Chapter 39
Tears poured down like rain. In the past, when Aisha cried because of Ian, it had been out of sorrow. But today, it felt like humiliation.
“He said he was busy… He said he’d tell me…”
How much of a joke did she seem to him? How long would she have to endure this treatment, as if loving him was a crime? Gasping for breath, Aisha covered her mouth to suppress her sobs and kept walking straight ahead.
“Aisha!”
Someone called out to her from behind. It was a voice she knew all too well. Biting her lip, Aisha quickened her pace. But the man was much faster and soon caught up with her.
“It’s a misunderstanding. I had my reasons.”
“…”
“This was a last-minute trip. I didn’t even know the destination was here. And just like I told you beforehand, I came with her for business.”
He hadn’t expected the place Helen wanted to go to would be the Count Garrot’s banquet. Ian had never planned to attend the banquet, so he hadn’t checked the date.
‘What’s this? You’re already breaking our deal about being partners? That’s going to be a problem. You remember the penalty clause, right?’
With the contract terms on the line, he couldn’t just turn back. When Ian entered the Count’s outdoor banquet hall, he desperately hoped Aisha wouldn’t be there. But she was—sitting right in the center of the hall. The moment she spotted him, she stood and turned to leave.
The moment Aisha turned away, Ian couldn’t think at all. Before he knew it, he had left Helen behind and was running after Aisha to stop her.
“Aisha.”
He grabbed her shoulder and turned her around. As expected, she was crying. Seeing the tears fall made his anger flare. He forgot all about calmly explaining and instead snapped coldly.
“Why are you crying? Is this really something worth getting this worked up about?”
“…”
“I already told you, didn’t I? That I might be attending events with another woman for a couple of months. I even got your understanding beforehand. So why—”
“That’s all you remember?”
Aisha didn’t try to read his mood like she usually did. Her voice was cold and sharp as she fired back.
“You said you’d tell me where you were going. You promised. Do you only remember getting my permission, and not that part?”
Caught off guard by this new side of her, Ian looked dazed. His eyes widened, and he stared at her in disbelief, his grip tightening on her shoulder.
‘Damn it!’
He wanted to explain properly, but he couldn’t. If he mentioned the details of his contract with Helen, she would learn about the business, and that could lead to her discovering the Count of Parden’s secret sapphire dealings. In the end, Ian tried to cover it all by raising his voice.
“I told you—it’s a misunderstanding. I didn’t even know I’d be coming here!”
“You think that’s an excuse?”
Even as he shouted, Aisha didn’t blink. The hatred in her pale blue eyes felt foreign.
“You told me you were too busy to come here with me. But then you show up with another woman? Do you know how ridiculous that makes me look? Huh? Ian, just how easy do you think I am—”
“Are you going to keep acting like a child?”
Ian cut her off, staring into her eyes. His tone had changed, now cold and dismissive. He looked at her like she was a foolish little girl.
“Can’t you understand it’s work? What if later, even after we’re engaged, you throw a tantrum every time you see another woman near me? That’s pathetic.”
“What?”
“I told you there was no other way. Why are you throwing a fit? So let’s say you’re upset—what then? Should I give up business deals just because you’re hurt?”
It was beyond shameless—it was insulting. Aisha glared at Ian, who only thought about himself, then slapped his hand off her shoulder.
“Aisha!”
“…”
“You’re just going to walk away in the middle of a conversation? Are you going to keep acting like this?”
“Let go!”
Ian grabbed her again. Aisha struggled roughly, trying to break free.
“I said let go of me!”
Despite her shaking him off and thrashing, Ian refused to release her wrist. He gripped it tight, waiting for her to exhaust herself and give up.
“You bastard!”
Just as things seemed to be going Ian’s way, someone jumped in and pulled them apart. Ian turned to see who had interrupted.
“Who do you think you’re laying hands on?”
“O-oppa…”
“Still making my sister cry every time I see you, huh? You bastard.”
Daniel glared at Ian with fury, swearing under his breath. He pulled Aisha behind him protectively, his rage obvious.
“Move, Daniel. I need to talk to Aisha.”
“Move? You move out of my sister’s life!”
