Chapter 61
She had snapped back in anger, but she immediately regretted if her words had been too impudent. His piercing gaze felt like it was drilling through her profile. It was hopeless for them to look like lovers tonight. No matter how much the two of them insisted, who would believe such a murderous scene?
‘I’m sorry, sister. I don’t have the confidence to pull this off.’
Aniella apologized to Claudie in her heart.
Paiki approached her sulking form and took her hand. Then, he bent down and pressed his lips firmly to the back of her hand. When Aniella looked at him in surprise, he kissed it once more and then grinned.
“Aniella. My love, my sun.”
At the sudden term of endearment, Aniella’s eyes widened.
“My words were poor. I will apologize, so won’t you forgive me? I want to see my most beautiful star smile.”
The terms of endearment were becoming increasingly unbearable. Aniella shuddered. Seeing her goosebumped arms, Paiki took off his coat and draped it over her shoulders.
“I don’t know why they didn’t give you something to wear. What will we do if my Aniella catches a cold?”
Paiki spoke loudly, as if for everyone to hear. While she understood they had decided to pretend to be an affectionate couple, his acting like such a doting fool was embarrassing.
Even after getting into the carriage, where there was no one to see, he continued.
“You look very beautiful today. Looking at you makes my heart tremble.”
“P-please stop.”
“We need to practice like this so we can do it without mistakes when we get there.”
Embarrassed, she was chewing her lips in agony, but then her lips parted slightly before pressing tightly together. Although she didn’t think his burdensome compliments were entirely sincere, hearing words that held no genuine feeling at all didn’t put her in a good mood.
As Aniella’s mouth jutted out slightly, Paiki secretly raised and then lowered the corner of his mouth.
In truth, he anonymously owned several newspapers and magazines. The place where Claudie worked was one of them.
He could have stopped the article if he wanted, but Paiki had deliberately left Claudie alone. No matter how much they searched the Ducal residence, there wasn’t even a trace of Aniella having stayed there, let alone her shadow. The only witness, the coachman, just needed to be hidden away until the Mullier family members disappeared as dew on the execution grounds, charged with slandering the Duke.
He thought everything was a perfect plan. Until Aniella said he was lying and left.
Paiki had to change his plan. It was the thing he hated most, but it was ironic that he had become accustomed to the process of revision because of her.
[The matter is serious, so issue it promptly to ensure no other outlet scoops us.]
Giving instructions to the editor-in-chief in the name of the magazine’s owner was an easy task. Thus, the weekly magazine was released a day early, forcing Claudie to break her promise. It seemed, from hearing the story, that it hadn’t been necessary to go that far, but still.
As he expected, Aniella came to save her sister. Now that he had her back in his grasp, he could have taken her and locked her away for life. But he had no intention of doing so. He had just learned that such an approach would not allow him to fully win her heart.
The carriage arrived and came to a stop. Paiki got out first and offered his hand to her.
“Let’s have a good time today.”
Aniella took a deep breath through her nose. She came all this way to do something, right? Let’s do this properly. Determined, she took his hand and got out.
Her resolve was in vain, as at the party, Paiki blatantly flaunted his affection before she could even do anything.
“Tonight, I haven’t had a single drink, yet I feel dizzy from your beauty.”
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