TOML CH 04

“Yes. Why?”

Still in full-on guilty mode, I widened my eyes and gave him my most sincere reaction.

“Later, when you’re not so busy, let’s really go see the opera.”

That was his way of saying he was willing to forgive me.

“Of course. Should we go tomorrow? Have you really wanted to see the opera that badly?”

‘What did I have scheduled tomorrow again? Just postpone everything! Future me, fighting!’

Hearing me, Theo smiled as though he was willing to be fooled one more time and asked,

“Really? You’re not busy?”

“Mm-hmm. I’m more or less done with the really busy stuff now.”

I never said I was completely finished, so technically, it wasn’t a lie… right?

I was just about to secretly wet my lips when—

“I feel like I heard you say that last time, too. And the time before that.”

Theo’s sudden factual attack made me lower my head in shame again.

He was right. This was already the third time I had promised to go see the opera with him.

Because of Rebecca’s circumstances—she had been widowed and inherited her title—I couldn’t openly date him.

There was no legal restriction against it, but it was obvious what kind of rumors would spread.

The solitary spider who killed her husband and snatched his title and trading company is now using that money to fool around with her young lover.

Thanks to that, except for our first few meetings, the two of us had spent almost every date at this townhouse.

Perhaps Theo was getting a little tired of having the same kind of dates over and over, because he started planning dates at popular destinations among the nobility, such as the area around the lake, where the night scenery was beautiful, and an equestrian club in the countryside with a lovely view.

But as everyone knows, popular hotspots tend to have plenty of eyes watching.

Which meant rumors could spread easily.

In the cramped social circle of the capital’s nobility, Rebecca’s position was at the very bottom—low enough to be trampled on simply because she was there.

So I had no choice but to endure all the criticism that came my way.

Whenever I occasionally attended a tea party, there was always some noblewoman making sure I could hear her, saying things like,

“I heard a certain baroness disguised her husband’s murder as an accident and took all his wealth. What do you think about that?”

Or,

“A noble lady’s true value lies in taking care of her husband and managing the affairs of her family.”

‘I’m not bothered even if they criticize me indirectly while pretending to be refined.’

But I could tolerate people insulting me.

What I couldn’t tolerate was my sweet heart hearing nasty things.

That didn’t mean I could take revenge on the other nobles whispering behind our backs like the cold but warm-to-his-woman Northern Grand Dukes from other novels.

They were Grand Dukes, while I was only a Viscountess!

So, consoling myself with the mentality of I avoid poop because it’s dirty, not because I’m afraid of it, I turned down Theo’s suggestions with various excuses.

I said it was too cold around the lake and that we should go once spring came.

Or that I couldn’t ride horses.

Theo either genuinely believed my excuses or simply refused to give up, because he kept bringing me new date ideas at other popular spots.

And my excuses gradually became more and more ridiculous.

Eventually, I became a liar who claimed that swimming was my hobby but I was afraid of water and therefore couldn’t go on a cruise, and that I collected perfumes by type but couldn’t visit a rose garden because I was allergic to pollen.

Even Theo, who trusted people easily, began to realize that something was strange by that point.

This can’t go on.

After much agonizing, I decided to look for a date spot where we could hide our identities.

And that was how I found the opera house.

The opera house had private rooms reserved for nobles in its finest seats, designed to keep them completely shielded from other people’s eyes.

It would be expensive, but if I booked a private room, I thought we could avoid the attention of other nobles.

Fortunately, Theo was delighted when I suggested that we go see an opera.

But as they say, the moment you make plans, something happens.

Every single time we were supposed to go see a performance, something came up at the trading company.

For the first performance, a certain marquise, famous as one of the biggest names in high society, contacted our trading company because she wanted to purchase our products.

She wasn’t some low-ranking noble.

She was a marquise.

As the head of the trading company, I had no choice but to go see her personally.

The second time, a workshop that regularly supplied goods to Felice Trading Company caught fire.

We had to hold an emergency meeting to figure out what to do with the orders we had already received while the completely burned-down workshop was being rebuilt.

Naturally, as the owner, I couldn’t exactly skip it.

Theo had never complained even once despite me canceling our date twice because of work.

I really was the one in the wrong.

If someone posted online that their older divorced girlfriend kept canceling dates because of work, I could already picture about twenty-four comments saying,

“That’s a total deadbeat. Break up with her.”

‘There would probably be thirteen comments saying, “You’re ruining your own life,” and another six saying, “She obviously won’t listen even if we tell her, so I’m just going to hit the back button.”’

I was still reeling from the critical hit Theo had dealt to my conscience with his words when, ironically, he started comforting me instead.

“I like just being here with you like this, Rebecca.”

Wow. Are you mixed-race or something?

A hybrid of Heaven and Korea.

An angel.

This kid was simply too kind.

A halo seemed to shine behind Theo, and my work-worn soul felt as though it was being purified.

‘Aah! It’s so bright!’

I narrowed my eyes and furrowed my brow as if I had actually seen a halo.

Theo looked at me worriedly.

“Do your eyes hurt?”

Before I could even answer, he gently cupped my cheek.

“Wait a moment. Let me take a look.”

His beauty came at me so suddenly that my heart rate instinctively picked up.

His blue eyes examined me seriously for a long moment before he pulled away.