Daniel hadn’t even wanted to attend the banquet. He had heard from Edward that Aisha would be here. But Count Garrot was once his superior, and with news of his first child, Daniel had intended to just make a brief appearance. But now this.
‘Sir Daniel. We need to find Aisha.’
‘What’s wrong, Lady Eveline?’
When Eveline, who was close with Aisha, told him everything, he had been livid. His resolve to never speak to the man his sister was engaged to hadn’t even lasted a month.
“Let’s go. Aisha, your face is all messed up from crying. If we stay any longer, it’ll be a disgrace to the family.”
Daniel tightly held Aisha’s hand and turned to leave. But the moment they began to move, Ian tried to follow. Daniel turned, ready to punch him. But before he could throw a fist, his sister said something even he didn’t expect.
“Don’t follow me. I don’t want to see your face. If you do, I’ll never see you again.”
*
Lying in bed, Aisha buried her face in the pillow. On the bedside table, the pearl earrings she had tossed aside sparkled faintly.
“M-miss?”
Her personal maid, Marie, peeked her head through the door, looking worried, but Aisha waved her away.
‘…He must be angry.’
Now alone in the quiet, dark bedroom, Aisha’s anger had cooled. Once her emotions settled, the first thing that came to mind was Ian’s angry face. The cold words he spat at her as he glared—her heart dropped as it always did.
‘But he’s the one who did wrong. Our engagement is only a month away, and he went arm-in-arm with another woman… He even broke his promise to tell me in advance.’
Still, this time, she couldn’t hold it in. She had always buried her feelings out of fear of being disliked, but today was too much.
She couldn’t stop thinking about how Ian looked at the banquet. The natural way their arms were linked, their closeness like lovers. She had come alone out of consideration, enduring the whispers—but Ian had shown up with another woman, confidently.
‘Of all people, with her…’
The woman beside Ian had been getting on Aisha’s nerves for some time—Helen Fitz. The emperor’s illegitimate daughter and a rising young businesswoman. Ever since they were seen together at a social event, Aisha had been hearing countless rumors.
‘Lady Aisha, you should be careful.’
‘Why…?’
‘I hate to bring this up, but… it’s about the Marquess. He was spotted at a nighttime gathering on Davide Street… with Miss Helen.’
‘I heard it too. My brother was there. You know those places aren’t ones noblewomen usually go. Everyone was shocked to see her with the Marquess.’
‘That’s not all. Lady Sophia has been seen with her often lately… and there are rumors that Miss Helen’s been visiting the Marquess’s estate.’
‘It’s not just rumors. I saw them—Marquess, Helen, and Sophia all in one carriage. It looked like they were heading to his estate. It wasn’t a good look.’
This wasn’t the first time Aisha had seen Ian with other women. Unlike her, who always went with Ian or her brothers, he sometimes attended with unfamiliar women. But never had he appeared so close to a particular woman. And until now, Aisha had been the only young lady to visit the Marquis Lloyd’s residence. So when she heard Helen had gone there, her mind went blank.
‘Sure, he was with Lady Loretta before, but after that, I haven’t seen them together. And things are different now—we’re about to be engaged…’
Aisha had already been hurt by Ian’s indifference toward their engagement. She wept silently into her pillow until no more tears came and finally lay flat on her back.
‘Was I being too sensitive?’
Rubbing her sore eyes, Aisha wondered if she had overreacted. She knew her behavior today had been unlike her usual self. But the feelings that remained weren’t guilt—they were sorrow and disappointment.
Ian’s indifference toward their engagement. The gossip surrounding Helen and Ian. His complete lack of consideration. All of it had piled up.
As if she wasn’t already miserable, today she had witnessed something she longed for so badly—a loving couple.
The Count and Countess Garrot, holding their precious child and gazing at each other with affection… she had felt a pang of envy. And grief. Because she didn’t think she and Ian could ever look like that.
‘When did it start to seem impossible?’
There was a time when it had been easy—imagining a future where she and Ian loved each other and raised children that looked like them both. But now… with the engagement just around the corner, Aisha couldn’t even dream.
She couldn’t imagine being loved. Or having children with him. It felt completely out of reach.
