The cabin near the artificial lake was a wooden house built for resting after swimming.

The cabin, situated where the water color of the lake blended with the greenery of the forest, looked like a scene from a watercolor painting.

Apart from the dampness and discomfort caused by the rain, the scenery was quite picturesque.

Cain put Jane down in a place sheltered from the rain and felt along the window frame. Then he found the key and opened the cabin door.

“Is it okay to tell me where you keep the key?”

When Jane asked, Cain shrugged his shoulders.

“Would you have any reason to come here again?”

Jane closed her mouth. Cain was right. This place was for the Hastings and their guests.

Jane would live as a duchess for a year, and she wasn’t likely to come here again during that time, and afterward, she wouldn’t have the right to visit this place.

Cain went inside, opened the windows, and returned to Jane. He let out a deep sigh as Jane barely took a step while leaning against the wall.

“Ask for help. Don’t be stubborn.”

“It’s fine. I can walk this much.”

It wasn’t far from where he had put her down to the inside of the house. Just three or four steps at most.

“If you want to walk into the wedding ceremony on crutches, suit yourself.”

Would her ankle be strained that much just by walking a few steps?

Jane looked down at her feet. It had been throbbing suspiciously since earlier. After pondering, Jane held out her hand to Cain.

Although it was a contract marriage, a wedding was still a wedding, and she’d rather not make her entrance on crutches.

“Help me, Cain.”

Jane was carried into the cabin.

Having been carried a few times now, she wrapped her arms around Cain’s neck without him having to tell her.

At this, the frown that had been on Cain’s brow the whole time softened.

The interior of the cabin was neatly arranged. The wooden walls and furniture gave off a cozy feeling.

“Rest for a while. I’ll start a fire.”

Cain wrapped a blanket around Jane’s shoulders and headed towards the fireplace.

“Is there anything I can do to help?”

Cain burst out laughing. Then he looked Jane up and down.

It was a gaze full of contempt, as if to say what could you do in that state.

If she hadn’t been injured, Jane could have done quite a lot.

During the seven years Jane lived alone, she took care of everything – food, clothing, and shelter – by herself. Those seven years were certainly not in vain.

However, it seemed best to stay put for now.

“I’ll be quiet.”

Cain nodded in satisfaction and put firewood into the fireplace. Soon he skillfully lit the fire.

Then, after checking the bathroom, he returned with loose clothes in his hands.

“Change into these.”

Jane received the clothes and asked.

“Where’s the bathroom?”

“Are you going to wash up?”

“If I can.”

Cain frowned.

“You can barely walk and you want to wash up? Are you asking me to bathe you?”

Jane’s face turned bright red. She had meant to wash alone, but Cain had misunderstood.

“That’s not what I meant…”

“I have no intention of helping you bathe either. Just wipe off the moisture and change. We’ll head back to the mansion as soon as the rain stops.”

Cain threw a towel near the sofa where Jane had been sitting and went into the bathroom.

It seemed he meant for her to change while he was washing.

Jane hesitated, then began to undo the buttons of her wet dress.

Being wet, it wasn’t easy to take off the dress. Moreover, thinking that Cain was in the bathroom made her nervous, causing her hands to slip repeatedly.

He shouldn’t come out too quickly.

Jane listened for the sound of water from the bathroom as she undressed.

When the water sound decreased, she would stop moving anxiously, and when it started again, she would quickly move.

Cain took quite a long time to wash. He didn’t come out until Jane had taken off her wet dress and roughly dried her hair.

Jane put aside the wet dress and towel and moved to the dry sofa.

Then, while waiting for Cain to come out, she examined the cabin more closely.

The cabin had a wooden table, a rocking chair, a bed, and a small kitchen where simple meals could be prepared.

There were no fancy porcelain, impressive tapestries, or imported carpets that existed in every corner of Somnium House.

That’s why it felt comfortable.

It was quite strange that the cabin they had stumbled upon to escape the sudden rain after an accident felt the most comfortable.

Jane placed her uninjured leg on the chair and rested her cheek on it.

She waited for Cain, listening to the sound of rain tapping on the window and the crackling of firewood in the fireplace.

Just as Jane’s eyelashes were starting to droop, the bathroom door finally opened.

* * *

Cain was in a very difficult situation. When he arrived at the cabin and saw her soaking wet, his breath caught.

Due to the rain, her thin dress clung tightly to her body, revealing her feminine curves.

A part of Cain’s body reacted immediately. He threw a towel at Jane and fled into the bathroom.

