Chapter 26

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***

“Yes, yes!”

Ines hurriedly followed Enoch into the villa. The servants welcomed them politely.

“Welcome, Duke.”

“I was waiting.”

Enoch turned to Ines.

“These are resident servants who will help you. The chef and the maids.”

“Nice to meet you. I am Ines.”

As Ines greeted them, the servants responded by bowing their heads again.

“If you need anything, feel free to tell them. Don’t worry about security because they have heavy mouths.” (*he meant they don’t talk recklessly)

“Thank you.”

After that, Ines followed Enoch’s guidance and looked around the villa.

“I’ll leave you with some escorts, so you don’t have to worry about safety.”

“Ah, thank you.”

“It doesn’t matter what you use in the villa. Everything is at your disposal.”

Ines felt a bit embarrassed to say thank you four times.

Ines, who was about to answer involuntarily, changed her words in a hurry.

“I’m sorry I owe you so much.”

“This is my suggestion, so there is absolutely no need to feel uncomfortable. Ah, this room will be your bedroom…”

Enoch, who smiled brightly, continued explaining the villa.

Enoch’s taste was felt in every little thing.

So, to summarize her impressions of visiting the villa in one line.

‘Wow, it’s very luxurious!’

As the only heiress to the Count of Brierton, Ines was proud of being quite familiar with the high culture of the upper class.

Even in her eyes, this villa looked impeccably elegant.

‘Well, I don’t know if it’s appropriate to use the expression that a place has dignity.’

Ines, who was thinking so, suddenly looked out the window. A vast plain where grain grows, and houses dotted around the village.

It was as lovely as a house made of matchboxes.

‘It’s peaceful.’

Ryan and Charlotte were having an affair, and Ines herself suffered a horrific death.

Going back to the past, even the fact that she was about divorce Ryan felt so far away.

The surroundings around her were just peaceful.

‘Ryan.’

Reluctantly, thoughts flowed to Ryan.

Ines’ expression darkened a little.

At the same time Enoch called her.

“Countess Brierton?”

“Ah, yes!”

Ines, who had suddenly regained her consciousness, looked back at Enoch, but her shoulders hardened right away.

‘Ah, we made eye contact.’

Enoch’s dark blue eyes were staring at her.

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing.”

Ines reflexively shook her head.

Then Enoch narrowed his eyes.

“The Countess answers ‘Nothing’ too often.”

“…Do I?”

Ines looked a little embarrassed at the unexpected comment.

Enoch pointed it out again.

“It’s probably nothing.”

“That…..”

“If you don’t want to, you don’t have to say it. But…”

Enoch spoke in a subdued voice.

“I hope you don’t dismiss your thoughts and feelings as ‘nothing’.”

When he said that, Enoch’s gaze somehow seemed to care about her very much.

As she met his gaze, her heart throbbed.

“Yes. It was nothing.”

Ines, who answered quickly, looked out the window for no reason.

If she didn’t do that, Enoch would find out about her burning cheeks.

“You know, once.”

A voice like a sigh scattered through the air.

“I once wanted to come with Ryan to such a beautiful place.”

Ines’ dark green eyes filled with sad light and fell deeply.

“I wish Ryan was kind to me, and I wish we could spend time together… It was really hard to let go of that expectation.”

“Why?”

Enoch narrowed his brow slightly.

Every time Ines put Ryan in her mouth, she had that kind of expression. A lost expression, as if she had fallen into the sea with a rock hanging from her ankle.

And for Enoch, the fact that Ines made that kind of expression for Ryan was…

‘It’s unpleasant.’

At the same time, Ines smiled bitterly and shrugged her shoulders.

“Did I say something out of the ordinary?”

“No.”

Shaking his head, Enoch frowned and added his words.

“But I don’t like it.”

“What?”

“The Countess is wasting her energy thinking about the Count.”

‘Why is the Duke of Sussex offended by that?’

Ines tilted her head and looked at Enoch’s expression.

‘Somehow, the Duke seems to be subtly angry now.’

Honestly, why?

Ines and Enoch were a cooperative relationship with a common goal.

Of course, Enoch was quite friendly, but that was because Ines was Enoch’s partner.

There was no reason to be so emotional… … Meanwhile, Enoch, who had moved his lips as if to say more, let out a sigh and opened his mouth.

“I will return to Langdon now.”

“Already?”

“It’s been quite some time already. I have some work to do.”

Then Ines nodded her head in agreement.

“Yes, the Duke is a busy man, so you should go back quickly. Thank you for your consideration.”

“It’s nothing.”

It was strangely annoying when Ines said she understood and told him to go back quickly.

But he couldn’t figure out why that bothered him, so Enoch walked out of the villa with a timid gait.

Ines also followed to see him off.

“Go back carefully.”

“The Countess must be tired too, I hope you get some rest.”

Even after saying goodbye to Ines, his steps did not fall at all.

Enoch got into the carriage, trying not to look back.

“To the townhouse.”

“Yes, Duke.”

The carriage began to run smoothly.

Enoch slowly pondered what had happened today.

“Why am I so annoyed?”

Whenever the Countess mentioned the Count. As if someone had ignited a fire in his chest, his stomach kept getting hotter.

Even when she told him to go back. It was a common sense and polite answer.

But Enoch couldn’t understand why he was bothered by that answer.

‘What the hell did I expect from the Countess?’

Enoch, who had been thinking deeply for a long time, stopped for a moment.

‘Did I wish I could spend a little more time with her?’

Enoch’s forehead wrinkled for a moment.

He laughed in vain.

‘No way.’

Since the Countess’ divorce case was not far away, it must be because he himself has become too sensitive. Being so engrossed in all sorts of thoughts, Enoch didn’t notice at all.

The fact that Ines did not go back to the villa, and was watching the back of his carriage as he moved away.

***

At the same time.

Ryan couldn’t contain his anxiety and was pulling his hair out.

“Charlotte, what should I do?”

Ryan, who was chewing his lips, looked at Charlotte, who was sitting next to him, with trembling eyes.

“Is Ines really going to leave me?”

“No way!”

Charlotte hurriedly grabbed Ryan’s head and patted him on the back.

“Ines cannot live without you.”

“That, right?”

“Then. All this will pass, don’t worry.”

Ryan buried his head in Charlotte’s arms.

Charlotte hugged Ryan as if to appease a whining little child.

“That girl is bad, tormenting our Ryan so much.”

But unlike the sweet words that came out of her mouth, Charlotte was also thinking of Ines.

‘D*mn b*tch.’

Charlotte bit her molars. For Charlotte, Ines has always been the object of envy.

Ines was the only heiress of one of the most prestigious families in the kingdom. She had an elegant and dignified appearance like a deer, and an enormous wealth that would not diminish no matter what. And she was loved by everyone, with her kind personality.

Wherever Ines went, she captured the attention of people.

On the other hand, Charlotte herself had nothing to do with her glamorous looks.

‘It’s really annoying.’

Charlotte was from a Baron family that could not advance into the central social world from the beginning. She felt sorry for herself because she was stuck in the family and couldn’t do anything.

‘What is the difference between me and Ines?’

That intense sense of inferiority.

‘I didn’t realize that our lives were so different, even though we come from only one different family at most!’

So Charlotte made the most of her position as Ines’ only friend.