CH 6

“I wore it thinking it would work on catching the attention of a man I’d meet, but it didn’t. So, I’m never wearing it again.”

Callie went even further and said she wore the dress to attract attention.

“Do you think it didn’t work?” Brandon laughed meaningfully. “The young lady’s appearance that day was quite impressive. The dress you wore that day definitely played the part. I thought the Count’s daughter wanted to marry me to the extent that she’d wear such a bold dress.”

Callie couldn’t fight back because she had admitted it herself, but she couldn’t help but feel embarrassed when she heard Brandon’s words.

“I’m a little embarrassed to tell you, but can I tell you a secret?”

“A secret?”

Callie stared at Brandon, her eyes wide opened, and he half-raised himself to lean over her. 

Then he whispered low into her ear, “The day I met you, I was going to bed, but it was a bit difficult because I kept thinking about you. I’m sure you’re familiar with the rumor, but I’m so full of energy there.”

Brandon smiled slyly as he returned to his seat after cracking a dirty joke.

It was clearly a joke meant to provoke her, but Callie boldly countered. “Oh, really? It’s a carefully tailored dress from the capital’s most famous dressing room, so I’m glad it worked. It’s a pretty expensive dress.”

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“You can often wear that kind of dress even after we get married. Ah, only in front of me, of course. For another man to see it… Well, I don’t think I’d like it.”

Even after we get married?

Callie’s eyes widened as she read the essence of Brandon’s words. “Does that mean you’ll marry me?”

“I want to, but how about you? Ah, didn’t you say you wanted to marry me the day we first met? Then, let’s get married.”

Callie thought her opportunity had passed because she hadn’t heard from him since that day.

However, when he contacted her after two weeks and talked about marriage so easily, Callie couldn’t help but be surprised.

“If you’re joking, that’s terribly rude, Sir Brandon.”

“I’m not kidding. I’m serious. I also told my father and mother that I would marry the young lady.”

“Yes?”

“Why are you so shocked? Wasn’t this what you wanted, too?”

“It is, but… Honestly, I didn’t expect you to make a decision so quickly.”

“The beautiful and charming lady of the Loris county wants to marry me, so there’s no reason to refuse.”

“Then… It’s that simple.”

“Is there anything difficult to think about? Anyway, whoever it was, I would have to marry the daughter of the family my father decided. Oh, are you sad there’s no formal proposal? Then, shall we do it right here?”

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When Brandon got up from his seat with exaggerated gestures like a stage actor and tried to kneel in front of Callie, Callie panicked and stopped him.

“It’s okay, Sir Brandon.”

“So, will you marry me?”

“Yes, I will. Sir Brandon.”

After promising to get married, Callie left the salon, feeling Brandon’s gaze follow her as she walked away. Taking one step at a time had never been so uncomfortable.

But Callie didn’t slow down or look back.

‘Finally, I can leave that disgusting house.’

Callie, who had no idea what would happen in the future, thought the only thing left to do was to be free.

“I heard a call came from the Cleart family.”

A smile came across Susan’s face. Besides, her voice was also soft like never before.

It was the first time Susan had spoken to Callie in such a gentle voice. Callie was disgusted with her soft, even friendly attitude, and she could only snort.

“He proposed the marriage between you and Sir Brandon.”

“It turned out just the way you wanted it.”

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She had already heard about it from Brandon, so she wasn’t really surprised.

Susan gave her usual fierce glare at Callie’s sarcastic remark but soon softened it. She was obviously in a good mood, but she wouldn’t forget those bitter words.

“Who could you have inherited the knack for seducing men? It’s amazing how he decided to marry you after only seeing you once.”

Callie couldn’t stand to listen to this kind of insult.

“Rather than my skill, the dress Mother got for me by selling a ring must have worked. So, how fortunate that your money didn’t get wasted.”

Even if Susan bullied and intimidated her from a young age, how could she never get discouraged? She was always on the defense, never held her tongue, and said everything she wanted to say.