And he turned on the water. The cold water beat relentlessly on his crown, but his excitement didn’t easily subside.

Rather, thinking that she was changing clothes outside made him more and more aroused.

Cain was a very straightforward person when it came to relationships with women.

Contrary to rumors of promiscuity, he had never been intimate with a woman. It was because he had never felt the urge.

There were those who gave serious advice about it. Asking if there was a problem with him as a man.

“Apparently not. Very healthy.”

Cain glanced down at himself and muttered. It’s so healthy it’s driving him crazy.

He would only be able to go out after cooling down this heat. Cain stood under the cold water for a long time, trying to think of wholesome thoughts and pending work. Then his body’s heat somewhat subsided.

Cain roughly dried his body with a towel and put on the shirt and pants provided in the cabin.

The shirt and pants, prepared to fit the average male size, were small for Cain. In the case of the shirt, he had to unbutton a few buttons as it felt like his chest might burst, and for the pants, the length was short, revealing well above his ankles.

But that didn’t solve everything. Cain moved very carefully as his thighs felt like they might burst with every step.

Coming out of the bathroom, Cain looked for Jane. She was warming herself by the fireplace, her gaze fixed on it. Her loose dress and hunched posture revealed her straight neck and collarbone.

“Jane.”

As she tried to get up at his call, Jane grimaced and sat back down.

Cain strode over and knelt on one knee below the sofa. He unhesitatingly lifted Jane’s left foot that was hanging to the floor. Jane’s fair foot settled on Cain’s thigh.

Cain’s thigh was hot and hard as a rock. Jane tried to withdraw her foot as if burned.

“Let go!”

But instead of letting go of Jane’s foot, Cain grasped her calf as well. Where his hand touched felt hot.

“It’s swollen. It must hurt a lot.”

Cain looked up at Jane. Jane turned her head, avoiding his gaze.

“It’s bearable.”

Cain sighed and put her foot down on the floor. Then he went to the kitchen and brought back two small bottles of alcohol, offering one to Jane.

“It’s brandy. Drink.”

Alcohol wouldn’t be good for an injured ankle, but right now when they couldn’t treat it immediately, reducing the pain was the best option. And alcohol was the best for reducing pain.

Just one drink.

“I don’t like alcohol.”

Cain frowned and lightly touched Jane’s left foot.

“Ouch.”

Cain gestured as if to say ‘see?’ and opened the brandy cap. A strong fruit scent wafted out.

“Who said to drink a lot? Just one drink. It’s in place of painkillers. As I said, it doesn’t look like the rain will stop easily.”

Jane hesitated for a moment, then opened the brandy cap and took a sip.

She didn’t drink to forget the pain.

It was because she didn’t have the confidence to spend the night alone with him in this cabin with nowhere to hide, while sober.

Ugh, Jane frowned.

“I guess you really don’t like alcohol.”

While Jane took one sip, he had emptied half of the small brandy bottle.

“Everything I say is true.”

“Yeah, right.”

Cain leaned back comfortably on the sofa. As the alcohol took effect, his mind relaxed.

When Cain put his arm on the back of the sofa, his already tight shirt opened more and a button popped off.

Jane’s eyes widened as she put the brandy bottle to her lips.

“Aren’t you wearing clothes that are too small?”

“It’s a normal size. I’m just unusually big.”

Jane looked at Cain and quickly turned her head away.

She was embarrassed as her eyes kept being drawn to his toned upper body revealed through the shirt.

Feeling strangely thirsty, Jane drank the alcohol in succession.

Although she didn’t like alcohol, today’s drink wasn’t bad. The pain in her leg and the chilly feeling disappeared completely.

And for some reason, she felt like laughing.

Cain frowned and grabbed Jane’s wrist holding the bottle.

“Stop drinking.”

“Sorry. Just one more drink, pfft.”

It wasn’t a situation to laugh, so she tried to hold it in, but it was difficult. In the end, Jane burst out laughing.

“Jane?”

Only then did Cain look at Jane. He had been glaring at the fireplace the whole time.

His gaze moved from Jane’s unfocused eyes to her upturned lips, then to the empty brandy bottle.

He rubbed his face with his dry hand.

“You’re drunk.”

“I’m not drunk.”

“You are.”

“I’m telling you I’m not druuunk.”

Jane drawled the end of her words. Cain’s chest heaved greatly. He clenched his teeth as if holding something back, then threw a blanket over Jane’s body and stood up.

No, he tried to stand up.

“Don’t go.”

Jane firmly grabbed Cain’s wrist with both hands. Tightly, as if it were a lifeline.