Johan hadn’t particularly desired a divorce.
Any random person would do as a marriage partner. That was enough for him.
So it didn’t matter to him, even if that person was a notorious scandalous bastard child.
It was enough to be a shield against the tedious pressure from family elders and the matchmakers of the marriage market.
Moreover, his marriage to Olivia had brought him many benefits.
His dealings with the crown prince had been exceedingly profitable.
Of course, his wife’s pathological obsession was an unexpected factor, but it was something he could ignore, and it didn’t seem to cost Johan anything.
“Please, divorce me…”
When Olivia had said those words, she shone brighter than the sun. Unbelievably so.
What had Johan missed?
It nagged at him like a thorn under his fingernail, but he couldn’t pinpoint the cause.
Johan pulled the reins of his horse. The racehorse, with its glossy black mane fluttering, began to gallop.
He shook off the lingering thoughts of the abrupt divorce as he rode across the vast meadow.
After a round at the riding club, Johan and the crown prince dismounted and went to the Club Royal Room to rest.
“It’s good to be out, isn’t it?”
Johan’s cousin and peer, the crown prince, dismissed the attendant and poured brandy into a glass with ice, pushing it towards Johan. Instead of responding, Johan simply emptied the glass.
“You should’ve treated the ex-Duchess better, Johan.”
“Get to your point.”
Johan looked intently at the crown prince.
“Time to find a new Duchess of Leopold, isn’t it?”
“Madman.”
The crown prince, Christian, chuckled as he poured more liquor into his empty glass.
“Be thankful you were born in such good times.”
Christian swirled his drink, the clear ice cubes sparkling in the sunlight, making a crisp sound.
“Marry the Grand Duchess of Krantz.”
“Why don’t you do it?”
Johan narrowed his eyes at the prince.
“I’ll give you Low Field as a wedding gift. Go on, marry her.”
Christian was engaged to the princess of Argent. At this point, there were signs of independence movements in Krantz, a vassal state of Londo. Londo needed a hostage, and the only eligible bachelor of royal blood, unfortunately, was Johan, freshly divorced for three weeks.
“Eiden, your uncle, can’t do it.”
There was a fifty-year-old duke, but from the twenty-two-year-old Grand Duchess’s perspective, a twenty-eight-year-old divorced man might be a better option than a fifty-year-old bachelor. A selfishly convenient consideration.
“Why not remarry the queen to the duke?”
“Madman. What kind of talk is that?”
Christian burst into laughter with a curse, his eyes wandering to the portrait of the queen hanging in front.
“If father heard that, he’d come out of his grave and shove a revolver in the duke’s mouth.”
Christian’s teasing continued.
“The ex-Duchess seems to be looking for a second husband too. And Lancelot, of all places. Trying to spite you?”
“Shut up.”
Johan’s intense gaze briefly landed on Christian before disappearing.
“Scary, so scary.”
His teasing was half-serious.
Johan was one of the few people around Christian who didn’t wear a mask.
He couldn’t hide his emotions. Christian preferred Johan’s transparency to those who smiled while stabbing from behind.
“I invited you to Catherine’s birthday party. Just keep your mouth shut and show up. For the peace of Londo!”
Christian raised his glass theatrically, then shifted his tone and muttered lowly.
“It’s an order.”
Ironically, at that moment, Johan’s head was filled with his wife’s voice.
‘Please, divorce me.’
The memory of that dry end to their marriage inexplicably intruded on his thoughts.
Even if the world were to turn upside down, Olivia was someone who would never utter such words.
The glass, held tightly in his muscular hand, was emptied in one swift gulp.
Johan slowly wiped his lips with his thumb, staring intently at the blue drapery crossing the chest of the queen in the painting. It was the color that reminded him of his ex-wife’s eyes.
A second husband…?
One photograph reported to him before leaving the office.
His ex-wife, walking along a blossoming tree-lined street with a maid, was smiling.
Had she ever smiled like this?
Johan couldn’t recall ever seeing such an expression on his wife’s face. Not even once.
It was only after meeting Olivia Blanchett that he looked down at the woman in the photo and thought her beautiful. And wondered what could make her smile so.
Among the few possibilities, he had vehemently scratched out the worst one – Edgar Lancelot Lanchester. As long as it wasn’t Edgar, he didn’t care who her second husband might be.
“Ms. Blanchett has sent a reply declining the invitation.”
“Oh, is that so? That’s a shame.”
Edgar smiled wryly as if he had expected it, nodding his head. The suite room manager quietly placed the tray on the desk and retreated.
A pale pink envelope lay neatly on the silver tray.
He could have discarded it into the trash bin without opening it, knowing its contents. But Edgar loosely held the paper knife.
Turns Out He’s Been Secretly in Love with Me
One-line summary: He acts like he doesn’t like her but is actually playing hard to get.
Synopsis:
Xu Muzhou like her. He has liked her for a very long time, and through repeated schemes, he finally closed the distance with her.
But this is still far from enough.
He wants to be the one who stands out among her many suitors, to fight for her attention, and to make her take the initiative to pursue him.
_____
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