For My Birthday, I Was Gifted Five Husbands - Chapter 52
“A guy who can’t even bring a wedding dress on the day of the ceremony is so full of himself? With that tongue, you are more immature than the believers, Livingston.”
“And the head of the Napier family is proud to be a parvenu. Just so you know, even if she wore a sack that day, Eugenie would have still shone. After all, it’s the wearer that makes the clothes look good.”
“Don’t you feel like you’re about to vomit from your excessive flattery? Admiration for a lady should have its limits.”
Magnus managed a laugh without furrowing his brow. That crazy priest. He had been infatuated with Eugenie Norton since forever, and it seemed that obsession had intensified now that they had met again.
But a certain term from the earlier metaphor irritated him enough to speak up again.
“And a sack, huh? Why would you even—”
“Both of you, enough! Just stop already!”
Eugenie shouted, stepping in between the two grown men who were bickering like children. While she was grateful they hadn’t resorted to punches or gunfire, their mental sparring was incredibly tense.
‘I need to get rid of one of them! Desperately!’
But the conversation about clothing had sparked a memory, and Eugenie turned to Magnus with a suspicious look.
“Wait a minute, Napier. How did you know my shoe size?”
Magnus tilted his head slightly and smirked.
“It’s easy to tell by the footprints and your stride, Norton.”
“What?! How, how did you know?”
“With a brain that can handle basic arithmetic and a bit of observation, anyone could figure it out.”
“Ah, that’s not true?!”
Eugenie couldn’t help but blush and let out a high-pitched exclamation. The thought that Magnus Napier had been watching her every step was mortifying. She had never paid much attention to her somewhat clumsy gait, but knowing that he had been observing it made everything different.
“Eugenie.”
But just then, when Carter called her name, she jumped slightly. He was smiling brightly, as if he had completely forgotten about her earlier tense exchange with Magnus.
“Let’s leave that pervert behind and go out.”
“Oh.”
Magnus’s jaw tightened as he quietly observed Eugenie’s reaction. Eugenie Norton, to his recollection, had always been quite soft on Carter Livingston.
‘Despite being indifferent to most people.’
Just the title of childhood friend was enough for her to act so tenderly. However, there was something different about how she was acting now compared to before.
It was as if she felt indebted to Livingston, as if she owed him something.
“…Fine, go ahead and leave. A promise is a promise.”
Magnus turned away, walking toward the door with an indifferent tone. But as soon as he heard Eugenie’s voice, his hand paused just before grasping the doorknob.
“Hey, Napier.”
“What?”
“The shoes were pretty.”
“…?”
“Not that I’ll wear them, but just so you know.”
Magnus did not turn back to face her. He merely shrugged his right shoulder lightly just before she fully turned her back on him.
But then, for the first time, he felt a slight lifting of the heavy atmosphere that had surrounded him.
* * *
After leaving the mansion, Eugenie climbed into the black automobile driven by Carter, heading off somewhere.
However, their relationship, dubbed ‘childhood friends,’ was enveloped in an awkward silence for quite some time. Eugenie glanced at Carter’s wrist as he held the steering wheel. Once she recognized him as a man, the sunlight glimmered off his muscular arms, making him look good.
As a ‘priest’ with a noble position that had been passed down for centuries, Carter exuded a very different atmosphere when dressed in casual clothes. While his usual attire gave him a sacred aura, he now emitted a cool sense of authority.
‘It’s something I’ve occasionally noticed before.’
His self-imposed standards were ridiculously high, leading him to exude an unexpectedly overwhelming presence towards others.
‘Is it even a controlling nature?’
Even though he could have easily hired a chauffeur to drive the automobile, he insisted on doing it himself for the enjoyment.
It occurred to her that the fights she had with Magnus Napier were probably the result of their shared similarities. However, sensing her gaze, Carter stole a glance at Eugenie and smiled.
“Did it bother you when I showed up out of nowhere while you were with that guy?”
“Um. No?”
Eugenie turned her gaze away awkwardly, fidgeting with her sleeve. The flower-embroidered cardigan she had proudly worn during meal with Magnus suddenly felt quite uncomfortable.
Carter frowned, giving a wry smile at her socially awkward response.
“Yes, it must be uncomfortable to be with me.”
“Carter, that’s not it—”
“Since I got rejected by you once.”
“Ugh…”
“Isn’t that right? That’s why you didn’t ask for my help immediately when Peter Lamburg caused trouble.”
Eugenie turned her head away, realizing she had been hit right on the mark.
In fact, before Peter confessed his feelings, Carter had been the first to confess to Eugenie.