“You seem fine. Did something get in your eye?”

Because his hand was still cupping my cheek, his red lips moved right in front of my eyes.

“I don’t know about my eye, but I think the situation is about to become unsuitable for minors.”

‘The kind where you’d need an age restriction.’

I threw my arms around Theo and kissed him.

Caught off guard by the sudden affection, Theo’s ears turned bright red.

“Wait, Rebecca.”

Why? I’m a dangerous beast right now.

When I refused to let go of Theo and continued clinging to him, he leaned away and gently pushed me back.

My shy lover was embarrassed by intense displays of affection anywhere other than the bedroom.

“You’re so shy.”

But the playful mood brought on by Theo’s cuteness hadn’t disappeared, so I deliberately spoke in a teasing tone.

As I lightly brushed my hand along his thigh and side in keeping with the playful mood, Theo interlaced his fingers with mine.

I had been caught red-handed with my mischievous hand.

If he tied me up and locked me away, I wouldn’t mind.

Perhaps my wicked thoughts were showing on my face, because Theo replied in a slightly sulky voice,

“Don’t tease me.”

Oops. If I tease him any more, he’ll get upset.

Just as the back of someone who knows when it’s time to leave is beautiful, knowing when to stop teasing someone—and making a graceful exit—is beautiful too.

I straightened my back one last time and gave Theo a quick kiss on the lips.

Then I released our interlocked hands and sat a little farther away from him.

We were at just the right distance to naturally look each other in the eyes.

Then, with a sincere and serious voice, I said,

“I like just being with you, too.”

I had always been a homebody and didn’t particularly enjoy going out.

To be even more honest, I preferred being alone with him to going outside.

If I spent all day in the great outdoors known as the company, shouldn’t I be allowed to stay indoors after work and on weekends?

“But I’d also love to watch an opera with you and have a meal together somewhere other than the townhouse. So you don’t need to give up what you want just for my sake.”

I liked Theo’s considerate and gentle personality.

But one of the lessons I had learned throughout my life was that one-sided relationships didn’t last long.

I was far too worn down by society to believe in a happily ever after, but I did dream of an eternal happy ending with Theo.

‘Even though I did it for Theo’s sake, and even though the circumstances were unavoidable, it isn’t right for Theo to always be the only one making concessions.’

If we let things continue like this, Theo would probably give up on seeing an opera with me altogether.

Then, as though it had merely been a momentary whim, he would go back to accommodating my schedule like he always had.

The fact that he had suggested several dates he wanted to go on himself this time was unusual.

Theo had always put me first.

As though accommodating the other person was simply what he was accustomed to doing.

I met Theo’s eyes and apologized once more.

“I’m sorry. It was never because I thought our promises weren’t important. But you were still really disappointed, weren’t you? This won’t happen again. I promise. Should we go out right now? Even if the opera is impossible, I think we could still have dinner at a restaurant. What do you think?”

Ever since I had genuinely fallen for Theo, seeing him act like that made me feel terrible.

I kept telling myself that I wanted to boost Theo’s confidence because he seemed to have low self-esteem somehow, yet I was the one receiving the most consideration from him.

It left a bitter taste in my mouth.

‘Ugh! I can do better from now on.’

I started mentally rearranging my schedule, trying to squeeze out some time for a date, but Theo stopped me.

“It’s really okay, Rebecca. We don’t have to go. Instead, let’s take a nap together.”

“A nap? All of a sudden?”

I had been ready to do anything to make up for my mistakes, so his sudden suggestion caught me off guard.

“Your eyes are red. You look like a rabbit.”

Theo lightly rubbed beneath my eye with his thumb.

His touch was as careful as though he were wiping a speck of paint from my face.

That’s a dark circle.

Rubbing it won’t make it disappear.

Why are you looking at me with such a serious expression? You’re hurting my feelings.

‘Do I really look that terrible?’

I turned my head from side to side, looking for a mirror so I could check my appearance.

But Theo, you little—

Hmph.

You used to tell me I looked pretty no matter what I did.

You’ve changed.

You really have.

Feeling awkward, I unfairly blamed Theo.

Objectively speaking, Rebecca was pretty enough, but she wasn’t exactly a beauty.

She had ordinary dirty-blonde hair and green eyes, and in this world, where glamorous Western-style beauty—by Earth’s standards—was preferred, Rebecca’s face, which had a refined and graceful impression at best, wasn’t particularly well received.

‘Even my face on Earth was completely ordinary, with “looks kind” being its greatest advantage, so it’s not like I have any complaints.’

Still, if there was anyone who didn’t like being called pretty, I’d like to meet them.

Even so, Theo always looked at me with such adoring eyes, as though he were gazing at the most beautiful being in the world, and was constantly telling me how pretty I was.

So when he suddenly wore such a serious expression, it hurt more than I expected.

When I stood up, slightly sulking, Theo came up behind me and hugged me.

“You’re pretty. You’re the prettiest rabbit in the world.”

Hmph. It’s too late to try to make up for it now!

“Flattery.”

Fortunately, he was hugging me from behind.

If we had been facing each other, he would have definitely noticed the corners of my lips twitching.

“I mean it. You’re pretty, my dear.”

Still holding me, Theo lowered his head and smiled at me affectionately.

Then he turned me around and walked with me toward the bedroom.