When My Husband Cheated On Me, I… - Chapter 13

I bit my lower lip as I looked up at Eugene, fidgeting with my hands as I searched for something to say. My now-loose wedding ring caught on the tip of my finger.

“Oh. So your husband must be very possessive, huh.”

His biting sarcasm, spoken as if it were a certainty, made my eyes flash with anger.

“That’s not it.”

I glared at Eugene and replied firmly. On impulse, I placed my hand over his.

“Really?”

With that same insufferable, crooked grin, Eugene grabbed my hand tightly so I couldn’t escape.

“If not, then never mind.”

Eugene stepped closer, pulling me toward him.

With the suddenly closed distance, the solid, masculine scent of Eugene brushed the tip of my nose. The crisp scent of cotton and heavy woody notes mixed together. It was the scent of a grown man.

The boy in my memories had always smelled like the fresh forest. The deepened fragrance he wore now felt unfamiliar, and I found it hard to meet his eyes.

Side by side on the dance floor, we moved in time with the music. Contrary to his arrogant attitude, his lead was gentle and considerate.

The boy from the mountain cabin had become the perfectly mannered second son of the Felterwins ducal house.

Still, strangely, memories of running through the woods together with him kept coming back.

“Dancing like this brings back memories of when we were kids.”

It seemed Eugene was thinking the same. His violet eyes were distant with nostalgia.

Looking into those eyes made my chest tighten. Suddenly, I found myself with so much I wanted to say to him. So many questions flooded my mind.

“You’ve grown up a lot, Eugene.”

I pushed down the complicated thoughts and said something light. Eugene lifted the corner of his mouth in a slightly cocky smile and nodded.

“It’s been a long time.”

I wanted to ask him why he had left like that. Why he’d only returned now. How he’d come to be the Felterwins second son.

‘Would it mean anything to ask?’

Even if I heard the answers, would it matter? Maybe it was better to just stay quiet.

While I was lost in thought, Eugene spoke.

“You’ve changed a lot, too.”

“…Have I?”

I couldn’t tell what he meant by that, so I closed my mouth. I couldn’t even say what sort of girl I’d been back then.

“You’ve gotten pretty. Cockily so.”

At the unexpected words, my face grew hot. Cockily? I lifted my head to protest.

At that moment, the music swelled to its climax. Eugene pulled me close, closing the distance in an instant.

“It seems like just yesterday your nose was sunburnt and dark.”

He chuckled. As the move where his arm wrapped around my back came, he gripped my waist. The strange barrier between us shattered, and our bodies pressed together.

His handsome face came so close that I squeezed my eyes shut without thinking.

For a moment, as if cut off from the world, I felt Eugene’s fingertip tap the tip of my nose.

“Too bad I can’t kiss a married woman.”

“What?!”

Startled by his teasing, I opened my eyes wide to see Eugene grinning down at me.

Feeling like I’d been made fun of, I pushed against his chest.

“That’s not what I meant!”

“Sure, sure. Let’s say it’s not.”

Eugene nodded half-heartedly. I narrowed my eyes and glared at him.

“……”

All the questions I’d forced down tangled on the tip of my tongue. I wanted to say something—anything—so I parted my lips.

“Why did you…”

‘…come back?’

I wasn’t even sure that was the right thing to ask, but that’s what I wanted to say. But the rest of my words were interrupted by Chloe and Hayden, who returned from their dance.

“Oh? You.”

Chloe greeted Eugene with recognition, then looked between the two of us with wide eyes.

“You two know each other?”

I hesitated, unsure how to answer.

Eugene was someone I knew, but I’d never known him as the Felterwins second son. In all our time together, I’d never imagined he was a noble.

“Just… a little.”

“What is this! You never told me you were friends with the Felterwins second son.”

Chloe pouted and playfully tapped my shoulder. I glanced at Eugene.

I wasn’t sure if I should reveal the Eugene I’d known as a child to the world. These stories were already the subject of enough gossip. I didn’t want to add fuel to the fire.