Chapter 17

As one would expect from a businessman. George only gave me a necklace the size of a bean, and so he assumed the right to pester me day by day. He sent me so many letters that I lost count, and I’m already getting sick of it.

“Was it from the Count again?”

I put on a bitter expression as I lifted his letter at the tip of my fingers as if I was picking up something dirty.

The poor insentient thing had to bear the brunt of my contempt, but I couldn’t help it whenever I think of whose hands had soiled it before.

How could I have endured living in close quarters with such an awful man? I still couldn’t fathom myself that I withstood his revolting presence for many years. It was truly admirable of me in the past.

Nancy tilted her head in front of me while holding the silver tray.

“Do you not like it, Miss? Wasn’t it the letter you’ve been waiting for?”

“What is there to wait? I simply made a deal with the Count.”

“Oh, forgive me, Miss. I thought Count Page likes you since he kept sending you letters.”

Such nonsense! The thought of it alone had almost brought vile up to my throat.

He’s just a businessman who’s trying to get his money’s worth. Nancy wouldn’t know it because she hasn’t read the letters, but every single one of them had similar contents as the others, such as:

[Lady Nelson, have you told good things about me to Lady Moore?]

And every single time, I replied with:

[I talked to Daisy every day but my words weren’t able to touch her heart yet. I think I need a little more time.]

I wished all of these troubles be done with so that I wouldn’t be wasting my time like this. After I did my part and sent George an honest reply, since then, he sent me a letter every day.

Truth be told, I haven’t seen Daisy in the past few days since that day at the salon. Perhaps she was still sulking because I didn’t take her side?

I don’t suppose Daisy wants me to go after her first and console her, do I? If that’s the case, then sorry to disappoint her, but I had no desire to see her face.

I opened the letter with a relaxed mind. This time, however, the letter from George was a little different. He wasn’t asking about the progress, but for a meeting.

“Let’s meet and discuss?”

Let’s just exchange letters and do nothing more, shall we? I don’t want to see your face either.

But I could not ignore his request at all because I already took the bribe.

Thinking that George wasn’t really to Daisy’s taste, my hand that was holding the letter fell hard on the table.

First of all, his status as a Count is a failure itself. Daisy’s family was wealthy and had the same status as him, so he may be trying to propose engagement with her with this in mind, but what else can I do if Daisy is not satisfied with being a Countess, which she is.

Secondly, George was conspicuously lacking in charm, both inside and out. Being a husband in my previous life wasn’t even enough to sugarcoat everything about him.

Why are these all you’ve got? Tall, thin as a sheet, not to mention the face. Daisy would have been more open-minded if only he had half the resemblance of Duke Harrison.

Is there even a chance for Daisy’s heart to be swayed by George? No matter how much I try to build a bridge between them, it would be impossible if there’s no one on the other side.

After I sort of finished writing a reply to George, I put my chin on the table.

By the way, how’s Duke Harrison faring these days? Curiously enough, I thought of him out of the blue. I don’t know why there’s no news from Logan when I should have received an invitation from him some time ago.

Did something happen? What kind of change has happened that he’s taking a different course from his previous life?

There’s no way he would sever his ties with me unless his fate has changed and in the fountain, he saw a fac—.

“—Miss.”

I blinked my eyes at Nancy, who stirred me from a daze. She had a hopeful look with George’s letter in hand.

“Aren’t Miss supposed to go out today? Shall I get you ready now?”

Oh, I nearly forgot. I made an appointment with Nancy yesterday. We’ll go out and see the streets together. At times, Nancy and I would go around the capital, and afterward, we’ll get ourselves a nice meal. In the past, we would have fun between just the two of us whenever I’m feeling down.

I put thoughts of Logan aside and straightened out my unsightly posture. After briefly staring at the letter in Nancy’s hand, I opened my mouth and said.

“Yes. Could you join me after I drop the letter?”

The Square, which I came with Nancy, was crowded today. Was it because it’s lunchtime? Somehow there seemed to be a tad more people around, especially ladies.

There was nothing particularly new about the streets, but Nancy seemed to be in a good mood today, hearing her voice full of excitement.

“Miss, are you going to have lunch first?”

“Should we? What do you want to eat?”

“Well, I…” With a flushed face, Nancy doesn’t know what to say.

Knowing Nancy, she probably wants to eat a lot but was too shy to say it. Between going out in the capital and at the Marquisate, I think we can eat something more delicious here than the latter.

I waited for Nancy’s answer with a soft smile. It was then that Sir Bolt, who was following us from the start, addressed me suddenly.

“Miss. There’s……”

“What is it?”

“Isn’t that the commoner from the Marquisate? What was his name again? Logan?”

“What?”

Logan’s here? When I saw where Sir Bolt was pointing, there really stood Duke Harrison not far away.

I suppose you were doing well seeing you were out and about in the capital. However, who are you waiting for?

I stopped walking and watched his figure. He stood in front of the general goods store and was looking around slowly.

I was looking forward to meeting him at his residence, and yet I saw him here. Why in the world was he here of all places? Looking at Logan in a trance, I was startled when Sir Bolt suddenly spoke beside me.

“Didn’t he said he was traveling? But why did he came to the capital?”

“What do you mean? It’s only natural for him to be in the capital since he’s a D—!”

Oh, wait a minute. Only then did I notice something odd. The Duke’s outfit was not much different from what he wore when he was posing as a traveler. There was a reason why Sir Bolt had addressed Logan a “commoner.”

Though his outfit looks more refined than before, isn’t it a bit too simple for a Duke to wear?

Was the Duke’s casual clothes like that from the beginning?

It was when I was watching him fixedly that he strangely stopped looking around, then suddenly turned his head and looked at me.

“……!”

My eyes met his directly in an instant.

The second that I felt like I was caught peeping, I turned my gaze away hurriedly and was frantically looking around at anything, from the surroundings to a lamp post. It was an instinctive move. I immediately ceased the ridiculous activity when I suddenly thought about it.

Why can’t I just greet him normally? We had a meal together at the Marquisate for goodness sake. There’s no need to ignore him and pretending not to see him like this. I don’t know why I became silly and turned my head away.

I approached his direction and looked for him again after I stopped outside the store, but I couldn’t see where he had gone.

Did he leave before long? Didn’t he see me? You wouldn’t have pretended you didn’t see me just like what I did, would you? I turned around, tilting my head in confusion and a bit downcast.

But then, a familiar voice caught me from behind.

“Lady Sienna.”

It was a calm, low voice. It was Logan’s.

After I swiveled around, I was momentarily stunned by how close he was standing in front of me.

When did you get this close? I forgot to say my greetings in a moment of surprise as he stared down at me, his crimson-red eyes glinting.

But I was even more surprised by what he unexpectedly said next.

“I was waiting.”

“…… Pardon?” I glanced up at him and blinked.

He’s waiting for whom? I don’t suppose it’s me, right? Why in the world was he waiting for me?