As she reached for the zipper on the back of her dress, a sharp pain shot through her palm.
It was deeper than she thought, throbbing with every slight movement.
The zipper kept slipping, frustrating her further.
The bedroom door opened behind her.
Had the Duke returned? Adeline stopped trying to unzip and turned towards the sound.
Unaware of her intention to change, the Duke entered the room and slumped onto the sofa irritably.
No words were exchanged between them.
Adeline, needing to change, found it absurd that he was occupying the sofa.
“Can you leave for a moment? I need to change.”
She spoke without looking his way.
“Why should I leave?”
Still upset from their earlier argument, he showed no intention of moving.
“Then stay as you are.”
Adeline’s response, laced with a soft sigh, prompted the Duke to stand.
Perhaps realizing his own pettiness, he walked towards the bedroom door.
‘What am I doing?’
Tired from the heavy rain, she felt drained. It seemed like an unnecessary emotional toll.
While she understood his feelings, Adeline lacked the energy to explain everything in detail.
Moreover, she couldn’t honestly spill everything, adding to her frustration.
She was left with no choice.
Adeline struggled again to unzip her dress.
It felt like her hand could reach the zipper, but it kept slipping.
Trying too hard only aggravated her injured hand.
“Ah…”
Emotions she had suppressed welled up.
She had lived a tough life, believing it was her fate, but now found herself in constant hardship.
Having escaped an engagement with a prince who killed his fiancées, she fled to this villa.
She had hoped that saving the Duke would also save her.
But nothing was going right.
‘Perhaps I shouldn’t have saved the Duke.’
Her negative thoughts spiraled, quickly overwhelming her.
And that’s when her eyes started to moisten.
“Stubborn, aren’t you?”
A flat voice surprised her. Turning around, she felt the Duke’s solid presence blocking her way.
He had returned, unbeknownst to her.
The Duke grabbed her wrist, pulled it down, and whispered close to her ear.
“Stay still.”
His warm fingers touched Adeline’s cold neck as she was soaked in her wet dress.
“Why did you let yourself get so cold?”
“Ah!”
His sudden touch made her shrink back.
“With your hand in that state, how did you plan to unzip this?”
He sighed and slowly began to unzip her dress.
The zipper seemed to move excruciatingly slow, revealing Adeline’s pale skin as it went down her back and waist.
Then, something warm and soft touched her partially exposed shoulder.
Adeline flinched, about to turn around.
“What just…”
Before she could speak, the Duke leaned in, resting his forehead on her shoulder.
His hot breath brushed against her back, making her feel a warmth spreading inside.
“Adel.”
His voice, a low growl, left her speechless.
After a moment of silence, he turned her around to face him.
His eyes caught hers immediately – the intense, blood-red irises.
Adeline instinctively stepped back, overwhelmed by the illusion of flames in his eyes.
The guilt and tension of deceiving him tangled inside her, tormenting her.
“Why are you avoiding my gaze now?”
“I haven’t avoided your gaze.”
Adeline tried to turn away, feigning ignorance.
But before she could do so, the Duke’s large hand swiftly reached out, grasping both of Adeline’s cheeks.
“Then don’t avoid me.”
His voice, low and resonating near her ear, accompanied his face drawing closer.
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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