Chapter 28
I walked along the vineyard with my hands clasped behind my back, trying to hide my throbbing ankle.
I glanced around at the grape clusters hanging in abundance. Unlike ordinary grapevines, these improved varieties had grown far taller than a person’s height.
“You didn’t seem like someone who would be swayed by a single bunch of grapes. How did you do it?”
Edmund followed behind me and asked.
Hmm. I squinted my eyes, tapped my cheek with my fingertips, and then turned my head with a smile.
“It’s a trade secret.”
“……”
“Oh my, you just thought I was cunning, didn’t you?”
“Being perceptive is a business advantage.”
“I won’t deny it.”
As I laughed and turned my head forward, I bumped my forehead into a hanging grapevine.
Ouch. I rubbed my forehead and glanced sideways. Edmund’s lips curled up slightly, forming a smirk. It was an obvious sneer. When our eyes met, he quickly turned his head the other way.
“Looks like the grapes are telling you to come to your senses. You should listen.”
Why did he always have to say things like that? The serious demeanor from our first meeting had long disappeared, and his tone was growing increasingly mischievous.
‘They say kind words bring kind responses. Is this my fault?’
Maybe this was my punishment for teasing him at the boutique.
I secretly glared at Edmund before looking up again.
The delicate pink grapes nearby were plump and luscious.
The round, dewdrop-like tips of the grapes looked the most delicious. As I imagined their sweet and refreshing taste, I instinctively licked my lower lip with the tip of my tongue.
At that moment, Edmund, who had been looking down at me, suddenly scrunched up his face.
“What?”
“Don’t do that.”
“……?”
I blinked blankly, not understanding.
“Don’t do what? Looking at the grapes?”
Edmund opened his mouth slightly, as if struggling to find words, then quickly turned his head. It was a complete refusal to engage in conversation.
“…You’re not very perceptive after all.”
I heard him mutter under his breath.
‘Wait, what exactly am I not supposed to do?’
Just as that thought crossed my mind, I suddenly realized something and bit my lips to hold back a reaction.
Thankfully, I wasn’t entirely clueless, so I figured it out just in time.
‘Why… Why was he watching me lick my lips?’
Feeling embarrassed, I quickly rubbed my lips with the back of my hand. Awkward in the silence, I reached out to touch the grapes.
“C-Can I taste one?”
Just moments ago, he had caught me off guard, but now Edmund had regained his composure. He nodded at the grapes indifferently.
“…Go ahead.”
I considered picking one with my hand but decided to go for a more elegant approach. Like a scene from a beautiful foreign film, I intended to pluck it with my lips. But just as I leaned forward, my twisted ankle throbbed in pain.
Before my lips could even touch the grape, my body wobbled dangerously. Edmund quickly grabbed my shoulder with a strong grip.
I found myself buried in his chest, momentarily stunned, before hastily stepping back.
Awkwardly, I laughed and rubbed my shoulder, still feeling the lingering warmth from his firm grip.
“Thank you.”
“Did you have to eat it with your mouth?”
“Are you calling me foolish? I get it, I should listen to the lord of the land if I don’t want to be kicked out.”
Edmund gave me a disapproving look, then effortlessly lifted a wooden ladder leaning against a nearby tree with one hand.
While I was caught off guard, he placed the ladder in front of me and, without warning, grabbed my waist with both hands.
“Excuse me.”
……!
My vision suddenly soared as if I had been lifted like a towering tree.
Gasping, I inhaled sharply.
Being lifted by someone nearly 190cm tall, the view was much higher than I expected.
Feeling dizzy, I instinctively wrapped my arms around Edmund’s neck.
“What are you—!”
Edmund, now with his face buried in my chest, stiffened at the sight of my pale face.
“Countess?”
“It’s… It’s too high.”
Feeling my hands and feet grow cold, I wriggled uncomfortably. Edmund slid an arm under my thigh, holding me securely.
“If you move, it will be dangerous. I won’t drop you, so don’t worry.”
As he said, his arms supporting me were as solid as stone, and his broad back felt strong and steady.
That was when I noticed the soft tickle of his hair against my cheek and the faint warmth of his breath against my neck.
I cautiously glanced down. Edmund’s ears were flushed, but for some reason, I didn’t feel like teasing him this time.
Probably because my face was even redder than his.
Feeling embarrassed, I quietly lowered my hands from around his arms.
“Hmm, do you always live with this kind of perspective?”
“If I startled you, I apologize.”
“…It’s okay. I was just surprised. You were trying to help me get onto the ladder, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Well then, can I eat the grapes like this?”
