Brody reached for the blanket, but Ian quietly came closer and draped it over her shoulders. Without her noticing, he also set a large hot water bag in front of her.

Sitting beside her nonchalantly, he was only wearing a light layer and a cape.

‘I guess he doesn’t feel the cold. Lucky.’

Brody turned her gaze back to the bonfire and took another sip of the soup.

Neither Ian nor Brody were talkative, but there was a difference between quiet and awkward.

Brody thought it was fortunate there was something to sip on.

Even though she ate as slowly as possible, the meal had to end.

The bowl, once warm from the soup, had grown cold.

Brody tried to get up to return the bowl to Teddy.

However, her movement was halted by a large hand blocking her way, forcing her to sit back down.

Ian snatched her bowl and offered her a cup.

Thus, warm milk found its place in Brody’s hands.

‘Does he care for me without saying so? I feel like I’m treated not as a coworker, but as someone who needs protection.’

He had always overly cared for Brody’s health.

Therefore, she had faith that he would protect her, no matter what happened.

But…

If one were preserved like a fresh tuna, they might end up with dry, dead eyes.

Sighing briefly, Brody looked down at her cup. His kindness felt cruel.

“How are you feeling?”

Brody paused as she was about to take a sip from her cup, startled by the sudden question that broke the silence.

“What is it?”

However, Ian was looking straight ahead, not at her.

“Has the cold subsided a bit?”

“Ah, yes. I’m okay. Thanks to Teddy and, um, you.”

Though still cold, Brody gave a vague answer and looked forward again.

This time, Ian merely glanced at her with a flick of his eyes.

‘Why does “I’m fine” sound so cruel?’

A tingling sensation seemed to run near Ian’s heart. Unconsciously, he placed his hand on the left side of his chest.

Brody had never falsely claimed to be fine when she wasn’t.

But her response this time was different. Her sincerity was missing. It was a formal, factual, but inaccurate answer.

Would she no longer approach him? Would she no longer rely on him?

The boundary Brody had drawn deeply and sharply tormented Ian.
His right hand clenched tightly, and then he felt his heart waver.

“How ridiculous. I can push her away, but she can’t?”

It was true that Aidan had tried to keep a distance from her.

But now that she was pushing him away too… Though prepared, it wasn’t easy.

Previously, Brody had tried to leave him several times.

But that was to find freedom, not to distance herself from Aidan.

Brody had always allowed him to be by her side.

Never afraid of him, nor finding him difficult.

Disliking what she disliked, liking what she liked. Laughing, getting angry, thinking, hesitating, acting without restraint.

“From the start, you’ve been like this. From the very start.”

He glanced at Brody, who was sipping her milk slowly and taking leisurely breaths.

Between her curly hair, her soft eyebrows and small, dense nose bridge were visible.

Watching her peaceful yet precarious state, he reminisced about the first day he met Brody.

Her eyes observed him calmly, even though she was a captive.

He, the Ice Duke, felt disconcerted by that gaze.

Normally, people try to please him, either out of loyalty or fear. They try to show their best side.

But this woman, during her time with him, acted leisurely without any particular agenda.

Except for making tea, she had nothing to do. Yet typically, people would try to do something while around him.

But once Brody finished making tea, she would laze around and then fall into a deep sleep.

Like a hamster hibernating for the winter.

Moreover, Aidan saw someone fall asleep in front of him for the first time.

He had seen people sleeping before, but usually they would quickly get up, embarrassed, as soon as they noticed his presence.

It was even more absurd to see someone fall asleep while he was watching.

But Brody didn’t seem to care.

She was quiet and leisurely, but it seemed to stem from her bold personality.

Even in front of Aidan, who everyone respected as the Ice Duke, she was so relaxed.

He had never felt that she regarded him as a ‘duke.’

She had desires for ‘Aidan,’ but none for him as a ‘duke.’

The reason she liked physical contact with him (yes, surprising as it was, she didn’t dislike his touch, to a degree he could acknowledge) and asked to be protected from Jax was not because he was the ‘Duke,’ but because he was ‘Aidan.’

In fact, she had even hinted that she would want to be by his side, if only he were not the ‘Duke.’

Truly, Aidan had never had such a relationship before.

“Maybe you are the first and the last to treat me so casually.”

No one had ever treated him like this, not even River or his parents. No one had ever treated him as just Aidan, not as a Duke.

And now, she began to distance herself.

If not necessary, she no longer initiated conversations. She stopped engaging in trivial conversations and smiling.

This was distinctly different from when he had tried to distance himself.

Even though it hadn’t been long since this change, Aidan felt an emptiness in his heart, as if it had been hollowed out.