But now she knew that everything had just been a front. She was hurt. She felt betrayed.
She was sadder that he didn’t really believe in her than she was angry at the humiliation of it all.
But worse still was the overwhelming realization that her fate, if she had not walked out on that balcony, had been to live a life misled.
She had just covered her face with her hands when a shadow fell over her.
Byletta looked up, only to find a familiar face.
“Uncle Samus…”
Samus, who was dressed up for the occasion, elegantly ran his fingers through his dark-brown, almost black hair. It felt strange to see him there in a sea of military uniforms, but his association had fronted the military with supplies during the war. Byletta remembered how he’d joked about how much he’d profited from them. That’s probably why he’d been invited.
But it was the dark look in her uncle’s jade eyes that left her puzzled.
“Who’s been making my dear niece cry?”
“I wasn’t crying. I’m just a bit overwhelmed. I haven’t been to a party in a while…”
“You get that stubbornness from your mother, you know.”
Samus strode toward his niece, sat down on the bench next to her, and wrapped her up in his arms.
Byletta’s heart calmed at the fresh, leafy scent of his cologne, which was so much different than her husband’s. Her uncle had always worn that scent.
“Do this and no one will be able to see your face. Then you can cry as much as you want.”
“Heh-heh. Uncle Samus, I’m already a woman grown. I don’t cry like a little girl anymore, you know?”
“You’ll always be my sweet little niece.”
“You’re too kind.”
Byletta had nothing but appreciation for her uncle, who had shown her much affection over the years. She knew it was because she favored her mother so, but he had been the one to take her seriously all this time, as well as the one to make her dream of becoming a businesswoman and store owner come true.
He patted her back softly, just as he always did. No matter how much she grew up, he would continue to dote on her like she was still a little girl, even though she was now twenty-four years of age and old enough to be someone’s wife.
But she didn’t feel belittled. How could she, when his sentiments came from a place of such deep affection?
As Samus silently cradled Byletta in his arms, his attention was suddenly drawn to her necklace.
“Is that a necklace of heliodor…? That reminds me—didn’t I hear that you’d helped out the owner of Biamonte Jewels recently? Did the stones come from there?”
Byletta looked back up at her uncle without breaking their embrace.
She had to laugh. He knew that talking shop would cheer her up. He was ever the businessman.
But she appreciated it all the same right now.
“As you always say, a competitive spirit leads to better business. Monopolies and stagnation lead nowhere.”
“But that doesn’t mean you need to go helping those who don’t need it.”
“What do you mean, Uncle? I thought he was a good person.”
“He’s not a bad person, per se, but he’s savvy. He has amazing intuition, and his store was doing just fine even before you started to assist him.”
Samus seemed to be suggesting that the owner of Biamonte Jewels, a man who had suddenly succeeded his sick father in the company and was struggling to make ends meet, had not needed Byletta’s help. That she’d been meddling unnecessarily.
As she considered the matter, a voice suddenly pierced the silence.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
The cold, pointed voice made Byletta sit up straight.
Samus gently stroked her back as if to comfort her. “Well, well! If it isn’t Lieutenant Colonel Swangan,” he said.
“Would you kindly unhand my wife?”
“I’m so sorry, Uncle Samus. I’m afraid he’s gotten the wrong idea.”
As Byletta gently pushed her uncle away, a small smile appeared on his face.
“No, it’s fine, Byletta. I’m not one to take criticism from a young fool who’d abandon his wife to go and find pleasure elsewhere.”
“I took my eyes off you for merely a second, and you were nowhere to be found, beloved wife. Surely that’s no reason for a grown man to go after another man’s bride, now is it?”
She was a “beloved wife,” was she? What a barefaced lie.
Byletta had just found out that he considered her nothing more than a prostitute. She was just trying not to notice how much that had hurt.
“Can’t you see that I was simply doting on my precious niece?”
“You do realize that attitude of yours is what gave rise to all the rumors, don’t you?”
“Rumors? As long as the pests leave her alone, I can’t say I really care about them.”
That had always been Samus’s stance.
Fight fire with fire. Tackle rumors with rumors.
That was exactly why he’d never denied the gossip surrounding Byletta and let her do as she pleased.
“Though I suppose the biggest pest of them all has really stuck his feelers into her… So when will you be leaving Byletta?”
Byletta wanted to say that they’d be parting amicably in only a few weeks, but it didn’t seem like the time.
“I don’t intend to leave her at all.”
“That’s rich, coming from someone who married his wife from a distance and then abandoned her for eight whole years. I don’t intend to acknowledge a union like that.”
“And what gives you the right to interfere in our business?”
“How cute. A youngster like you picking a fight with someone like me? I am her mentor and part of her family. What rights do you have exactly? You think you own her because you’ve been married to her on paper for eight years? Don’t make me laugh,” Samus said, suddenly angry.
“I’m still her husband, and we are still legally married. Besides, Byletta should be the one to decide her own future. I’ll respect her wishes,” Arnald answered quietly.