Chapter 18
“N-No. I wasn’t. I’m sorry. I was just exhausted, so I wasn’t thinking about anyth—”
Startled back to reality, Irene bowed her head at once, scrambling to apologize.
“Oh, Miss Irene!”
Like a savior descending from heaven, Chloe appeared with several maids in tow. Never had Irene been happier to see her. She quickly raised her left hand and waved.
“I’ve got your hat, Miss Chloe!”
“Is my hat really what’s important right now?!”
But Chloe, her blue eyes blazing just like her brother’s, bounced in place like a colt that had slipped its reins.
“I told you we’d have the groundskeeper retrieve it! I said it was dangerous and that we should get someone! If my brother hadn’t been here, you’d still be stuck in there! Do you have any idea how badly this could have ended? Do you?!”
Everyone’s attention snapped to the fuming Chloe.
It was a rare sight indeed. The young lady, who usually kept her lips tightly sealed and spoke only when necessary, was actually shouting.
Even the veteran head housemaid paused midway through handing Dominic a towel, her attention drawn to Chloe.
“It was only a hat. Why would you risk yourself like that…?”
“It was a gift from your mother. It’s precious to you, Miss Chloe. I didn’t want you to lose it.”
Irene held out the hat, soaked through from the pond.
Chloe stared down at it, her face twisting as though she were fighting back tears.
Irene understood exactly how Chloe felt, caught somewhere between relief and guilt.
“And besides, thanks to His Grace, I’m safe, so…”
Forcing a smile, Irene turned toward Dominic, only to hurriedly avert her eyes.
He had accepted a towel from the head housemaid and was calmly unfastening the buttons of his shirt. Just as the indecent thoughts she had barely managed to suppress threatened to overwhelm her again—
“Here, Miss. You should take one too. Goodness, you’ll catch a cold.”
“Thank you.”
Thankfully, the ever-composed head housemaid cut off her scandalous train of thought.
* * *
Irene took sick leave.
The very day she fell into the pond, chills had begun creeping over her body, followed by a fever. When she proved unable to leave her bed, Chloe firmly ordered her not to move an inch and sent the Whitmore family’s physician to examine her.
How long had it been since she’d been able to fall ill without worrying?
Back when she worked as a live-in governess, Irene had always tried to hide any sign of sickness.
Her employers would never tolerate her taking even a single day off under the excuse of being ill, and if she had no choice but to take leave, they would dock her wages.
Then again, considering the Whitmores paid twice the average salary, she supposed she wouldn’t mind even if they docked her wages a little…
With that idle thought, Irene opened her eyes and gazed blankly around the room. Little by little, her hazy mind began to regain its sense of reality.
How many days has it been? Even if they had told her to rest, she couldn’t forget her duties as a governess. She had let herself become far too complacent.
At last, Irene pushed herself out of bed. Seeing that it was still morning, she headed for the bathroom.
After washing up and feeling refreshed, she asked a maid to let Chloe know she was awake before beginning to get ready for work.
‘Have my eyes gotten bigger?’
Perhaps she had lost even more weight while bedridden, because all she could see in the mirror were her large brown eyes. With her bloodless cheeks and pale lips, she looked every bit the invalid.
She was staring unhappily at her gaunt reflection when a knock came at the door. It was the maid she’d spoken to earlier.
“Excuse me, miss.”
“Yes?”
“Miss Chloe asked that you join her for lunch today.”
“I understand. Should I head to the dining room right away?”
“Yes.”
She had grown accustomed to walking through the sprawling mansion. With light steps, Irene made her way to the dining room. The table was large enough to seat several people, yet only two places had been set.
Chloe, who had arrived first and was waiting, sprang to her feet the moment she saw Irene.
“Miss Irene. Are you feeling any better?”
“Thanks to you, Miss Chloe. The medicine worked wonders.”
“Please, have a seat over there.”
A faint blush colored Chloe’s cheeks as she pointed to the chair across from her before sitting down first. Following her lead, Irene quietly pulled out the chair and took her seat.
Just then, the head housemaid entered the dining room. Looking slightly bewildered, she turned to Chloe.
“Miss… the governess as well?”
“Yes.”
“Understood.”
She gave a respectful bow and turned to leave. Irene was just about to watch her with puzzled curiosity when Chloe spoke.
“Miss, you remember <Miss Lamour>, don’t you?”
“Hm? Ah, yes.”
Recalling <Miss Lamour’s Secret>, which was already beginning to fade from her memory, Irene nodded.
“A sequel just came out. It’s called <Miss Lamour’s Scandalous Secret>.”
“‘Scandalous’…”
The titles seemed to be growing more shameless by the book.
“Shall I lend it to you later?”
“You’ve already finished it?”
“Of course.”
Chloe answered as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. It reminded Irene of a younger sibling proudly showing off, and she smiled.
“Let’s go to the library after lunch. We can read it there.”
“You should rest until tomorrow. You still don’t look well.”
“Do I really? I honestly feel fine.”
Looking troubled, Irene touched her cheeks, now rougher than usual. Across from her, Chloe regarded her with quiet disapproval for a moment before arching a brow and changing the subject.
“In any case, rest for today. I’ll have it sent to your room later, so you can read it if you get bored.”
“Thank you. Did you enjoy it, Miss Chloe?”
“I think the author was influenced by <Lady Scarlet>. It leaned a little too heavily into the erxtic scenes, which was disappointing. Still, I suppose that’s fortunate, since it should suit your tastes.”
“…Even <Lady Scarlet> was a bit much for me. It’s not that explicit, is it?”
“Don’t worry. It’s not scandalous enough to be banned. Oh, and this time, there might actually be a man you’ll like.”
Caught off guard, Irene’s eyes widened. The men in these sensational novels were all uniformly trash, so the idea seemed almost impossible.
“Oh, come now. That’s unlikely. All the men are trash.”
Instead of answering, Chloe merely shrugged. It seemed she intended for Irene to judge for herself.
Just then, the head housemaid returned to the dining room with an awkward smile.
Meeting Irene’s eyes, she wore a conflicted expression for a brief moment before quietly looking away and setting another place at the head of the table.
Was someone else joining them?
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