Chapter 15.
Kitty had no idea what his intention was.
She shot him a side-eye but still placed her hands on the keys.
“I’m a singer, not a pianist.”
“But this is your genre too, isn’t it?”
“What exactly are you trying to accomplish by doing this?”
Percy smiled—a smile she had never seen on him before.
“Fun.”
The two sat side by side and began playing together. With not only Percy but also the entire band joining in, Kitty couldn’t afford to look amateurish. Determined, her performance easily rivaled Percy’s.
People gathered around to watch this unexpected spectacle. A free performance, just like that. If Jerome found out, he’d never stop lecturing her…
In the midst of that thought, Percy leaned in close and whispered against her ear.
“You must have time to space out.”
The sudden warm breath against her ear startled her, and in that moment he slid his right hand beneath her left arm, adding harmony.
“What are you—”
“I’m playing with you.”
“That’s not what I meant!”
For the sake of the duet, their bodies were pressed closely together. Normally, she would’ve kicked any man who tried something like this.
Maybe it was because they had kissed—she was surprised to realize she didn’t feel uncomfortable when he leaned close. Percy was putting his full effort into the performance, not doing anything inappropriate.
But still…
“Don’t be nervous. I’ll follow your lead.”
He kept talking.
Softly enough that only she could hear.
“I’m not nervous.”
“You sound nervous.”
“I’m more relaxed than ever.”
Percy chuckled. She could hear only his breath, but she knew he was smiling.
“So that means you’re relaxed with me?”
Was this really the Percy Collins she knew?
Kitty began to wonder if he’d been struck by lightning and lost his mind—or if he had a secret twin brother.
Thinking back to when they met again at the bar, he already seemed unusual.
Maybe the Percy she knew had only ever shown her a small part of himself.
“You kissed me once and now you’re full of confidence, aren’t you?”
“Well, you enjoyed my kiss, didn’t you?”
Hidden under the rising tempo, their conversation grew bolder.
“You said, ‘He’s good-looking and kisses well.’ Something like that.”
“What, am I supposed to call a red apple blue?”
“So it was sincere.”
“There was no reason to lie.”
“And when you said you wondered who would take me?”
He remembers the most useless things…
“Don’t you want to make a move before someone else does?”
“What are you talking about?”
“You said I was a deliciously ripe apple. Wouldn’t it be a waste to let someone else pick me?”
Kitty stared at him in disbelief. Percy merely smiled as if nothing was strange. Meanwhile, their performance was racing to its climax.
“Are you drunk?”
Yes, please, let this be alcohol talking.
“If I were drunk, could I play like this?”
“Then…”
…he’s completely sober.
“Kitty. I’ll be honest. I like you.”
She already sensed that during their kiss. She could feel how much he wanted her.
“I’m confessing to you.”
“That’s a very strange way to confess.”
“Can I ask how you feel about me?”
Instead of answering, Kitty simply held his gaze, searching for sincerity.
“You’re staying in the room next to mine.”
“Am I?”
“Was that really just a coincidence? Start with that.”
Percy didn’t answer right away. Tilting his head, he grinned, and at the peak of the improvisation, he hit the final perfect chord.
When the performance ended, applause echoed around them. The secret whispers were over. Kitty stood and smiled brightly at the crowd, as she always did.
People couldn’t take their eyes off them—not because of the music, but because they were together.
For someone claiming to be unemployed, Percy didn’t seem like an ordinary passenger.
“Get me out of here,” she murmured over her shoulder.
“Where to?”
“You dragged me here! I was going to the dining car.”
“What for?”
“I’m starving!”
It sounded blunt, but Percy’s reply was even more blunt.
“I was thinking the same thing.”
He offered his arm. An invitation. It was her choice.
But one thing held her back.
“Is this… okay?”
They were strangers—at least publicly. But Percy was officially married, according to the state.
People were watching.
Percy seemed to know exactly what she was worrying about.
“There are no journalists aboard this ship,” he whispered.
“And cameras are prohibited.”
At the mention of cameras, a memory flashed—one that should have disappeared, immortalized by a war correspondent’s flash.
Perhaps Percy never forgot either.
“But people will talk…”
“They won’t. Nobody wants to lose their invitation to the Dela Cruz. Would you?”
Kitty didn’t fully understand his meaning, but he wasn’t bluffing.
Mesmerized by his certainty, she linked arms with him.
The place Percy took her wasn’t the regular dining car.
He led her to an exclusive outdoor terrace overlooking the dark ocean, separated from the ship’s interior by velvet curtains.
They now had a private world of their own.
This definitely isn’t open to just anyone…
She thought she knew Percy, once as her commanding officer and later as her husband… but apparently, she hadn’t known him at all.
She ate in silence, resisting the urge to ask if he had a twin brother.
After dinner, with a digestif in hand, she let the sea breeze wash over her.
“When did you start liking me?” she asked.
Percy didn’t hesitate.
“From the first moment I saw you.”
“And when exactly was that moment?”
With a mysterious smile, he sipped his champagne.
After a beat, he answered.
“It’s a long story.”
A long story?
“Were you… my fan or something?”
“You could put it that way. What matters is that I’ve loved you for longer than you realize.”
A fan, huh.
Not shocking, considering the music earlier—he clearly loved it.
“You enjoyed the meal?”
“It was good. Actually, it was excellent.”
“And my performance?”
She snorted. Up close, she noticed his suit was expensive—far beyond the reach of an unemployed man. The Dela Cruz wasn’t a ship just anyone could board.
Who was he?
“For an amateur, not bad.”
“That’s a relief. I hadn’t played in a long time.”
“I didn’t know you could play so well.”
That sounded more like something Greta would say, not Kitty. She quickly corrected herself.
“I mean, not many people can play like that.”
“Before the war, I used to play often. Not much these days… but I don’t want to forget. It’s one of the few things I still have left from my life before.”
Kitty nodded.
Once you’ve lived through war, you don’t stay the same. Something inside twists, breaks… and you can’t go back.
You become volatile, even around things that used to feel familiar.
That was why she chose to become Kitty Summers, the complete opposite of Greta.
She didn’t want to live as someone ruined by war.
“I’m glad I learned piano. Otherwise, I never would have played with you.”
“Is that… another confession?”
“Close enough.”
Kitty smiled, though her heart tightened.
Because the truth was—
I am your runaway wife.
I’m lying to you. Right now, at this very moment.
“Percy. Let me ask you something.”
Percy watched her tenderly.
Why me?
“Do you really like me that much?”
“I do.”
No hesitation.
“I like you, Kitty.”
“How much?”
Her heart dropped into her stomach.
Under the soft lights, his face looked completely sincere. Unlike hers.
“Enough to give you my life.”
He finally answered.
