Chapter 21
“Why are you here…?”
“This is my study.”
My study?
Elisa quickly glanced around.
Shelves lined one wall, heavy with books, and a desk piled high with documents confirmed that this was indeed a study.
She’d asked the butler to show her the powder room, but instead, she was brought here.
That bastard must’ve ordered it.
No way the butler acted on his own.
Maybe this works out.
The party was crowded with watchful eyes, and Princess Camilla clung to Ethan like a leech, making it impossible to speak to him.
Derek Granville was also a distraction.
But here, there were only two of them.
Elisa could finally say what she wanted, freely and without restraint.
“Why did you call me?”
Had he noticed Noah’s presence?
Or was he finally going to explain why he left without a word last time?
An anxious flutter hit Elisa’s chest as her heart hammered in her ears.
She clasped her trembling hands tightly.
“I missed you.”
“…What?”
“I invited you because I missed you.”
Elisa thought she must have misheard, but no—it was true.
His absurd answer, so far from anything she expected, creased deep lines into her brow.
“Are you joking?”
“Was I not supposed to?”
Ethan tilted his head slightly, curious.
“You used to say it was okay, so I thought it was.”
They had been inseparable as children, but as they grew older, that closeness became impossible—different ranks, different roles.
Yet Elisa ignored all that and called him.
When asked why she kept calling, she boldly replied it was because she missed him—she remembered once saying that in front of the Countess, who’d nearly fainted in shock.
“Is it the same as back then?”
Wiping away the fading shadows of the past, Elisa placed her hands on her hips and glared at him.
“What’s changed? Well, I suppose there is one thing.”
Ethan stood abruptly with a short exclamation, stepping forward swiftly.
Elisa flinched but didn’t back down.
“I couldn’t look down on you like this before. But now, I can.”
With one arm stretched to trap Elisa in the doorway, Ethan leaned toward her.
The air between them shrank, and every breath she took carried the familiar scent of the man she had loved—and still loved—so deeply that her mind swam.
“…You sure have gotten good at talking nonsense.”
Snapping herself back from the dizzying memories, Elisa shoved him hard.
She refused to be controlled by faded echoes any longer.
“Is that the only reason you called me?”
“Should there be another?”
His innocent, almost irritated expression was enough to make her furious.
“So, that’s it then.”
What had I been worrying or hoping for?
Elisa let out a bitter laugh, lowering her gaze for a long moment.
The disappointment in her chest was heavier than the relief that he knew nothing.
Her insides boiled.
“You were hoping for something else.”
“I wasn’t,” she snapped.
Elisa spat out what she had said like a bitter pill, looking back up at him.
Her voice trembled with anger, but her long lashes quivered and glistened with moisture.
“Then don’t ever call me again over something so pointless. No—just disappear from my sight forever.”
“Do you really want me to disappear?”
“That…!”
“You still like me, Elisa.”
His words pierced right through her heart, which suddenly dropped with a painful thud.
It felt like it was beating faster than ever before.
“No, I don’t.”
Elisa forced herself to ignore the cry of her heart and answered coldly.
“It’s true that I once loved you enough to throw away my family and my house, but not anymore. I’m not foolish enough to keep loving someone who abandoned me and walked away.”
Her words, intended to set a clear boundary, instead caused her soul to bleed more deeply.
It felt like she had been rolling in mud and was filthy.
Simply facing him was unbearable.
“I’m leaving.”
She was about to walk away when suddenly Ethan’s face shot close.
Startled, before she could even gasp, his forehead pressed gently against hers.
Her favourite smoky-grey eyes reflected at her, filled with her pitiful expression.
“It’s okay.”
His gentle voice, along with the warm breath that teased Elisa’s reddening cheek, sent a shiver through her.
“Because I still love you.”
Bang!
“Eek!”
Before he could knock, the door burst open violently, and something shot out.
Howard jumped back in surprise.
A dazzling flood of golden hair, like molten moonlight, quickly vanished down the hallway.
“Elisa Leslie?”