Even if she wasn’t Susan’s real daughter, living together in the same house made her feel affectionate, but because of Callie’s attitude, as time went by, instead of affection, only hatred festered. 

But it wasn’t long now when Susan didn’t have to see that cheeky, mean face. She would have to close her eyes until then. 

Then a large dowry would comfort her, and she would no longer have to live this pathetic life. 

Susan clenched her teeth, trying to suppress her rage.

“Since you’re about to get married, be careful with your behavior so as not to disgrace the Loris family. Don’t be cheeky and rude. Don’t let Sir Brandon change his mind and cancel his marriage. Do you understand?”

Cheeky and rude, she said? Who turned her into that?

To others, they pretended to have raised Callie with love, but that wasn’t true.

When she was young, they fed her food that had already gone bad and had to be thrown away, and when guests came, they locked her in a small room for several days to avoid trouble.

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Susan’s real daughter, Romy, was three years younger than Callie, and Callie was often blamed for Romy’s wrongdoings and punished for it. 

She hated Matthew even more than Susan.

Even though Susan was abusive and often mistreated her, Matthew consistently ignored it.

He knew how harsh Susan was with her, yet he never once stopped Susan or sided with Callie.

When her father was alive, Matthew was a good uncle, but when he died, he became a lesser man.

Such hatred and resentment piled up, and now Callie was sick of the people of this family.

If she just endured a little bit more, she’d be able to get out of this hellish place after getting married.

Thinking about it made her feel free from the handcuffs she’d been wearing for so long.

“If it comes to bad behavior, can I even hold a candle to Sir Brandon? We both know he’s not a man of impeccable character who behaves.”

Now that this situation had come to pass, Callie was grateful that Brandon had been living such a profligate life. If he didn’t, another family would have coveted him and already taken her place.

Sir Brandon Cleart, thank you for living a scandalous life so I could get a chance.

“Rumors are just rumors. They’re a successful family, so people want to wound them by making up stories about them. There’s no need to believe in things like that,” Matthew defended Brandon, avoiding Callie’s gaze.

Matthew, who had a lot of outside activities, would know much more if they really were rumors, but he just shrugged it off as false stories to hurt Brandon’s family. 

Callie laughed. 

“Then I’m relieved.”

If Callie could have her way, she would never have had this kind of marriage even if it meant having such a wealthy family of in-laws.

No matter Brandon’s reputation, all they cared about was the dowry and support they’d get from his family.

‘But it won’t work as the two of you want.’

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Callie laughed to herself as she saw the two excitedly thinking that they would now become in-laws with the Cleart family and receive strong support.

Matthew, who had no interest in Brandon’s behavior, diverted the topic. 

“I wanted the wedding to be held on Cleart Street as soon as possible, so I said yes. It is good for you too.”

‘It’s good for you, not me. You’ll be able to collect my dowry quickly.’

“So, what’s the date?”

Callie also wanted to get out of there as soon as possible.

“They said it would be around the middle of next month.”

“If it’s the middle of next month, there’s less than a month left.”

They decided the get married after only meeting once, and the wedding was a month later.

As expected, it was a marriage that depended on the interests of both families, so the progress was swift.

But since it wasn’t bad for her, Callie followed it obediently.

“You have to start preparing for the wedding tomorrow, so you should quit your job as a tutor and focus on the wedding preparations. Got it?”

Stop being a tutor? That’s troublesome.

She needed a proper job in case she’d later live alone. That was why she started working as a tutor in the first place.

Callie had been a tutor for several years after thinking about what to do for her future.

Matthew and Susan were reluctant to spend money on Callie’s education.

However, Callie, a clever girl, thought of her future early on, and after graduating from primary school, she studied alone and didn’t let go of the book.

Thanks to that, humanities, history, philosophy, mathematics, science… There was no field that she knew nothing about.

If Susan and Matthew had given her permission, if they had paid for her tuition, she would have been able to attend university in the capital.

Then, it was only after the family became more financially burdened that she started working as a tutor.