It Seems Like The Infamous Trash Can is Right Here! - Chapter 37
Being held like this by someone other than my family was a first. My body instinctively stiffened.
The arms supporting my waist and the crook of my knees, the chest I was pressed against— all of it was impossibly firm. No layers of fabric could conceal the sheer strength of his body or the heat radiating from it. My heart pounded, entirely out of my control.
“You may lean on me if you’d like.”
His grip was tense, veins bulging beneath his pale skin, whether from anger or something else entirely.
Yet, when he lowered his head to whisper, his voice was impossibly soft— as if soothing a child.
“Everything will be fine now.”
Unbelievably, just those few words unraveled the tension coiling within me.
Only then did I realize—I had been clenching my teeth. That my hands were balled into fists so tightly that my nails had left deep crescents in my palms.
When Lionel had found me, I had probably been standing there, shaking, deathly pale.
That was why he had wrapped me up in his cloak and lifted me into his arms without hesitation.
It reminded me of my father. When I was little, I used to splash around in the lake near our villa, playing until my lips turned blue. Without fail, my father would scoop me up, wrapping me tightly in a thick towel, acting as if I’d catch my death if he didn’t rush me back inside that very second.
It had amused me to no end. I would giggle, clutching at his strong neck, feeling completely safe.
Within the warmth of his arms, I had feared nothing.
Because his embrace had been the sturdiest fortress in the world.
And then, I lost it all. For years, I had endured, unprotected, all alone.
And now, It was so strange, feeling that same sense of security in Lionel’s arms, not my family?
‘Why am I trusting this man?’
I barely knew anything about this man.
My mind screamed at me to be wary, to keep my guard up with Lionel— Yet, my body had already surrendered, sinking into the comfort of his hold.
I should have said something—should have explained myself, given him some sort of justification. But instead, all I could do was breathe, my chest rising and falling with the exhaustion pressing down on me.
“Your Grace!”
As we reached the carriage station, a brown-haired man hurried over from where he had been pacing near a carriage emblazoned with the Luanax crest.
“You must return to the meeting room immediately! The break is about to end!”
It was Baron Taylen Sinnet, Lionel’s aide.
‘Wait… was he in a meeting?’
Lionel Luanax was one of the most influential figures in the capital’s political sphere.
Noble councils were nothing but a battlefield of power struggles. If he had left mid-meeting because of me… Would that mean a loss for him?
“Those desperate fools can wait. And even if they can’t, it doesn’t matter.”
“Y-Your Grace…!”
“If you’re so concerned, then go ahead and wait for me in the meeting room.”
Lionel didn’t even break stride. He carried me straight into the carriage.
Even once inside, he didn’t set me down. I had assumed he would place me in the opposite seat, but instead, he held me close, unmoving.
I could feel his hard thighs beneath me.
We weren’t family. We weren’t lovers. Could we really do this?
“To the mansion.”
Lionel snapped at the coachman before the carriage door even closed.
“Yes, my lord.”
The vehicle lurched forward, leaving behind a dumbstruck Baron Taylen.
It wasn’t until the gallery slipped out of view that Lionel spoke again.
“I’m sorry I was late.”
I never expected to hear that from him.
“I was complacent.”
I looked up at him, and our eyes met.
The once ferocious glint in his eyes had softened.
His brows, usually furrowed in menace, were now slack. He almost looked… gentle.
It was such a drastic change that made me wonder if he was the same person.
Lionel’s gaze swept across my face. Then, he reached out—his hand brushing against my cheek.
Before I could react, he tilted my chin and ran his thumb lightly across my upper lip.
I froze, eyes going wide, caught off guard by the unexpected touch. Then, he pulled his hand away.