Howard didn’t recognise her until she was gone, at which point he turned his head and muttered to himself.
Ethan stood in front of the door.
Ethan stood in the doorway, arm half-raised, as if he’d meant to stop her—but hadn’t.
There was something pitiful about that hand, hanging awkwardly in the air.
Feeling a pang of sympathy, Howard reached out and gently took it.
“……”
Ethan shot Howard a fierce glare.
If looks could kill, Howard would’ve been stabbed dozens of times by that deadly stare.
Feeling awkward, he quickly withdrew his hand with a sheepish smile.
“You okay?”
“When did you arrive?”
“So, not okay then.”
Howard patted Ethan’s shoulder as if to say he understood exactly how he felt, but Ethan scowled and brushed his hand away.
“How did you know I was here? Did the butler tell you?”
The butler had sworn loyalty to Ethan, not the second prince—but Ethan had never fully trusted him.
“Camilla told me.”
Expecting to hear the butler’s name, Ethan raised an eyebrow at the unexpected answer.
He hadn’t told Camilla where he’d be, which made it all the more suspicious.
“Don’t ask me how she knew—I’ve got no idea either.”
“I just heard about it,” Howard shrugged.
Ethan stared at him quietly, then sighed and stepped aside.
Howard closed the door behind him politely, but didn’t sit on the sofa.
Instead, he headed for the window.
Drawing back the heavy blackout curtains revealed a splendid garden of yellow roses basking in the bright moonlight.
“When you asked me to plant yellow roses in the garden, I thought your taste was odd, but looking at it now, it’s not bad. Maybe I’ll plant some in my garden too.”
“The queen will love that.”
Queen Meyer, mother to Prince Alex and Princess Camilla, had been obsessed with preventing Howard from stealing her son’s throne.
She even sent assassins after him, terrified as Howard’s standing grew stronger with consecutive victories in the war against the empire.
“Yeah, the moment I plant yellow roses in the garden, they’ll say I’ve lost my mind—that no one like me should be trusted with such an important role.”
His lips curled into a smirk, but his eyes remained cold and sharp.
Howard pulled a cigar from his coat pocket and brought it to his mouth, only for Ethan to snatch it away immediately.
“Please don’t smoke cigars in my study.”
“Because of the smell? I’ll open a window and smoke.”
“No, absolutely not.”
Denied permission, Howard pouted with a playful grimace.
“Aren’t you being a little harsh on a guest who’s come to congratulate the baron on his new start?”
“You’re here because of Princess Camilla.”
“Well, that too,” Howard chuckled, easing himself onto the windowsill.
“If this keeps up, the royal marriage might fall apart. He charges forward without thinking once he becomes fixated on something, just like his bloodline.
“If you’re going to ramble like that, you’d better take Princess Camilla and be on your way…”
“Word is, the Viscount Leslie has crossed the Montes border.”
Ethan’s indifferent expression shifted instantly. His sharp, smoky-grey eyes glinted like a predator spotting its prey.
“I’ve confirmed he’s already bought a train ticket for tomorrow morning. Barring any surprises, he’ll reach the capital within five days.”
Five days, huh.
Ethan mulled over the remaining time as he gazed at the yellow rose garden.
He had wanted to show it to her, but never got the chance—and that sting of regret lingered.
“But why didn’t you allow your photo to be published in the papers?”
Howard tilted his head, curious.
“If they’d run your picture earlier, the Viscount Leslie would have known you’d returned sooner—and then he wouldn’t have had to waste time in that pointless power struggle with that woman.”
“It wasn’t a power struggle. It was confirmation.”
“Confirmation of what? Oh, is it her feelings?”
Ethan didn’t answer, but Howard took his silence as a yes and whistled.
Quite the hopeless romantic, Baron Estevan. It makes sense why, despite his lack of sword skills, he foolishly volunteered for the battlefield.
Ethan shot him a look, furrowing his brow in warning, but Howard just kept laughing.
He reached over and snatched back his cigar with a wink.
“After all that, don’t I deserve a smoke?”
