Chapter 1
The wall coated with lime plaster felt cool, and the part of my body pressed against it gradually cooled as well. I could feel winter approaching on my skin.
From beyond the wall, I could hear the young servants chattering.
“Did you hear about that?”
“Hear about what?”
“The story that Master is meeting another woman.”
“What? Don’t say such ridiculous things! Our kind Master?”
“No, it’s true! One of the maids who went shopping last weekend saw Master linking arms affectionately with another woman.”
Last weekend was the day Hayden was away on a business trip.
His schedule had been so tight that there would have been no time for him to meet another woman. So, what those children were saying was nothing but an idle rumor.
I knew I ought to go punish the servants who were spreading such gossip right away, but for some reason, I couldn’t move my legs.
“That’s ridiculous. Then what about Madam?”
“Well… The thing is, Master is definitely kind to Madam, but it doesn’t really look like he loves her, does it?”
“What does it look like when someone’s in love?”
“You know, it’s like… sparks flying just from making eye contact!”
The girl’s voice answering rose a pitch higher.
“I read in a magazine that newlyweds are supposed to be much more passionate. Like, every time they make eye contact, just—!”
The bold expression made the young children burst into giggles.
“But Master and Madam never really seemed that way since they got married, did they?”
“Hmm. Maybe that’s just how all nobles are?”
“Is that so? If that’s true, being a noble doesn’t sound all that enviable.”
My heart pounded erratically, as if it was broken.
Could even the servants see things like that?
Just as they saw it, maybe Hayden really didn’t love me. Something hot slipped down my throat.
The chill seeping from the wall cooled the fever in my head. I blinked my eyes slowly.
A strange sense of anxiety gripped me tightly, as if the rumor might actually be true…
‘Why am I like this?’
Suddenly coming to my senses, I straightened my posture.
‘No.’
There’s no way my husband would do such a thing.
My husband was always a gentle and family-oriented man. Of all people, I shouldn’t be the one doubting him. I needed to put a stop to these false stories before they spread any further.
I straightened my back and let out a deep breath.
“Who said they saw something like that?”
As I turned around the wall that separated me from them, the servants who had been folding laundry turned pale.
“M-Madam.”
I straightened my posture and lifted my chin slightly. The button fastened all the way up to my neck was choking me, but I endured it and observed the servants, who bowed their heads deeply, one by one.
“My husband was seen meeting another woman, you said?”
“……”
I asked once more, but not a single person could open their mouth or lift their head. I let out a thin sigh and clicked my tongue.
“Even if you did see something. As members of the Marquisate, it’s not right to go around spreading such talk.”
“I-I’m sorry, Madam.”
The quivering voices were uncomfortable to hear. They had disturbed the order of the manor, so perhaps I ought to find and punish the source of the rumor. That would be the way to reestablish my dignity as the Marchioness.
But if I did that, it felt as though the rumor about my husband’s infidelity would become accepted as fact.
“Be careful from now on.”
“Y-Yes, Madam. We will be careful!”
Sensing there would be no punishment, the servants quickly bowed their heads and scattered. I was left alone in the now-empty laundry room, letting out a long sigh.
Even after the servants had left, a strange tension and anxiety seemed to fill the air around me.
Chewing on my lips, I finally made myself move.
It was almost time for my husband to return. I didn’t want him to come back and see a commotion caused by sorting out rumors with the servants.
No, perhaps I just didn’t want him to know that I’d been swayed by such an absurd rumor.
* * *
The car carrying my husband glided smoothly into the alley in front of the manor, precisely at seven in the evening.
Hayden was the CEO of the largest department store in the capital. Unless he was working late due to business, he always tried to spend dinner time with me.
“You’re back?”
“Yeah. Nothing happened while I was gone, Winter?”
With a gentle smile, Hayden kissed me lightly on the forehead. I brushed my hair back and met his gaze.
My reflection filled his olive-colored eyes. I liked Hayden’s olive-colored eyes.
He always looked at me with a warm, gentle gaze. Whenever he did, my image would fill those flickering olive eyes, and I’d feel as if I were the only one in his world.
“Work? I was home all day today.”
I remembered the rumor I’d heard earlier, but I didn’t let it show. I didn’t want to bring such things up with him.
“Have you eaten dinner?”
“No. I turned down even Sir Pecterson’s invitation so I could eat with you.”
Hayden looked at me expectantly, like a puppy waiting for praise. I smiled slightly and replied,
“I’m honored.”
Chuckling, Hayden kissed my forehead again, wrapped his arm around my shoulders, and led me toward the dining room.
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