
“What nonsense is that? An engagement between noble houses is not a joke. There is no way Duke Cheister would do such a thing over a mere lowly maid.”
“Don’t try to deceive me! I heard everything!”
“My dear, why would I deceive you?”
“Then are you saying the rumors spreading throughout society are completely baseless nonsense?!”
Only then did the Marquis realize who had filled his wife’s head with such unnecessary stories.
‘This is exactly why I hate gatherings where women congregate.’
Clicking his tongue, the Marquis suppressed his irritation and continued calmly.
“Of course they are baseless rumors. It is obvious they were fabricated by people jealous of us.”
“…….”
His firm declaration left the Marchioness momentarily speechless.
Not missing that opportunity, the Marquis pressed on.
“If it were true, then that would mean I knowingly proceeded with the engagement.”
“Then are you saying you have thought of me as that kind of man all this time? A man blinded by alliances who would send his only daughter into such a humiliating situation!”
Instead, the Marquis raised his voice as though he were the one hurt by her distrust.
Only then did panic appear on the Marchioness’s face.
“N-No, when did I ever…….”
“If you trusted me, you would not react like this because of a few words from someone else!”
“No…… that’s not it. You know how much I trust and follow you, don’t you?”
The fierce momentum she had shown moments ago had vanished, and now the Marchioness looked flustered before her husband’s anger.
At this point, the Marquis briefly considered his options.
Should he continue his anger and leave the office,
or stop here and gently coax her instead?
The former would undoubtedly be more effective, but for the sake of his soft-hearted wife, the Marquis chose the latter.
Besides, he did not particularly want things to become any louder.
The Marquis quietly took hold of his wife’s restless hand.
“Of course I know.”
“How could I not know how much you trust and follow me?”
Patting her delicate hand, he whispered in a gentle voice.
“They are all just rumors.”
“So you need not worry about anything.”
“As always, all you need to think about is our Olivia’s happiness.”
“……Really?”
“Of course. Truly.”
“How could I lie when it concerns our precious Olivia?”
‘Our precious Olivia.’
At that affectionate phrase, the remnants of doubt lingering in the Marchioness’s eyes were completely swept away.
The Marchioness wrapped her arms around her husband and nodded.
And needless to say, a short while later, the corners of Marquess Constant’s lips curved smoothly upward as he embraced her.
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