Chapter 14
Lost in thought and staring out the window, Elaine barely noticed the gentle stop of the carriage. Before the footman could descend from the driver’s seat to escort her, she had already leapt out on her own.
“My lady, please! That’s dangerous!”
Startled, Anna and the Aiola knight called after her, but Elaine ignored them, heading down the familiar path alone—the one she had once walked alongside Dominic.
The two followers trailed her by a few steps, unsure whether to call her back or simply watch over her from a distance.
She’s never been this quiet before…
Anna let out a soft sigh, her eyes on Elaine’s back.
Even in her most rebellious moments, she never fought with the master like this…
Elaine and Fernando had always been a close pair. Anna remembered it clearly—even if she couldn’t recall the exact year, she first came to serve the Aiola family. From Fernando’s wedding to Vanessa, to Elaine’s first signs of adolescence, to the way she occasionally lashed out at servants when preoccupied with her looks during her coming-of-age—Fernando had always been patient.
Rather than scolding her, he would gently explain why her behavior was wrong, speaking so kindly that even Anna had once nodded along in agreement.
If someone were to ask Anna now who was at fault in this quarrel, she wouldn’t know how to answer. She understood Elaine’s frustration at still being treated like a child despite her age. But she also knew how deeply Fernando loved and protected his sister.
Still… wouldn’t it be better to yell, to argue, than to stay silent like this? If neither of them speaks first, how can they ever reconcile?
Her gaze softened as she looked ahead. Elaine had strayed from the path and was now walking through a field of flowers, her figure looking smaller—lonelier—than usual.
Poor my lady…
Anna’s pity turned to shock when she suddenly saw Elaine flop down into the flowers, lying flat on her back as if the weight of the world had pulled her down.
“My lady! You can’t lie there! That’s not a place for someone of your status!”
What will the knight think if he sees this?! Anna flushed, embarrassed, and began rushing forward—
But a tall, unfamiliar man stepped past her with long strides, crossing in front of her and heading straight toward Elaine.
Meanwhile, Elaine ignored Anna’s cries. She let her eyes drift closed, the warm sun washing over her face. Her fine dress would no doubt be stained green by the grass, but she couldn’t bring herself to care.
This was the daffodil field.
The one Dominic had shown her.
Next spring… it will be filled with golden blooms again.
That thought comforted her. She opened her eyes slowly, only to find the sun blocked by a familiar shadow.
Dominic.
He was standing over her.
“D-Dominic…?”
Startled, Elaine sat up quickly.
“What are you doing here?”
Dominic’s soft gaze fell on her as he knelt slightly, his expression unreadable but calm.
“I suppose it is surprising,” he said with a faint smile. “I hadn’t heard from you in a week… I was worried.”
He… was worried?
For the first time in days, Elaine felt guilt stir within her. With everything that had happened between her and Fernando, she hadn’t given Dominic a single thought—hadn’t reached out once.
“I came here because I missed you,” Dominic continued. “I thought I might feel close to you in this place. I didn’t expect to actually find you here.”
His voice trailed into a laugh, quiet and warm.
“At first, I thought you were a mirage…”
“Dominic!”
Before he could finish, Elaine leapt into his arms. The unexpected weight of her sent Dominic off balance, and they both toppled into the grass, laughter and the scent of summer clinging to their clothes.
And there, in the middle of the flower field, they kissed.
It was Elaine who initiated it, her lips pressing eagerly against his. Though inexperienced, she moved with conviction—nipping at his lips one moment, then diving deeper the next.
The urgency in her kiss was impossible to miss. Something was clearly wrong.
But Dominic didn’t ask. Instead, he gently stroked her back, responding with tenderness. As she clung to him, breathless and restless, he kissed her softly again and again, guiding her until her frantic pace settled.
Finally, when she pulled back, he looked into her eyes.
“What happened?”
“…My brother,” she murmured.
But the moment she opened her mouth to explain, she stopped herself. A wry smile tugged at her lips.
