CH 65

This is the first time I’ve been out since coming to the Duke’s mansion.

However, because I had been asked to be Lucia’s temporary chaperone, I couldn’t go out until Mrs. Morena arrived. So I expected Lucia to accompany me, but Dora, who had been preparing my clothes after hearing about it, offered to be her temporary chaperone. Jeremiah agreed that it would be fine, so I decided to accept his offer, and my heart was filled with joy.

There is snow on the street from yesterday, but the street has been cleared so it’s not that difficult. However, the air is cold and my nose hurts. But I didn’t care about that.

It’s been a long time since I’ve been to a bookstore.

I’m happy to be able to go, and my mouth can’t help but smile. Jeremiah noticed and spoke up.

“You look happy.”

He said as he looked at me with eyes that had changed from freezing to the warmth of spring snowmelt.

It’s not good for my heart to be looked at like that, but that feeling is also very happy, so I nodded vigorously.

“Yes, it’s been a while since I’ve been able to go to a bookstore, and I’m really happy to be able to be together like this.”

To be honest, Jeremiah fell silent as if caught off guard and turned to the side. Did I say something strange? I wasn’t sure, so I fell silent too. A strange silence filled the carriage.

Feeling awkward about the silence, I spoke up. “By the way, I was surprised to hear that Denny is a woman. She came in as a servant, so I thought she was a man.”

It seemed like Jeremiah was also bothered by the silence and he immediately answered my question with a wry smile. “Ah, she used to be concerned about it, but she gave up at some point. She said that fulfilling her duties as a servant is more useful and that she already has a place where she can use her heart.”

What on earth does that mean?

As I was curious but found it difficult to ask, Jeremiah seemed to have sensed it and explained it to me. “Denny is talking about the support group. She also has a preferred man, but I don’t think it’s me. After all, I’ve known her since we were children.”

“Since then?”

“Yeah, they are my trusted servants. They have been serving the Castalde family for generations. They are almost like family. That’s why I decided to set her up with you. It’s good that she’s not only strong but also a woman.”

“Oh, why is that?”

I asked, thinking that as long as someone is trustworthy and strong, it shouldn’t matter whether they are male or female. Jeremiah shrugged his shoulders and gave me a look that seemed to say, “Isn’t it obvious?”

“It doesn’t feel good to see you getting close to another man, even if he’s just a servant.”

For a moment, I couldn’t understand what he was saying. But as I began to understand, confusion slowly set in.

My emotions couldn’t keep up.

I had forgotten.

Come to think of it, Jeremiah was like this. Everything that I could brush off as acting before, I couldn’t brush off now. Because this wasn’t acting. I had learned that on that night.

As if cornering me with his words, Jeremiah leaned in closer and said, “I told you, I want you to only look at me…”

“I-I said I would.”

I did say that.

I didn’t think it was that bad, though. Well, as a servant, I do have more opportunities to interact with other male friends than with Jeremiah. But even so, I never thought he would be bothered by it.

“Even so, because you are kind, you will surely show them compassion. I can’t say for sure that they won’t come to like you. If that happens, I don’t know what I’ll do to that man, so wouldn’t it be better to avoid such a situation from the beginning?”

“I think so.”

I nodded like a puppet without saying anything.

To be honest, I felt like something was off with Jeremiah since coming to this capital city. Unlike when we were in that mansion that brought us together, he clearly seemed uneasy.

Without knowing why, I decided to do as he said for now. Jeremiah seemed satisfied with my nodding puppet-like response and returned his face to its original position after getting too close.

I couldn’t help but feel relieved.

Even now, my heart races uncontrollably when that beautiful face gets too close.

Soon, the coachman announced that we had arrived at the bookstore and Dennis opened the door for us. Jeremiah helped me down and I saw a bookstore for the first time in a while.

The smell of paper tickled my nose.

Naturally, my face relaxed. Opportunities to smell the scent of new paper are rare. In the countryside, new releases always arrive late. That’s why I always wondered if my father would go to the capital city.

“Well then, shall we go?”

“Yes.”

Jeremiah and I, followed by Dennis, entered the bookstore. We immediately began searching for books. Of course, we were looking for novels. As I scanned the entire store to check the location of the books, hoping to find new releases, I noticed something.

There was a man in the bookstore who looked familiar.

To make matters worse, he was wearing a naval officer’s uniform.

My face involuntarily twisted.

My feet began to move towards him. In my mind, I told myself not to worry about someone who just looked similar to someone else and how many naval officers could there be anyway? But that figure definitely looked like him.

My movements became stiff and strange, and Jeremiah and Dennis quickly noticed.

“Lorraine, what’s wrong? Did something happen?”

Behind Jeremiah, Dennis looked around with sharp eyes. I hesitated on what to say.

But it seemed to work against me.

The man noticed us before we noticed him.

——Oh, he’s coming this way.

With his footsteps, even Jeremiah noticed. He quickly put on a stern expression and stood behind me as if protecting me. Next to him, Dennis was ready to act in case of an emergency for her masters.

“Hey, what a coincidence. I didn’t expect to meet you in a place like this.”

“Well, I didn’t want to meet you anywhere, to be honest.”

Jeremiah replied with a freezing voice. The other person shrugged and then shifted their gaze to me.

As I thought, he’s beautiful.

Although my brother is more graceful, this person has a heroic quality that my brother doesn’t have, and his physique is slightly better. Above all, unlike my brother’s gentle eyes, he exude a terrifying charm like that of a hunter seeking prey. Their sun-tanned skin did not detract from his attractiveness but rather made them look more rugged.

While I was mesmerized, I greeted him in a low voice while remaining cautious.

“Good day, Lieutenant Colonel Caldelara.”

Yes, the person standing there was Emilio Caldelara, the naval officer who had recently tried to cause a scandal for me. He had a sweet smile on his face but his eyes remained sharp as he spoke.

“Oh, you know my rank. Did my brother tell you? You see, I got promoted in the recent war. I did it all by myself.”

“W-Well, that’s impressive.”

I answered in a monotonous tone. Although I heard about his rank from Aurelio, Viscount Caldelara, who is his older brother, it was not because I had any particular interest in it, but rather because I happened to hear it while accompanying Dorothea.

Emilio looks at me, who is like a frightened rabbit, with a joyful expression. It’s bad for my heart in a different way than when Jeremiah looks at me. It’s because the fear from that time comes back.

“Anyway, aren’t you going back to the sea? How long will the sailors wander around on land?”

The low voice increases the tension.

I’m scared hiding behind him. Jeremiah is cool too, but maybe because he’s handsome, he has an incredible presence. Moreover, when I look back, I met eyes with someone with an even scarier face. Dennis nodded as if to say it’s okay, but it’s too scary to be comforting.

To be honest, this situation is a bit difficult for a plain and ordinary lady like me.

By the way, since my mental state is like tofu, I want this staring contest between the dragon and tiger to end as soon as possible.

Putting aside my mental conflict, Emilio calmly responds to Jeremiah’s insult without any reaction.