Chapter 37
“What? Why…?”
Felice answered him, genuinely confused this time.
“I thought it might help me as well.”
Claude stepped aside a bit.
Felice reluctantly opened the door and tilted her head toward him.
“I see. Should I give it to you now? And when might you return it? It’s not mine, after all.”
“I just want to take a look. After all, I trust you’ll prepare well for the lesson.”
It seemed the real purpose of checking the materials was less about the lesson and more about verifying whether she was lying.
Felice smiled lightly and opened a drawer to retrieve the erotica book she had carefully hidden inside.
Honestly, she felt a bit embarrassed, but since she had done much worse during lessons, showing a book seemed acceptable. As long as it eased his suspicions.
“Please wait a moment.”
“Hmm…”
Despite it being his own mansion, Claude looked around Felice’s room as if seeing it for the first time, then walked over to the window.
Gripping the windowsill, he bent slightly and peeked outside.
Felice’s lips dried up from his careful scrutiny. This wasn’t the Count’s mansion—why was he examining her room so thoroughly?
But fearing that any unnecessary question might invite more interrogation, Felice quickly handed him the book.
“This is the book. Would you like to check it?”
At Felice’s voice, Claude looked away from the window and straightened up. Just then, the faint sound of a window clicking shut made Felice’s heart drop.
“Cl-Claude?”
“Oh, it was a bit noisy outside. I prefer reading books in a quiet place.”
He explained his preference and smiled as he glanced at the closed window.
Felice’s room was located near the garden path, a place rarely frequented by the staff.
Plus, his mansion was enormous, with the nearest road far away, so there was hardly ever noise outside. In fact, the room was quiet.
“Oh, I see. Right…”
Felice could only respond with a single phrase.
Well, if Claude said so, what could she do?
Hoping he’d just check the book and disappear quickly, Felice nodded.
“Hmm…”
Taking the book, Claude leaned his upper body against the windowsill. Backlit by the light, he opened the book with a serious expression.
Contrary to her worry that he might be shocked from the first page, he flipped through the pages with a rather bored look.
“…”
While he read, Felice’s lips kept drying out despite his indifferent reaction, so she repeatedly licked them with her tongue.
Like a thief caught in the act, she felt panic. She swallowed nervously, and in the quiet room, the sound seemed amplified.
Suddenly, Claude raised his gaze.
Meeting his raised eyes, Felice held her breath.
“By the way, I haven’t told you why I was waiting for you, Miss Felice.”
He smiled softly, still holding the book open to some page.
“Today, I was invited to Count Legrand’s mansion, and a woman dressed as a Racliffe maid threw black paint on Lady Elise.”
“Oh my, such a thing…”
Felice was startled, covering her mouth lightly with her hand as if hearing the news for the first time.
“So, I suspected it might have been you.”
“Me?”
Felice’s eyes twisted with sadness and injustice at being suspected as the culprit.
“The hand holding the bottle looked familiar.”
At those words, Felice’s shoulders twitched, and she slowly lowered the hand that had been covering her mouth.
Claude slowly approached her.
“If a woman is proactive, wouldn’t men prefer that too?”
“Ah… no. If a woman is proactive…”
“I want to check your hand once.”
“Huh?”
He closed the book and stepped closer to Felice.
His large finger lightly touched Felice’s lips with a tap.
“I want to check the hand that holds something as thick and long as that bottle.”
If she hadn’t been the real culprit, she would have thought him a madman teasing her.
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