Pregnant With The Wolf's Child - Chapter 65

“Larien. It’s all dried.”

“……”

“Larien?”

There was no response even though he said it was all dried.

Feeling puzzled, Jade hung the towel and stood in front of Larien.

‘When did she fall asleep?’

She was sleeping, nodding her head.

He carefully supported Larien’s swaying cheek.

Even when he tilted her head to the side, she did not wake up. Her calm but repetitive breaths kept touching Jade’s palm.

‘Was she very tired?’

Through her parted lips, the air coming out of the narrow gap was hot and ticklish.

‘The scent of acacia…’

Kneeling down, he grasped Larien’s long hair that hung down.

Her hair swept smoothly without any tangles.

Soaked in the scent of acacia, it had a strong sweet smell today as well.

Reaching out with his other hand, he touched her densely lowered eyelashes.

Then, smoothing her furrowed nose bridge, he reached her lips.

The lips with fine lines drawn on both sides were very red even without anything applied. It was as tempting as if the juice of a pomegranate had been squeezed and held in them.

He wanted to swallow those lips that would give off a sweet fragrance.

He couldn’t resist and was about to press his lips close when he hesitated.

‘What am I doing to someone who’s sleeping…’

Usually, even if Larien refused, he would subtly kiss her lips while observing her not-so-displeased reactions, but now she was asleep.

Jade rested his chin and covered the rising impulse, enduring it with a brief kiss on her forehead.

‘I shouldn’t stay with her like this. It would be better to move her to the bedroom.’

He stood up slowly, trying not to wake Larien.

He carefully put his hand on her waist and lifted her.

…She was light.

‘Why does she keep getting thinner.’

Even more so than when he had held Larien after she hurt her ankle coming down the ladder.

Whether she wasn’t eating well, her collarbones and arms were slender.

He knew that Larien would eat even less than now when the weather got hotter and she lost her appetite.

‘Larien liked seafood. A new restaurant that makes good steamed lobster opened near the square. Its name was… Sielip. Sielip.’

He repeated ‘Sielip’ several times, intending to take her to the restaurant as soon as day broke.

“Mmm…”

Larien curled up, burrowing into the hollow below his chest bone.

‘…It’s not like she’s deliberately testing how well I can endure.’

As a result, the strap of her slip hanging on her shoulder slid down.

White and soft bare skin was revealed precariously. It was dangerous, as it seemed it would completely fall off with just a little more movement.

Even now, he was barely holding back by turning his eyes away.

Jade bit his teeth and swallowed the lust rising again.

He walked out of the guest room and went to Larien’s bedroom.

Not wanting to wake her sleeping soundly, he muffled his footsteps.

“Mmm, yum yum. Delicious…”

On the bed, sleeping Blanche was smacking her lips, curling her body into a ball.

“Ptui… Don’t like carrots…”

She frowned while sleep-talking, then quickly quieted down.

‘They say eating in dreams is a sleep habit.’

He carefully laid Larien down on Blanche’s left side. Larien turned to her side and curled up.

‘Even their sleeping posture is the same.’

Besides that, there were countless similarities between Larien and Blanche.

Light brown hair loosely curled in several strands.

Though not visible now as her eyes were closed, eyes of a unique sea color where blue and purple coexist.

They even sounded similar, both moving their lips slightly and breathing softly.

‘When I first met Blanche, I immediately thought of Larien.’

This child who resembled her so much was his daughter.

An existence that would be an eternal connection with Larien.

Was it because her appearance resembled Larien?

Even he, who disliked young children, made an exception for Blanche.

But that didn’t mean he particularly liked her.

His feelings of love for Blanche were closer to non-existent.

Giving her piggyback rides at the ice festival, playing ball with her, spending time together – those actions were for the purpose of gaining Larien’s favor.

‘This isn’t right.’

A good father should love his child, but he only used her.

Surely a father’s gaze towards his child should contain tenderness and affection.

Jade didn’t mix in any of that when looking at Blanche.

He alleviated his guilt for not loving Blanche by saying he would leave her all his property.

The talk about Blanche that he brought up while proposing marriage was all an excuse.

Because if he said he loved Larien, who didn’t love him, she would feel repulsed.

It was a calculated statement to make Larien not feel burdened by the proposal by prioritizing Blanche.

‘What exactly was she dissatisfied with?’

Larien, whom he thought would naturally accept, flatly refused saying she had no obligation to marry.

‘Why? If Blanche becomes my heir, she’ll inherit everything of the Rowe family.’

The Rowe family’s wealth was considerable.

They perhaps had assets comparable to the imperial family. Including titles and territories in other countries, no other family could match them.

