Chapter 14
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Theodore waved a rough hand at him, indicating that they would talk later, and glared at Olivia.
He felt like he was going to lose his mind, but he didn't know what to be angry about first. Should he be angry at the fact that she'd sat there and listened to Denis's bullshit, or that she'd left him alone in her bed.
There were so many other things to be angry about that his head felt like it was stuffed with crumpled paper.
"Come here."
"Theo!"
He tugged on Olivia's hand impatiently. Andrei called after him in a surprised voice, but he didn't have time to listen.
As he stormed down the hallway, he ran into people who wanted to see what all the fuss was about, but he didn't care about the stares and dragged Olivia up to his room.
It wasn't until he'd thrown her into the living room and closed the door behind him that he realized he'd contorted his face beyond recognition.
He rubbed his face once with both hands, and then glared at Olivia with bloodshot eyes.
She was pale with exhaustion. In her blue eyes, he could see the woman from last night.
And yet, her calm, serene demeanor remained unchanged. As if nothing had happened. Not the insults from Denis, not the moaning in his arms until dawn.
"Ha."
Amazed, he let out another exclamation.
"What were you thinking anyway?"
"If it's about Denis, I wasn't thinking about anything."
Last night, he'd returned to their childlike ease, but now he was speaking in honorifics again, as if addressing a stranger. It made his anger flare up again, and Theodore covered his face with his hands, holding it in to keep from screaming.
"Theo."
"What?"
"Call me that. You don't have to be formal."
Olivia looked a little hesitant. But then her lips parted like tiny petals and she spoke his name.
"Theo.... What are you so upset about?"
"What am I so upset about, you don't know?"
"Denis has always been like that."
The familiarity of the attitude made Theodore even angrier. He was reminded of how she had been treated by his relatives, and he knew that he was at least half the reason for it.
"I know he’s a scumbag, but why do you even bother with him, and why do you come out so early in the morning to check on the guests?"
"Because I've been taking care of the household all this time."
Olivia said in an unmoved tone. Even that sounded so calm that Theodore felt his stomach clench.
She looked up at him, her eyes wide.
"And it was my favorite thing to do. Having a job to do at Lutgard Castle seemed to give me a place."
Theodore didn't realize she was speaking in the past tense. He was just angry.
He was angry that she had been hated for being Pavel's daughter, when in fact she hadn't even been treated like one and had found her place in this way.
But he couldn't say anything about it. Because if Olivia had no place here, it was his fault.
In the end, he said only this, in a low voice.
"My uncle will be gone soon, so don't deal with him until then."
"......."
Olivia looked at him with a slightly odd expression on her face. It was part puzzled, part wistful. Theodore frowned, unable to read the meaning of her expression.
"I see."
She replied shortly, evenly.
"Thank you for your concern. And for helping me."
"Olivia."
"That's all we have to talk about, right? I still have some work to do, so ...."
"Olivia!"
For once, Theodore raised his voice. Olivia looked at him in surprise.
"That’s not all I wanted to talk about."
She shook her head, as if there was nothing left to talk about. Theodore gritted his teeth at the look on her face, as if she hadn't even remembered the issue he'd been thinking about all along.
"Our marriage."
Olivia's eyes widened in surprise at the words. She hadn't really thought about it.
"Oh, I'm sorry."
That was all Olivia managed to get out after several times clearing her throat. Theodore glared at her.
"When you say you're sorry, does that mean you won't marry me?"
"We’re not going to, and if it's because of what happened last night..., never mind, I didn't mean to hold you responsible."
"You're not the one who decides whether or not we get married."
Theodore snapped, and Olivia spoke carefully.
"If it's because of the residue of the estate, that's fine, because I really don't think it's my right. I'll talk to the Marquis of Ascensio. So that what is rightfully yours may be returned to you."
Theodore was speechless, for such matters did not concern him in the slightest.
The rest of the estate was irrelevant. What had happened last night had nothing to do with such practical matters.
He wanted Olivia, and she wanted him. This morning he felt somewhat repulsed and offended, as if he had been played by his father's will, but apart from that, they were meant to be together.
But Olivia spoke calmly, with a straight face.
"I don't think the Count really meant to bequeath me such a large sum, either; perhaps he wanted to put me in as noble a position as he could."
"......."
"I'm grateful, but that's just the Count's idea. You don't have to feel obligated, Theo. You owe me nothing."
Those were the words Theodore needed to hear. Until last night, when he went for a walk.
But now, as he heard them, he felt his fingers tremble slightly, as if the touch that had caressed her sweet skin last night had become the tip of a knife, slicing through flesh.
It was all so unfair, he thought; he'd fought so hard not to want Olivia for so long, and last night he'd finally had to admit that he couldn't.
And now, just a few hours later, he'd been denied everything. His efforts to deny it, his determination to accept it.
"You can kiss me, can't you?"
If he meant nothing to her, why did she ask that question, and why did she accept his kiss?
Her face was still serene and calm, as if she didn't realize that he was tearing apart inside. There was no trace of the woman who had cried so hard in his arms last night.
"Okay," was the only right answer. The proposal was over if it was rejected, and even if he tried to use the will as an excuse, she had already said she would give up her rights.
Still, he couldn't say it.
Finally, he spoke up, his voice cracking.
"You can’t have it your way."
Olivia clamped her mouth shut. Theodore felt frustrated and angry as he watched her bite her lip, her plump, red lips curling inward.
He couldn't tell what she was thinking. But one thing was certain. All she could do was stand there in front of him, holding something back, her face so bitter, her lips curling inward.
"Okay."
Theodore finally said, then turned on his heel and stalked out of the room.
The people standing in the doorway gasped in surprise. They must have been eavesdropping, but Theodore couldn't be bothered with that.
He walked away heavily.
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