Chapter 18
***
He flicked at the collar of his own shirt, which she had grabbed.
"Khaled. For Emily's sake, you'd better keep your distance from Miss Sandalwood."
Laura's smile was as gentle as ever, as if she'd brought the subject up just for the sake of saying it. When the Duke of Karnus had recognized his illegitimate child as his own and bestowed upon him a title, she had made only one resolution. She would get rid of that eyesore in a hurry.
He may have grown up to be a successful businessman, but he was still a bastard-a flawed creature who would never be a perfect aristocrat. In that sense, Emily Ravant was a grateful fool to have fallen for him.
What's more, the Countess of Ravant was no stranger to prejudice. The two’s innocent and stupid daughter was the only one who could fulfill her wishes.
"The beautiful lady is jealous, as you well know. Why don't you nip anything in the bud that might make her sad in the future? The last time I saw you two together (Emily and Khaled), my heart was filled with joy. How well you look together."
"Miss Aubrey Sandalwood did not come to me with a black heart."
Khaled, who had been listening for a while, said, locking eyes with his parents.
"She just came to return the handkerchief I lent her the other day."
"......."
"Alas, contrary to mother's suspicions, the young lady has no ill will toward me."
Laura's face, which had been bright all along, twisted into a small grimace. Khaled's gaze rested on the back of his stepmother's hand, white as a sheet, gripping the knife tightly.
"Good, then."
She said, barely maintaining her smile.
"I'll get up first."
Khaled, who hadn't even cleared his plate halfway, stood up. At the same time, Hardy, the butler, cautiously announced something to Laura.
"Ah, yes."
Laura exclaimed, as if she had forgotten. This was the year she had to get rid of that tiresome bastard.
"There's a dinner party at the Ravant’s, and I want you to come with me. You've always refused, saying you were too busy with work, and it would save this mother's dignity."
"My schedule then was......."
Out of habit, Khaled pursed his lips. He seemed to think about something, and then he gave his mother the answer she wanted so badly.
"I will."
In his mind's eye, he saw a woman other than Emily Ravant. The woman who had begged him with tears streaming down her face.
* * *
Since early morning, Boris had been pruning the branches of a tree that grew to touch the sky. Wiping the beads of sweat from his brow, he glanced down. He saw Aubrey gripping the ladder with a dazed expression on her face.
"Miss, you can stop holding it now."
"......."
"Miss?"
Boris hurriedly finished what he was doing and came down the steps. Aubrey was still clinging to the ladder as he stepped onto the ground.
"Miss?"
"What? Oh, yes. Are you done? What are you going to do now?"
Boris sighed as he watched Aubrey wipe her hands quickly on the hem of her dress. She wouldn’t leave if he told her to, and if he told her to go away, she would just sit there and stare blankly into space again.
"Would you like a glass of orange juice?"
With that, Boris invited Aubrey to his cabin. Boris's cabin was quite ramshackle, but it was small and cozy. In the summer, it was shaded by a beautiful tree that stood by the entrance, and in the winter, it was cozy with the light of a small fire in the wood stove.
Aubrey sat at the head of the dining room table, staring at the wood grain. As if counting its patterns. Boris set a glass of homemade orange juice in front of her and asked,
"What's wrong?"
Finally, Aubrey looked up. The sight of his gentle face overwhelmed her. She had never known a father before, and now Boris had become a father figure.
When tears welled up in her distracted eyes, it was Boris who panicked. He bustled about the small cabin with his burly body, found the cleanest handkerchief he could, and handed it to her.
"Did you quarrel with Miss Emily?"
He had heard that from the mansion's occupants. Aubrey must have embarrassed her at the party. They said that Lady Emily would not have let it go, that she was too much of a nuisance. But when asked if they had a fight, Aubrey shook her head. Hmm. Sighing, Boris changed his mind.
"How was the party?"
He asked, even though he had heard about how ridiculous it had been at the party. Luckily, the question made Aubrey react. Her eyes, still watery, darted from side to side, and she chewed hard on her lip.
"It was exciting," she said, "a little tiring, but......."
"So I hear Master Paddingham asked you to dance?"
"Yes."
Boris smiled wryly. This was Master Paddingham after all, and it was no secret that he was a man of distinction in every way. A gentleman of manners, he could play hard and play fast, and he had quickly become the star of the social scene by building such a magnificent ballroom.
"And after that, who else did you dance with?"
