Until yesterday, Adeline, who had been struggling with nursing care, greeted a pleasant morning for the first time in a long while.
It was like the luxurious feeling of turning on the air conditioner and wrapping oneself in a warm blanket.
‘So cozy.’
It was the moment when Adeline was unconsciously burrowing deeply in search of warm comfort.
‘But why is this pillow so hard…?’
The pillow where she had buried her face should have embraced her softly, but she felt an unexpected texture.
Adeline groped with her hands, wondering what this thing she was touching could be.
Her pondering was brief. Just as she was about to relax her body comfortably, a low voice was heard.
“Enough…”
But even the man’s low murmuring voice was just a lullaby to Adeline.
It was when she was about to fall into a deeper sleep.
“Mmm…”
“Enough, wake up.”
What’s this man’s voice I hear?
Thinking there was no way that could be, she was about to fall asleep again.
“…Huh?”
As her drowsy mind awakened, she was bewildered.
Yesterday, unable to withstand the grip of the duke having nightmares, Adeline had sought sleep at the edge of the bed.
But now, with her eyes open, she seemed to be embracing something large.
Sunlight began to seep onto the bed through the bedroom window.
Blinking her eyes, Adeline lowered her head deeply as her red eyes sparkled in the sunlight.
Wait a moment, what’s this situation?
There was no way to explain this situation of them embracing each other.
Adeline froze in confusion.
But such a reaction gave rise to another misunderstanding for him.
It appeared as if she found it natural and expected to be in the duke’s arms.
“Do we need words? You and I are inseparable.”
The duke gazed intently at Adeline.
For him, who had no memory of having nightmares last night, it was a situation ripe for misunderstanding.
If they were sharing a bed, doesn’t that mean only one thing?
‘Lovers.’
She was the woman who was always by his side when he was on the brink of death, when he regained consciousness.
She was the woman who cared for him rather than resenting him for not remembering her.
The duke eventually came to feel apologetic and began to think of Adeline as special.
“I’m sorry, Del. And thank you.”
Both the duke’s words of gratitude and apology were sincere.
But Adeline, not knowing what was going on, just stared blankly at the duke.
That truly apologetic expression.
‘What is he sorry for? Could it be that?’
Adeline thought he was expressing his apology and gratitude to her for giving up the bed all this time.
“It’s okay. You’re sick, after all.”
‘At least you have a conscience. But now, I’d like you to sleep on the sofa.’
However, the duke, unable to know such thoughts of Adeline, began to interpret this situation in his own way.
‘So I’ve been using the bed alone all this time. Was it out of consideration for my injury?’
The duke thought he really should treat Adeline well.
“I’ll try to do better.”
It was a perfectly beautiful case of lovers’ conceit.
* * *
“Don’t you think the clothes are a bit short?”
There were no suitable clothes for Mel at the villa.
But they couldn’t go around naked either. Adeline had come to town with him to buy clothes and check on the duke’s condition.
Duke Torpeo’s physique was much larger than average people, so it wasn’t easy to find ready-made clothes that fit him.
Even wearing the largest clothes available, they were still a bit short. Nevertheless, they suited him quite well due to his build.
The duke seemed bothered by the small size, fiddling with his shirt collar.
‘Well, someone used to custom-made clothes would find it hard to bear even slightly ill-fitting clothes.’
Eventually, the hand that was adjusting the shirt reached for the glasses. The clothes being uncomfortable seemed to make the glasses feel cumbersome as well.
“Do I have to wear these glasses?”
Adeline quickly caught the duke’s hand as he tried to remove the glasses.
“Just keep them on.”
Adeline, who had let her guard down in the small town, recalled the people in the clothing store who had been focusing on the duke’s appearance. The duke’s red eyes were too conspicuous to be good.
“Ah! Let’s stop by the doctor’s office over there.”
Adeline changed the subject as if to divert attention and pulled the duke along.
It was the hospital of the doctor she had called when the duke collapsed, bleeding.
While the doctor was examining him, Adeline asked anxiously.
“How is it? Why can’t he remember?”
