Locked in a carriage. With Lord Clarke.
My hands were sweaty with anxiety. How had it come to this?
With vacant eyes, I absentmindedly gazed out the window.
The carriage headed to the capital at a steady pace. I remembered it well—it was the same road I’d traveled two days ago. I’d left the morning after the ball, spent yesterday resting because I was tired, and had just started enjoying my country life today.
And what a happy day it had been.
I found myself tearing up.
Ah, Lily. Happiness simply happens...and it simply vanishes.
Lesson learned, I shifted my gaze to the handsome prince sitting before me.
With his long legs crossed and his calm gaze fixed on me, illuminated only by the gentle glow of the carriage lamp, he looked so gorgeous I couldn’t help but sigh. The dim lighting only made him look even more alluring.
“Do you hate me?” he asked.
“Pardon?”
“For taking you away like this.”
Well, at least he seemed to have some awareness that kidnapping me like this wasn’t exactly pleasant.
“No,” I replied.
It wasn’t a lie. I didn’t hate him. I just didn’t love him either.
I stole a glance at him and saw a delighted smile play upon his features. Maybe he’d misunderstood? I hadn’t said I loved him, only that I didn’t hate him!
Flustered, I figured I should correct this misconception, and looked him straight in the eye. He was gazing at me and smiling, illuminated by the lamp, and he looked so seductive that my heart felt tight, and my protest caught in my throat.
I’d seen his face a million times before. Why was it suddenly captivating me so? Weird.
My nerves were shot. I felt like it was the first time I’d ever met him, even though we’d talked so many times already—we’d even danced together!
“You seem to be a little interested in me now,” he said, noticing my blatant attempt at distraction.
“Wh-What?” I stammered.
“I said, you seem to be interested in me,” he repeated, tilting his head.
I swallowed. “N-No I’m not.”
“But you do finally see me as a man now, don’t you?”
My breath hitched in my chest at his question.
It was true that I hadn’t quite seen him as a man until now. Yes, I saw him as my fiancé, but in my heart, that’s all he was. Call it rude of me, but I had never truly thought of him as a person.
Was I really so callous?
Confronting that ugly side of me came as a bit of a shock. Lord Clarke seemed concerned as he moved closer to me.
By the time I noticed, he was already sitting right next to me.
Gently, he took my hand from where it sat on my knee. My shoulder jerked at the touch.
“What’s the matter?” he asked.
“Uhhhhh, um...”
“Yes?”
He tilted his head, and an indescribably pleasant scent wafted my way. Did all men smell like this?!
“Y-Y-Y-You’re,” I stammered, “you’re kind of close!”
“Am I?”
“Yes!”
Despite my sharp reply, he showed no intention of moving. Why not?!
His soft gaze, fixed on me, made my heart skip a beat.
I realized now that this was the first time a man who wasn’t dancing with me had held my hand. And the first time one had sat this close to me!
My first close encounter with the opposite sex had my heart pounding painfully in my chest.
“Uhhhhh, um!”
“Yes?”
“Can, can you...move...?” I asked, in a voice so small it was almost a whisper, my agitation clear as day.
I was sure he could tell, because he simply smiled merrily and stayed right where he was.
“I’m so happy,” he remarked, his tone gentle.
“Huh?” I replied dumbly, not understanding what he meant.
“Finally, we can look into each other’s eyes and speak like this,” he explained, his voice overflowing with joy.
I felt a sharp pang in my heart. “W-We’ve spoken while looking into each other’s eyes before!”
“We have,” he agreed. “But they weren’t emotional conversations, were they? You didn’t really see me, did you?”
Oh. He knew.
My chest still fluttering, I broke out into a cold sweat.
“M-My apologies,” I stammered.
“It’s quite all right,” he replied, stroking the top of my guilt-ridden head.
Then he brought his face closer to mine, and I heard a cute little lip-smacking sound on my cheek.
When it dawned on me what had just happened, I brought a hand to my now bright red face.
“Wh-Wh-Wh...” I mumbled.
“It’ll be a little while before we arrive.”
“H-Huh?”
“We should get some rest.”
Lord Clarke took a blanket from the carriage and pulled it over us both, petting my head again.
“Good night, Lettie,” he said, closing his eyes.
For a while I was dumbfounded, my fingertips lingering on the cheek he’d kissed... Then I snapped back to reality.
“Like hell I can sleep now!”
Snugly wrapped in the blanket next to me, the prince let out a little chuckle.