Chapter 9

When I waved my hand gently to him, he came closer and bowed to me.

The brusque voice grumbled, “I told you not to call when I’m sleeping, right?”

“I had no other choice. It has been a while since I have been out so I want to eat something tasty, but if I go home first, I feel like I won’t want to come out.”

He sighed then poked my forehead.

I reached out my hand and pushed off the hood that he was wearing tightly.

Jet-black hair that was like the night sky came into view.

His eyes, which were half covered by his bangs, were flashed with annoyance.

The green eyes were darker and clearer on the left.

Had this been a dark place, the differences in his eyes would surely come into the light, but under this bright daylight, the contrast between the two eyes was clear to see.

When I reached out to touch his dishevelled hair, he took my hands off and quickly wore his hood back.

“I said don’t do that, didn’t I?”

“I do it because you’re beautiful.”

It wasn’t easy to see his face properly in this kind of sunny noon.

It was because the only times he took the hood off was when the day was dark or when he was inside a dark room where outside light was covered by the window.

I spoke sincerely to the guy who had turned his head halfway. “I’m serious. You’re very beautiful.”

“Whatever.” He let out a breath then caught my hand that was still touching the hood before putting my hand off.

It was such a regret that his face was quickly hidden inside, but there was nothing I could do about it.

On top of that, I dragged him here when he was reluctant to and if I bothered him even more, there was a possibility that he would run away.

“What were you doing all this time not eating?”

“Mmm, I went to lunch but I had no appetite.”

“A lunch?” He was hesitating.

Only then he looked at my appearance and fell into silence as if he had realized something.

I grabbed his hand as he was about to open his mouth as if he was guessing something, and with a familiarity headed to my favourite store.

“Welcome.”

The clerk who was busy moving around the store shouted without even looking at our direction.

Accustomed to this, I ordered a plate of skewers and walked to a seat inside the narrow store.

The smell of meat being cooked over the fire stimulated my appetite.

“Should we order something to drink too?”

“Drink water. There’s water, right?”

“Where are you going to use your money if you’re being that frugal?”

“None of your business.”

Because of his firm answer, I had to say goodbye to the fresh-looking drink containers.

Since he was the one paying, it became even harder for me to show my regret.

Not long after, when the appetizing skewers were placed in front of my eyes, I forgot my thirst for a moment.

He pushed the plate to my side.

“You’re not eating?”

“Am I you? Eating again because I can’t eat the prepared food properly? You’re the one who does such things.”

“Woah….”

Since he had come here and bought me something delicious, wouldn’t it even be better if he said good words?

When I took a bite of a skewer fully covered in sweet sauce, a cup of cold water was—naturally—placed on my side.

As I took a bite, finally the repressed hunger came back to me.

The guy who was deeply staring at me, who rarely ate in a hurry, asked with his chin propped. “So, what kind of business did that woman call you for?”

“You’re being like that again.”

“I asked what kind of business it was.”

His way of addressing a friend’s mother was quite rude.

I gave up on correcting his manner of speech and answered his question. “Mom said she’s going to remarry.”

“Ha.”

It was a face without any hint of shock.

I read the negative feeling that flashed across his eyes in a short moment, but I tried hard to pretend I didn’t know what it was.

“What kind of person is it this time?”

‘A Duke of the Empire.’

Even though he was an insolent person, he would be shocked if he knew about Mother’s remarriage partner.