“It’s nothing. We just had a fight… and I guess I’m still upset.”
Dominic studied her.
Those lips—still glistening with the kiss they’d just shared—were now tightly sealed. It bothered him. He clenched and unclenched his fist, fighting the impulse to pry further.
Elaine said nothing.
And Dominic—he found he had nothing to say, either.
The truth was, Dominic Cheshire didn’t know how to comfort a sad woman.
His little sister Liliana had known anger and sorrow, but never quiet melancholy. And Vanessa, the only woman he had ever truly loved, had never needed him to soothe her. There had always been other men around to do that.
Elaine Aiola was different.
He knew exactly why she’d fought with her brother. The moment he’d heard her carriage was headed for the daffodil fields, he had rushed there—partly out of concern, partly out of a darker motive: to deepen the illusion of coincidence, to draw her in a little further. There was still more work to be done before she would be truly his.
But now that she sat before him, quiet and sad, Dominic found himself completely disarmed.
And then, he realized something he hadn’t expected.
Elaine Aiola didn’t wear sadness well.
And yet—damn it—she was still beautiful.
His broad palm came to rest at the back of her head, pale platinum hair catching the light as it slipped between his fingers. Gently, he combed through it.
“Don’t be sad, my Elaine,” he murmured, voice low and languid.
He plucked a green leaf from her forehead, stuck there by the breeze, and replaced it with a kiss.
In that moment, Elaine’s carefully held composure cracked.
Tears gathered at the corners of her eyes and spilled over.
Dominic quietly brushed them away. His hands were calm, unshaking.
For a moment, he found himself wanting to kill Fernando Aiola—not for revenge, but for making her cry.
“If you’re feeling overwhelmed…”
The words left his mouth before he could stop them.
“…Would you like to come to my place?”
“Your place?”
Elaine blinked, surprised. The question caught her off guard. Though curious about his world, she slowly shook her head.
“Not today,” she whispered. “Not when I feel like this.”
She didn’t want to step into Dominic’s space with such a heavy heart.
“Next time,” she added gently. “When I’m better.”
Dominic’s smile faltered briefly. He hadn’t planned to bring her to his home today, but somehow, being rejected still stung.
He masked his disappointment quickly, letting his eyes soften with that practiced tenderness she loved.
“Very well, my Elaine,” he said, leaning in close to whisper the words against her ear. “Then next time, I’ll have the honor of welcoming you into my world.”
“Stop, that tickles,” she laughed, finally cracking a smile as his lips teased her ear.
She playfully pushed him away, but Dominic only chuckled and drew her back into his arms.
It was warm—too warm, really. The sun bore down on the field with its full summer weight. But neither of them seemed to care. Pressed heart to heart in the daffodil field, they held each other for a long time, sharing silence, breath, and warmth.
Later, at the Aiola Estate…
“That was him, wasn’t it?” Anna asked, trailing Elaine up the stairs, her voice thick with disbelief. “That was your ‘Cheshire’?”
She had seen Dominic before—once at the mansion, and again at the Sienni plaza—but this had been the first time she saw him up close.
“And just why are you seeing a man like that…?”
Elaine blinked, tilting her head in innocent confusion.
“What’s wrong with Dominic?”
“He has those dangerous eyes! Honestly, Prince Turner is so much more—”
“Did you just compare my Dominic to Turner?”
“That’s royal treason, my lady! Prince Turner is royalty—the crown prince of Hermanda!”
Elaine scoffed, teasingly emphasizing the word.
“Turner. That Turner?”
Anna looked ready to explode.
“And how did that man know where to find you today? That’s suspicious!”
“Because,” Elaine replied dramatically, “we’re destined for each other.”
Anna let out a loud gasp.
“Destiny? Even a fourteen-year-old girl would roll her eyes at that!”
“Then stop talking, Anna. Unless you want to keep annoying me—”
Elaine reached for her bedroom door—
“Elaine.”
A voice from within the room stopped her hand.
Standing there, uninvited, was her brother.
“Fernando.”