If she became a viscountess, everything of his would become Blanche’s.

If she refused because Blanche can’t inherit Boston after Larien anyway since she’s a wolf shifter…

‘She must dislike marrying me more than Blanche inheriting the assets.’

The situation that had befallen him was being resolved smoothly. Through Sharlin, he had found the coachman who drove his parents’ carriage.

‘Please spare me, my lord! I was possessed by something back then and fell for Grand Duke Usith’s trick, betraying your grace and making the wrong choice.’

‘Be a witness at the trial where Grand Duke Usith will be charged with murder. Then I’ll let you keep your head.’

The coachman prostrated himself, saying he would be a witness at the trial for murder that would be held in the future.

He was in the process of gathering evidence of Grand Duke Usith’s corruption that he had overlooked so that he couldn’t escape at all.

He planned to strip him of his power in the Council of Elders and give him a life rotting in prison.

The situation was favorable because Sharlin was carrying Grand Duke Usith’s illegitimate child.

Plus, Blanche had succeeded in shifting at once and spit out a jewel.

However…

The only thing that didn’t go according to his will was Larien.

She escaped from him with a face that looked like she could leave at any time.

She drew a clear line as if telling him not to approach, along with a warning not to do this.

He knew that if he hadn’t encountered her at the Grand Temple, he wouldn’t have been able to see Larien like this now.

Because she had intended to hide from him forever.

‘Larien. I won’t ask for anything else. Just, can’t you stay where my eyes can reach you?’

Jade endured, swallowing it only inwardly.

He didn’t want his feelings to be discovered.

Because she would surely run away immediately.

After organizing his complicated thoughts for a while, dawn was breaking.

“My lord…?”

Jade, returning to the guest room, encountered Mary.

“Mary. When Larien wakes up, tell her to come to a restaurant called ‘Sielip’ near the square at noon. I’ll wait until she comes.”

“Yes, I understand!”

Jade hurriedly prepared to leave, intending to reserve the entire place for Larien who disliked noisy places.

I gently opened my eyes to the freshly sparkling sunlight and looked around.

‘When did I return to the bedroom?’

The last memory I had was dozing off to the touch of hands stroking my hair while I was with Jade in the guest room.

‘I must have fallen asleep and Jade brought me to the bedroom.’

Inside the blanket, Blanche was sleeping soundly, curled up.

Feeling her breathing might be stuffy, I slightly lifted the blanket as I got out of bed.

“Young lady, are you awake?”

Mary’s cautious voice followed after a soft knock.

“Mary, what’s the matter?”

I opened the door and let Mary in.

“The Countess of Escalif has arrived and I’ve shown her to the reception room on the first floor.”

“…The Countess of Escalif?”

Even if an appointment had been made in advance, coming early in the morning was against etiquette.

The reason the Countess of Escalif came at this hour was obvious.

‘The Emperor must have urged her to come for an answer regarding the engagement.’

I felt tired at the Countess of Escalif’s visit, barging in first thing in the morning without even a day passing.

‘I should see the Emperor in person and say to postpone the engagement ceremony until the debutante.’

I pointed to Jade’s jacket left on the bed and said to Mary.

“Mary. Go to the guest room and give Jade his jacket.”

“Um, young lady. Lord Rowe has already left.”

“…He left already?”

I wonder if he had some urgent business. Usually, when Jade slept here, he would have breakfast and stay until lunch.

“Yes. Should I go to the Rowe mansion?”

“No. We can give him the jacket next time we meet. For now, help me get ready. I need to visit the imperial palace with the Countess of Escalif.”

“Yes, young lady. I’ll bring the wash water right away.”

After washing my face with the water Mary brought, I changed into a dark green dress.

I put on a pendant and went down to the first floor reception room where the Countess of Escalif was waiting.

“Count Boston, good morning. I apologize for coming at such an early hour.”

The Countess of Escalif’s eyes were dark.

‘I can’t even say I’m displeased that she came without notice first thing in the morning.’

She looked weary, harassed by the Emperor.

“It’s alright, Countess Escalif. Shall we talk over some tea?”

I offered warmly, extending a cup of warm tea. The Countess of Escalif thanked me and wrapped her hands around the teacup.

“His Majesty the Emperor wishes to receive an answer regarding the engagement between His Highness the Imperial Grandson and the young lady of Count Boston.”

“…Regarding the engagement, I think I should speak to His Majesty in person, so how about we enter the palace together later?”

The Countess of Escalif pondered for a moment before nodding her head.

“Then, I’ll have breakfast prepared. Countess. Shall we go to the dining room?”