Chapter 15
Sarah said Countess Rosette had even called Edgar in to scold him.
From Edgar’s perspective, it must have felt like an overstep—just the posturing of someone who had no right to interfere.
“I understand,” I said quietly.
I did. My father had disliked my mom’s side of the family too. While we never missed a single holiday with his relatives, we often visited my mom’s family without him.
Even when he did come along, he’d spend the entire day asleep in Grandma’s bedroom, snoring loudly.
Neither Mom, Grandma, nor Grandpa ever dared say a word against him.
Instead, they spoke in hushed voices and tiptoed around the house so they wouldn’t disturb him.
It was because Mom loved him.
Cecilia must’ve been the same. She loved Edgar, so even if he disrespected her family, she couldn’t bring herself to say anything.
“That’s all?” Edgar snapped the newspaper shut with a sharp motion.
“You didn’t even ask her to show basic courtesy?”
I gave a faint laugh.
Edgar took it as mockery.
“What’s this? Are you trying to challenge me? Start some kind of power game?”
“Of course not.”
You only fight someone when you expect something from them.
I didn’t expect anything from Edgar.
“I know you’ll show basic courtesy, whether I ask you or not.”
The head maid had been lingering by the door for a while now.
She probably had something to tell me, but didn’t want to interrupt our conversation.
“And if you don’t show it, well… I can’t do anything about that either.”
“Nothing you can do?”
“You’re free to do as you wish, Edgar. I don’t intend to demand anything from you. Like I said before.”
“Because you’re not my wife—you’re the Countess of Linton?”
“Yes. Aren’t you glad we finally agree on something?”
I motioned for the head maid to come in.
“My lord. My lady,” she said, bowing to Edgar first before approaching me.
“It seems there’s been a problem with the flower delivery. I think I should go sort it out.”
Edgar stared blankly into the air, lost in thought.
I didn’t wait for his reply. I simply stood and left the room.
In the banquet hall, Penelope was rushing around, managing things in every direction.
“Pepe.”
“My lady!”
The transformation was astonishing. What had once been a dull, oversized space now looked like something out of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, just as Penelope had promised.
“This is incredible,” I said, genuinely impressed.
“The guests will be stunned.”
“Of course they will! I never fail!”
I smiled at her bold confidence, then brought up the issue with the delayed flower delivery.
Without hesitation, Penelope suggested using another vendor.
I sent someone immediately to the one she recommended.
“Pepe, what about your dress?”
“My dress?”
I asked just to give us a quick breather after solving the problem.
Penelope’s eyes widened.
“I thought you should wear something elegant for the dinner—something fitting to be introduced to the guests.”
“You’re… introducing me?”
I nodded.
“But… but if you do that, it might harm your reputation, my lady…”
For the first time, confident Penelope stammered.
“I promised Lord Ricardo that I’d express my gratitude to the person who helped me most.”
“But my lady, you’ve already thanked me more than I deserve!”
“You said it yourself—you worked so hard, and it would feel unfair if no one noticed.”
Penelope’s cheeks flushed a soft pink.
“Wha—why would he tell you that?!”
Just a guess, but I had a feeling Penelope and Ricardo were childhood friends—ones who had known each other long before Ricardo learned of his illegitimacy.
Sometimes Penelope would call him without a title, then slap her own mouth and correct herself.
“There’ll be more parties in the future. How would you feel about becoming my exclusive party planner?”
This was a plan I’d spent weeks carefully crafting.
In this world, a noblewoman’s reputation mattered far more than her husband’s affection.
The party was the one stage where the lady of the house could truly shine.
Even if I hadn’t planned everything myself, discovering someone talented like Penelope and letting her work counted as skill in the eyes of society.
“You can still take outside jobs too,” I added, not wanting to cut off her other opportunities completely.
“My lady!”
Penelope threw her arms around my waist in a tight hug.
Warmth flooded in where her body touched mine.
I tensed up instinctively, then awkwardly patted her back.
“Ricky said you’d be different from the others—and he was right!”
Ricky. That nickname didn’t suit Ricardo at all.
“Ah, I mean…”
“It’s fine. I’ll keep Lord Ricardo’s nickname a secret. Don’t worry.”
I smiled, trying to ease the panic in her expression.
“No! That’s not what I meant. I just… I wanted to apologize.”
Her sudden sincerity caught me off guard.
“For thinking you were just like everyone else. I was wrong. I feel awful about it.”
“You must be angry. Of course you are. You’ve treated me so well, and all I did was bad-mouth you in my head.”
“No, it’s okay.”
I quickly denied it—because she was right. I was a hypocrite.
Penelope had seen me clearly.
I wasn’t introducing her to the guests for her sake. It was for mine.
It was the solution I came up with after wondering how I could maintain my reputation while pushing all the hard work onto someone else.
“Anyway, it doesn’t matter. You still have a lot to do, right? I won’t get in your way.”
