“Why did you like this painting, Damion?”
At Ansi’s question, he swallowed hard.
It was nothing special. He just realized that even this dry woman had an area of interest.
No, he already knew through prior research that this woman liked stars, so it would be more correct to say he felt that fact.
Damion casually flashed a smile.
“It’s probably a silly reason.”
“I won’t laugh.”
Ansi was now staring at him intently. After hesitating for a moment, Damion opened his mouth.
“It reminded me of the night sky I saw when I escaped from the maze that day.”
It was for the woman’s sake, but it wasn’t a lie.
Damion’s gaze touched her pitch-black hair, then moved to her round eyes and slightly pursed lips.
Would she change the subject? She was a woman not immune to ticklish words.
However, her response was different from what he expected.
“That day remains vivid in my memory too. I’ve seen countless night skies, but it was probably the first time I looked up at one with Damion.”
Damion was momentarily at a loss for words.
Perhaps because it was the first time he had heard such a direct statement from that woman.
Damion deliberately smiled and said,
“…I’m glad.”
“I think we’ll make many more such memories in the future.”
“We will.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
Ansi smiled lightly.
Expectation, those two simple words somehow made Damion’s insides flutter.
It was strange.
“I heard you appreciate paintings well. May I accompany you?”
The woman threw out the words while surveying the hall.
Did she look into me?
Expectation and curiosity. They were good signs for discovering love. Objectively, it was true that he had a good eye for paintings, so it would be good to appeal to that woman as well.
But somehow, he didn’t want to.
Foolishly.
“I don’t know much about paintings.”
A monotone voice leaked out.
“Aren’t you interested in collecting? I heard the paintings you purchased are of high value.”
“It’s luck. My basis for purchasing paintings is usually not how technically excellent they are, but because they reminded me of personal experiences or simply gave me a good feeling.”
It wasn’t the proper way to consume paintings in this country. Just looking at those who came to this exhibition, they were raving about more sophisticated techniques and more detailed expressions. If not that, then they contained a profoundness that was daring to interpret.
How unprofessional and uncool a reason personal experience was. It wasn’t something that would appeal to anyone.
But it couldn’t be helped. Unlike his brother, he had never been educated on the proper way to consume paintings.
Just secretly wandering the corridors of the duke’s mansion during his alone time, endlessly gazing at paintings was the beginning of his painting consumption. With insight gained that way, it could only be unprofessional.
However, Ansi tilted her head. She spoke in her usual dry voice.
“Isn’t that a good reason?”
“…Is it?”
“After all, whether it’s a painting or a photograph, they all capture a single moment. If one painting can reproduce the memories of different lives lived by each person, I think there’s no better value than that.”
…Is that so?
Damion slowly nodded. Unconsciously, he mulled over Ansi’s words. Her quiet words, casually thrown out, gently overturned what had seemed obvious.
“And seeing that someone else besides Your Lordship and me has taken notice of this painting, I think your taste isn’t bad after all.”
Ansi’s gaze was fixed on the ‘Sold’ tag attached next to the painting. It was a tag proving that Damion had purchased it.
He swallowed a laugh and pretended not to know, nodding his head.
“That’s fortunate.”
Damion moved closer to her side. The strange flutter that had risen briefly was already gone.
They naturally began to walk together.
As their slow steps continued, she appreciated the paintings with a calm gaze. A painting depicting the capital’s scenery, someone’s portrait, a still life of a flower vase. Countless paintings were captured in her pupils and then disappeared.
And when a certain lake filled her deep eyes, Damion, who was looking at the lake through those deep eyes, asked,
“There’s a boat trip on the Benu River in a few days. Would you be my partner?”
Ansi turned her gaze.
In her large blue eyes, his figure was now reflected.
[This is the timeline separator]Click, the sound of the hour hand moving echoed through the shop. Ansi, who had been sitting and reading a book, raised her gaze to the clock hanging on the wall.
6 o’clock, still 2 hours left until the time Madam Roma was supposed to return.
It was an offer with no reason to refuse. So she had been guarding this space all day today.