Honestly, I preferred this to the ladder. The warmth of his body was strangely comforting, perhaps because of his assurance that he wouldn’t drop me.
Edmund frowned slightly, seeming unsure about my condition.
“You were just startled a moment ago.”
“That was because it was so sudden.”
With that, I tilted my chin up and bit into the luscious grape I had been eyeing. The cool juice burst sweetly and tartly in my mouth.
‘Mmm, delicious!’
It was an eye-opening taste. I quickly plucked another grape and offered it to Edmund.
“Would you like one, Count?”
“I’ll pass.”
“Oh, right. You have no free hands. Should I feed you?”
“Judging by your nonsense, you seem to be feeling better.”
Suppressing a chuckle at Edmund’s sharp retort, I suddenly spotted something over his shoulder.
Oh my. I dropped the grape in surprise and slightly parted my lips.
“What is it?”
Before Edmund could turn his head, I quickly covered his eyes. I could feel his frown against my palm, making my hand tingle.
“What are you doing?”
Blushing, I gestured for the couple emerging disheveled from the vineyard to hurry away. They scurried off like thieves.
“Shall I drop you now?”
Startled by his cold voice, I released my hand. Edmund scowled, clearly displeased.
‘But he said he wouldn’t drop me!’
Looking flustered, Edmund clenched his jaw and placed a hand on his waist, half covering his face. Despite his efforts, his skin was as red as a ripe grape.
“If you hadn’t spoken such nonsense, I wouldn’t have dropped you.”
With a sigh, Edmund turned sharply, untying his hair irritably. Left alone, I chewed on a grape and squinted.
“What’s his problem?”
Instead of growing closer, we seemed to be drifting further apart.
“Come on, I’m saying a man and a woman were in the vineyard.”
“Are you saying they were stealing grapes?”
“That’s not what I meant…”
I didn’t know how to explain it for a moment. After glancing around, I leaned in and whispered into his ear.
At that moment—
Crash—!
‘Ouch, my butt!’
He let go of my arm, and I dropped straight to the ground.
Rubbing my throbbing backside, I looked up at him with resentful eyes.
‘You said you wouldn’t drop me!’
Edmund, who didn’t know what to do with his hands, tightly shut his eyes as soon as our eyes met—like he was trying to escape.
He groaned, clearly unprepared for that kind of talk, and put one hand on his waist.
He covered half of his face with his hand, but I could still see his face turning red—like a ripe grape.
“If the Countess hadn’t said such nonsense, I wouldn’t have dropped you.”
“It was just a guess. I thought maybe that’s how we looked to them too.”
“They might have been deaf.”
“A man and a woman coming out of a vineyard with wet eyes and red faces, holding their clothes—what else would people think?”
What the…!
Edmund lowered his hand and seemed ready to explode, but clenched his teeth instead.
A thick vein popped up on his forehead.
“Don’t use your ridiculous standards. What on earth is in that tiny head of yours?”
“Oh my, are you saying my head is small? Thank you.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
When I smiled at his comment, Edmund’s face twisted even more.
After a long pause, he gave up on talking and held out his hand to help me up.
“Get up.”
“Thank you.”
As I dusted off the dirt from my dress, Edmund grabbed a grapevine.
His thick forearm tensed as he yanked off a bunch of grapes and handed them to me.
“Eat as much as you want.”
He picked off one grape and popped it into my slightly open mouth.
His fingertip gently pressed against my lips.
For some reason, that contact made him frown even deeper.
“Stuff your mouth with grapes and stop talking.”
He sighed heavily and turned away, loosening the tie in his hair a bit roughly.
Left alone, I narrowed my eyes and bit into the grape with a loud crunch.
“What’s with him?”
It felt like we were getting more distant instead of closer.
Shaa—.
The early summer breeze gently rustled the lush trees.
Edmund quickly climbed the hill and stood under a tree, stepping into the murmur of shadows.
He let out a deep sigh and rubbed his flushed face.
The cooler air slowly calmed his rising heat.
Suddenly, Edmund stared at his own thumb—the spot that had touched Etricia’s lips.
He swallowed a groan as the soft, smooth sensation returned to his mind.
‘That woman… seriously…’
If she were just flattering him like usual, he could ignore it.
But now and then, she completely threw him off.
As someone not immune to women, it was agony.
Ha…
Edmund sighed in self-loathing, his expression sharpening.
He glared at the tree trunk with a mix of frustration and irritation.
“Enough. Come out.”