Worried she might see straight through me, I changed the subject.
“‘Anyway’…? My lady—?”
I pretended not to hear her and slipped out of the banquet hall.
The dress I’d put on since morning—hoping to grow used to it—kept tangling around my legs.
It was hard to walk. I stumbled, managing only a step at a time.
I decided to go to the garden.
The gardener Countess Rosette had recommended turned out to be more capable than expected. He’d replaced the hard stones on the walking path with soft wooden decking. Benches were placed along the way for resting.
I walked to the far end of the garden and sat on one of the benches.
“I don’t even know what I’m doing anymore.”
I muttered to myself.
It felt absurd—watching myself struggle so hard to keep living.
I didn’t really have any attachment to life, but I didn’t want to die either.
Sometimes, I still wondered if all of this was just a dream.
Maybe I was in a coma, and this was just a fantasy created by my brain.
“Though… if this really were a dream, the characters are a bit too ridiculous.”
The very fact that I had a husband—when I had never even dreamed of marriage—proved that much.
“Although… there are some similarities, too.”
A husband who loves another woman. And me, stuck in a life I didn’t ask for. Maybe my brain had confused my mom and me and was playing this scenario out as one and the same.
“My lady! My lady!”
Startled, I quickly straightened my back. It was the nanny.
Just before she came into view, a strong pull yanked me into the bushes.
“Shh.”
Bright golden eyes, full of mischief, met mine.
“Count Linton wouldn’t open the door.”
Ricardo continued, still holding my hand.
It was already strange that Edgar was still at home—but for him not to open the door for Ricardo? That was truly shocking.
“Well, now the Countess of Linton is officially my accomplice.”
The tall man giggled like a child.
The hide-and-seek didn’t last long.
To be honest, Ricardo wasn’t built for hiding.
Still, we did make a full circle around the garden avoiding the nanny, so I suppose it was a draw.
When the nanny saw me holding hands with Ricardo, she looked so stunned that she clutched at her chest instead of saying anything.
“It’s Count Linton’s fault for not opening the door when a guest came.”
Ricardo said shamelessly, managing to flip the nanny’s composure inside out.
Even without inheriting a title, just being the future Duke of Bastian meant Ricardo was someone she couldn’t treat lightly.
“My lord…”
Just before she looked ready to faint, Sir Juan arrived like a savior.
“The Count is waiting for you.”
That meant Edgar knew Ricardo was here.
“Shall we go?”
Ricardo still didn’t let go of my hand and gently tugged it.
I braced my feet and stood firm.
“Countess Linton.”
“Let go of my hand, please.”
Edgar had always been especially wary of Ricardo.
Even though he didn’t seem to care for Cecilia at all.
“Oh.”
As if only just realizing it, Ricardo released my hand.
He hadn’t held it tightly enough to hurt, but even so, being let go felt oddly relieving.
Maybe it was because his hand was so much warmer than mine.
Or maybe it was because mine were unusually cold.
Either way, I gently massaged the hand he hadn’t touched.
“Did it hurt?”
Ricardo asked.
“It was just… warm.”
Ricardo glanced down at his hand, then turned his head away—probably to hide his expression.
That kind of reaction usually came from embarrassment, but I hadn’t said anything that would cause that.
“I apologize.”
“It’s fine.”
I answered automatically, then gave Sir Juan a quick glance.
A silent message: Please take him away.
“My lord, shall we?”
Thankfully, the knight caught on immediately and gestured for Ricardo to follow him.
“Countess Linton, aren’t you coming?”
“No.”
I had no interest in standing beside Ricardo in front of Edgar, only to be picked apart again.
“Afraid Count Linton might scold you?”
“I’m not a child.”
And I hadn’t done anything to deserve scolding.
At my blunt tone, Ricardo gave a lopsided smile.
Despite his bold features, there was something alluring in his expression.
Strangely, it suited him.
“Well, if he does say something, just blame me.”
“Edgar won’t scold me.”
“You seem scared, though.”
“I just think avoiding pointless arguments is the better choice.”
Ricardo didn’t look convinced.
“Pointless arguments, huh? Is that just the polite way to say marital fights?”
Edgar and I didn’t fight.
Not even when Cecilia’s soul still lingered in this body.
Fighting, after all, is something that happens between equals.
In marriage, arguments are usually a battle—messy and loud, but in pursuit of compromise.
But Edgar and I—we weren’t equals.
He didn’t see Cecilia as his wife. And I had nothing I wanted from him.
So there was no need for compromise.
He nitpicked. I ignored it. That was how we communicated.
“No. It’s the polite way of saying ‘being picked on.’”
The words slipped out before I could stop them.
Ricardo laughed low in his throat.
It wasn’t the carefree giggle he gave earlier when he suggested hide-and-seek. It was the warm, deep laugh of a grown man.
The back of my neck burned with embarrassment.