And Aubrey shook her head. As if to say that she'd been embarrassed by stepping on Paddingham's toes.
"I was feeling stuffy, so I went out for some air, and it was a bit hot in the ballroom. That garden......."
Aubrey was about to say something about the gorgeous gardens at the Duke of Paddingham's estate when she trailed off again.
"Ha, I should have learned to dance."
"What?"
"I wish I had learned to dance...... because if I was a good dancer, I wouldn't have gone to that garden."
What the hell was that supposed to mean? Boris narrowed his eyes and swiped a large hand across his face. Aubrey's unintelligible ramblings were interrupted by Boris putting a slice of butter on a piece of flattened rye bread.
"Look, there's someone I didn’t want to run into......."
The words made Boris look up in surprise, and then he rolled his eyes. A young lady at a party, swooning. Someone at the party had done something terrible to her.
Aubrey's normally mild demeanor quickly turned fierce. He put down the butter knife and stomped over to sit down in front of Aubrey.
"Miss, is it by any chance that the person you didn’t want to run into was male?"
Aubrey nodded, and a huge stone dropped from Boris's heart.
"What kind of a bastard is this, he’s not even cool enough to drink my grind!"
Aubrey, who had been sitting, tried to calm Boris down. She barely stopped him from storming out of the cabin with a rake before she sat back down in her chair.
"Nothing like that happened, calm down."
Aubrey shook her head, realizing what Boris had imagined.
"Are you sure it's not, young lady? Don't worry, you can tell me."
Boris sat back in his chair, rake still in hand, his face gaunt.
"I just met someone I don't get along with."
"Did you have a fight?"
Aubrey let out a short breath as if deciding whether or not to describe Khaled Karnus as a moor.
"I think he just doesn't like me."
"What? The lady? The lady did nothing wrong!"
The words came out wrong. Boris still hadn't let go of the rake, his temper flaring at the mere mention of Aubrey's name. Eventually, he had to smile and say that he would get over it, Aubrey thought to herself.
She couldn’t help the water that's already been spilled, so she would have to take his word that he wouldn’t tell anyone about her identity. She just needed to make sure she wouldn’t run into him in the future.
After repeating it a few times, she felt a little better. Boris told her to let him know immediately if the man bothered her again, and he hurried back out into the garden.
"You're going out again?"
"Yes. There's a dinner party tomorrow, and I need to trim those overgrowths today."
There was a dinner party. Aubrey hadn't heard of it. And even if she had, she wouldn't remember it.
"I see."
She smiled her best polite smile and reached for the orange juice.
"Perhaps you will soon be reacquainting yourself with some pleasant acquaintances, for the madam has invited the Athertons and Paddinghams, who have been so helpful, as well as the Duke of Karnus."
Aubrey’s best intentions were all too easily shaken.
* * *
Only after Boris's words did she see the mansion differently. The servants were busy sweeping and mopping their respective areas. All the decorations that had been brought out before were put away and replaced with new ones.
Even the massive curtains were replaced with a light, airy cream color. The day went by untouched, and Barbara, who had been feigning illness all day, didn't even seem to notice her. It wasn't until long after dinner that Barbara found Aubrey's room.
"I can't tell you how distracted I was. I can't even pay attention to you. I’m a disgrace.”
Barbara was like a deer in the headlights. She plopped down on Aubrey's bed and began to ramble on about how terrible her day had been. The fact that they had failed to coordinate their schedules to invite the Athertons, who were close friends, the Paddinghams, who had invited Aubrey to the party, and the Karnus, Emily's future family, had brought all those great families together had set her off.
"One good thing, though," she said, "is that Count Lavonne has sent word that he intends to attend. Aubrey, you have no idea how happy that makes me."
Barbara's beautiful smile quickly returned, and she gently stroked Aubrey's hand as it rested on the head of the bed.
"Now that I think about it, you still don't seem to be feeling well. How are you feeling now?"
She asked, noticing Aubrey's hardened expression.
"I'm feeling much better, thank you for your concern, Auntie."
As she said it, Aubrey wished she could tell Barbara that if she was so ill, she'd better stay in her room for tomorrow's dinner party, but the arc of her lips defied her wishes.
"I think you'd better have a cup of hot tea and get a good night's sleep; tomorrow there will be a gathering of people who have done so much for you as well as for me, and don't you think you ought to treat them with a healthy appearance?"
***
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