“Hmm. It’s an aftereffect of the accident, so I can’t be certain when his memories will return.”
“Could they never come back?”
“At this point, it’s impossible to say.”
Adeline had thought she might learn something if she showed the duke to the doctor she had called when he was injured. But having gained nothing, she fell into thought.
If his memories returned immediately, he might question her presence in that house and point a sword at her.
But if his memories never returned, that would also be a problem.
He needed his memories to know who had tried to kill him and to avoid that person. If the duke died, she couldn’t ask him to save her.
It was a problem whether his memories returned now or not.
What should I do?
Adeline was confused by the lack of a clear answer.
However, the duke, unaware of Adeline’s complex inner turmoil, was looking at her with concern.
She must have been deeply worried to seek out a doctor, even though she hadn’t shown it to him.
The duke continued to be struck by the sight of Adeline, who seemed lost in deep contemplation.
It seemed as if she was disheartened because of his lack of memories.
Unaware of the duke’s sympathetic gaze, Adeline continued to ponder.
‘For now, I need to hide as much as possible.’
As long as it was uncertain when his memories would return, she needed to hide him from the threat that had left the duke covered in blood.
Adeline thought she should hide the duke as inconspicuously as possible.
‘But, is this man really my trump card?’
She had chosen this duke as someone to help her, but as they stayed together, she worried that instead of receiving help, she might have fallen into greater danger.
Is it alright?
Adeline looked up at the duke. That confused look in her eyes reached the duke directly.
Face to face with the duke, Adeline unconsciously let out a sigh. The duke’s misunderstanding only grew with Adeline’s look and sigh.
As Adeline walked towards the villa silently, her mind in turmoil.
The duke, who had been watching her closely, tightly gripped Adeline’s hand that he was holding.
“I’m sorry I don’t have my memories, Del.”
Adeline, lost in thought, couldn’t hide her bewilderment at the duke’s words.
“What?”
“I’m sorry.”
She was taken aback by the sudden apology.
Adeline, unaware of the duke’s misunderstanding, looked at him with a puzzled expression.
The duke thought he should regain his memories as soon as possible for the sake of the distressed Adeline.
“How did we live? Did we stay together in that isolated mansion in the mountains?”
The duke asked, hoping that hearing about the past might bring back his memories.
But for Adeline, who had no memories to share with him, it was a very awkward question.
“Th-that’s right! We lived there, just the two of us.”
She couldn’t deny it. It was partly to avoid this moment, but she also had to prepare for the possibility that the duke’s memories might never return.
Adeline simply responded to the duke’s question with affirmative language.
But this answer only deepened the duke’s misunderstanding.
“We must have relied on each other.”
“Relied… That’s right! We’re the only ones living in these mountains, of course.”
“I see.”
Casius couldn’t imagine how shocking it must have been for her to have her lover, who they had only looked to and relied on, suddenly lose his memories.
Nevertheless, Casius was moved by Adeline’s assertion that they were necessary to each other.
The duke’s expression gradually darkened, unable to hide his apologetic feelings.
‘Did I say something wrong?’
Adeline, unaware of the duke’s inner thoughts, was very perplexed.
After a while, as she grew anxious at the duke’s darkening expression.
“Are you very upset that I’ve lost my memories?”
Ah, a misunderstanding.
Realizing the meaning behind the duke’s sudden words and expression, Adeline smiled with relief.
“I’m fine. Let’s go home quickly.”
“When we get home, I should look for something. It might help my memories return faster.”
“Don’t do that!”
Adeline, who had raised her voice urgently, patted the duke to ease the awkward situation.
“Don’t force yourself to try to recover your memories. I’m worried it might harm your body. Just think about your health.”
Adeline was anxious enough to seek out a doctor, but she didn’t show it.
The duke was deeply moved that she wished for his health, even though she should resent him for losing his memories.
“I understand. Though I’ve lost my memories, I’m truly fortunate to have you.”
“Me too. I’m really fortunate to have you.”
And thinking this must be what a true loving relationship is like.
The duke’s misunderstanding was becoming even more firmly entrenched.
__________
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.