Chapter 25
***
Eventually, Louise gasped for breath and got up from her seat.
She paced the room, unable to believe her eyes, and read the letter over and over again.
..................Pietro, who had gone to check on the teacher's house, was accused of being a thief and arrested on the spot.
What a ridiculous story behind the arrest of the thief that Caius proudly recounted that evening. Of course, a Count who had never been near Melk would never have guessed.
"Ah................"
How could this be? Louise opened her lips and lamented.
She'd refused the man's offer of a drink and parted ways, so maybe he'd gotten drunk or gone to bed in the meantime.
But she couldn't wait until morning.
***
"Come in."
Louiseturned the doorknob, relieved to hear the clear voice return.
But when she carefully closed the door and stepped inside, she let out a groan of disbelief.
A large bathtub sat in the center of the room, and a bare-shouldered man sat back, clutching a glass of whiskey.
He hadn't realized it was her, judging by the casual way he'd invited her in.
She should quickly run away, but her stiff legs refused to move. As Louise hesitated, Caius slowly turned around.
White steam rose from the hot tub. He recognized Louise and called out to her with a raised eyebrow.
"..................Louise?"
Louise came to her senses and covered her mouth with her hands. Then she met the man's incredulous stare and raised her hands a little higher to cover her entire face.
She pressed her palm to her lips and whimpered.
"I'm sorry, Your Excellency, but I'm going back.............. right now."
The man's low chuckle drifted around the large room.
"I don't mind if you come any closer, but I don't think you'll accept my proposal."
Louise covered her face and took a step back.
"I'm so sorry, I thought you were asking me to come in....................."
Caius retorted nonchalantly.
"I did, it was late and I thought it was Martin."
It made sense; they'd just said goodnight about an hour ago, and he hadn't expected to see her again.
Louise was flustered and on the verge of tears.
She would be a fool to turn down the man's proposal after this. She wondered how things had gotten to this point and hoped it was all a dream.
Louise hummed again in her palm.
"Ah, I came to see you, but.................. perhaps, I'll come tomorrow. I'm sorry for my rudeness, then."
Only after she turned away did she remove her palms from her face. Louise heard the man's voice in her ear as she took a deep breath.
"Am I really that ugly, that you have to run away?"
"Of course not."
Louise replied, looking toward the door, even though she knew it wasn't polite. Her tongue dried up, wanting to grab the doorknob and turn it.
"Is there an urgent matter that brings you back at this late hour, or are you here because you regretted declining my offer of a drink?"
Louise shook her head, still looking at the door.
"Urgent.................. Of course I have an urgent matter, but I can't tell you this right now, I'm so sorry."
But just as she reached for the doorknob, she heard the sound of sloshing water.
Louise wanted to faint, because if she turned around, she'd be face to face with the man's naked body.
"Just in case."
Caius spoke slowly, even at this point.
"Don't faint, I'm putting something on."
Her heart, which had all but stopped beating in surprise, finally began to move a little. After a few moments, she heard a raspy laugh.
"You can turn around now."
Louise cursed herself for taking him at his word and turning around.
The man was literally wearing nothing but a robe. His bare chest was glimpsed through the flimsy material, and his calves were exposed beneath the robe, which had no pants and only slippers.
His hair was up in a different way than in the evening, dripping with water, and his lips were much redder than usual from the hot steam. Maybe it was the alcohol.
Either way, it was not a look a hired hand should dare to see. Blushing, she turned her head away, and Caius hissed.
"I tend to take care of my body more than most noblemen, so it shouldn't be too unsightly."
So if he's expecting a compliment on his body, he was wrong.
Of course, she had eyes, so she could say his body wasn’t beautiful. She wouldn’t forget for a while how broad his shoulders were and the way they moved when he turned around.
But Louise would bite her tongue to make it bleed, but she would not say such rude things.
The man must have guessed what she was thinking, so he continued to joke nonchalantly.
"Do yourself a favor and calm down.”
Louise looked down at the floor and finally spoke.
"Well, I've been contacted by Melk................... There seems to be a misunderstanding regarding the thief you mentioned."
"Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding?"
The man leaned down and picked up the goblet he'd been drinking from as his robe opened even more. Startled, Louise swallowed hard and closed her eyes deeply, then opened them.
"I don't think the man you've arrested is a thief, sir, but the son of the Viscount of Melk, for whom I used to work..................."
The man interrupted, not even letting her finish.
"Is there a law that says a viscount's son doesn't steal?"
Louise swallowed hard.
"Not really, but he's always been good to me."
"Sounds like he was the brother of one of your students, which is kind of like me."
Caius said with a quizzical look. She hadn't thought about it, but it did sound similar. Before she could respond, he asked.
"But were you close enough to him that he personally came to your house and asked you to marry him?"
"What?"
Louise was taken aback by the unexpected topic, but she managed to lift her gaze and look at Caius. The light golden eyes were waiting earnestly for her answer.
"No."
Louise answered clearly.
"It's not like that. It's safe to say I don't know him personally at all, and I've barely met him."
"Maybe you liked him on your own, or maybe he liked you."
What the hell was wrong with him, Caius's demeanor was a little different than when they'd parted ways earlier.
"No, I don't think so, how dare I..............., he's younger than me, and I haven't seen him much since he got out of the army................."
"Alas, he must be some kind of greenhorns.”
Caius sneered openly at Pietro, whom he had never met. When Louise looked up in surprise, he put down his glass and sighed.
"I arrested a burglar in your house, and it was a man you knew, which is not pleasant to think about. I'll have to take back my offer to marry you but keep your lover separate."
"What ......?"
Louise echoed in confusion, then realized he was joking again. She stifled a sigh and shook her head. Not to be deterred, she continued on about Pietro.
"He's a bright young man, just twenty years old, and he's a good man who will take over the upkeep of Viscount Engel and look after Melk in the future. I'm sure he was only trying to help when he came to my house................"
"The more you think so highly of him, the less I want to help."
Louise sucked in a surprised breath.
Come to think of it, Caius was still clutching the loan note he was supposed to be returning, and any hope that he would use common sense to help Pietro was about to crumble like a sandcastle.
"Please, Your Excellency. I've been in his family for a long time. He would never, ever do anything harmful to me, and they must be very worried.”
Caius picked up the goblet he had set down and drained it in one swift motion. Louise could tell he was offended, and she had to reassure him.
Of course, she could go to the Melk police station and testify for Pietro.
But if Caius wasn't watching, the Melk police wouldn't arrest the viscount's son, even if he was a thief.
Pietro, who wasn't even a thief, was being framed. She doubted Viscount Engel would have sent a letter all the way to her. Louise had to get Caius to help, for if he did, the viscount’s son would be released overnight. But Caius only asked stiffly.
"Will you accept my proposal only if I do you a few more favors?"
***
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