The items here were all precious. Everything looked new, but in fact, nothing was new.
This was a kind of pawnshop that catered only to the upper class.
Whether they urgently needed money, or wouldn’t wear a necklace twice after wearing it once, or couldn’t wear it again because it was a gift from an ex-lover. Various products gathered here for various reasons.
When there are good products, customers start to gather. Add to that the condition that they can only buy here, and appropriate word of mouth, and it’s perfect. As a result, Madam Roma’s shop had many upper-class people as secret customers.
As Ansi was about to lower her head again, her eyes caught a shining necklace in the glass display case. Staring at it, Ansi touched around her neck.
It felt empty.
For the boat trip, would it be good to decorate herself?
Damion had sent her several gifts. At least now, it seemed the man could do that much for her.
However, she couldn’t rely solely on his goodwill. She had to be cautious, not knowing when the man’s heart might change. To prevent him from changing his mind, some effort on her part was also necessary.
Ansi imitated that steam engine-like man by saying unnecessary things, and also diligently investigated him. The reason she went to that exhibition in the first place was because she thought that man would come.
Since he said he liked paintings, he would surely come, and she thought he might consider their chance meeting as if it were fate.
Whether that was effective or not, the man asked her to be his partner for the boat trip. Fortunately, it seemed his heart hadn’t changed.
It was then.
Ding-a-ling, the bell attached to the shop door rang.
A man stepped inside.
Those who came to this shop usually sent servants instead or appeared with their faces covered as much as possible with hats and scarves. Because they didn’t want to show that they were buying second-hand items.
However, this red-haired young master who had just arrived didn’t seem to know this implicit rule and appeared with his face openly exposed.
“Ah…!”
And stopping at the entrance, he stared at Ansi with round eyes. He seemed to recognize her, but Ansi didn’t know him.
Perhaps he had seen her in the newspaper or something.
“My lady… do you run this shop?”
“No, I’m just watching it for a while.”
Ah. The man nodded and carefully looked around the shop. Then he immediately approached Ansi.
He took something out of his inner pocket and asked with a dubious expression.
“Then, do you know who sold this here?”
Ansi’s eyebrows raised slightly.
What the man held out was a fountain pen. And a very familiar one at that.
“Did the gentleman buy this?”
“Well, through some connections. Anyway, who sold it?”
“I did.”
Ansi replied nonchalantly. And at those words, the red-haired young man, Henet de Maron, gaped in astonishment.
This woman, Ansi de Rubellsa, claimed to be his secret lover?
“Where did you get it? No, more importantly, why did you do such a thing?”
Henet asked urgently, speaking incoherently. But Ansi was just calm. A brazen and resolute response came back.
“I have no obligation to tell you where it came from, and I sold it because it seemed more profitable than using it myself.”
“Huh….”
Damion! Is this really okay? With such a woman who goes around impersonating other people’s lovers for her own benefit?
Henet’s mind became complicated. He’s a smart guy, so he surely has his reasons, but it didn’t seem like he would know about something like this. But then again, telling him about this fact might cause unnecessary trouble.
He had no idea that he had carelessly lent that fountain pen to Damion at the club, and thus it was Damion who had provided it to Ansi.
“Due to you selling this, I’ve suffered great damage, my lady.”
“Did you buy it for a very high price? I didn’t sell it for that much.”
“That’s not it….”
This woman didn’t even seem to know who he was. No, did she impersonate his lover without even knowing what Henet de Maron looked like?
It seemed Henet would have to find out for himself if this woman was really a proper person.
“Excuse me, may I sit down?”
“There’s a cafe across the street.”
“I’ll buy this. While I’m considering buying that too?”
“Do as you please.”
Having purchased a tie pin, Henet sat on the sofa provided in the shop and stared at Ansi.
She lowered her gaze and began to read a book. Now only the sound of the clock could be heard in the quiet shop.
What kind of woman is she exactly? Henet’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Ansi.
__________
Turns Out He’s Been Secretly in Love with Me (Female-dominant)
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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