That Lady’s Stalker - Chapter 10
Olivia carelessly tossed the letter into the box. Sensing something odd, she looked up at the maid who stood next to her.
“Didn’t any visit letters arrive?”
“None today, miss.”
Olivia felt a wave of dizziness wash over her. Other than when he occasionally visited conflict zones, Asher always sent her daily visit letters without fail.
“Did he mention he was going to a conflict zone today?”
“No, miss.”
“Ugh…”
The sharp reply left her exasperated. It was certainly because of what she had said the previous evening. She shouldn’t have mentioned it. Now it felt as though he wanted to distance himself from her.
But the warmth of today’s letter seemed to contradict that thought.
Olivia’s shoulders slumped down.
He was truly a puzzling person.
* * *
And then Olivia went without receiving Asher’s visit letters the following day and the day after that. Consequently, her gloom deepened.
“Did a war break out without my knowledge? How could this happen?”
“He’s probably busy. Still, the letters keep coming, right?”
Oliver watched his sister, who was shaking her legs restlessly under the table, with a look of disbelief. She would come to him twelve times a day, pestering him to find out about Asher.
“But Oliver, you know! He hasn’t done this for two months!”
He observed his sister’s hysterical outburst and decided to prod her a little.
“At first, you found it burdensome and didn’t like it. Now that he isn’t coming, wouldn’t that be a good thing?”
“What? Even if you raised a potted plant for two months, you would worry if it left home. How can I not be concerned about a person?”
“What does that even mean? Are you in your right mind?”
A potted plant didn’t have legs, so why would it leave home? From his perspective, Commander Asher was merely not visiting the places he usually frequented; there was nothing special about it.
“I’m serious.”
She did indeed look serious—panicked, but serious.
“Then send him a letter. Ask why he hasn’t come.”
“Me?”
Olivia poked her chest with her finger in disbelief.
“Then who will do it?”
“You should do it.”
“Why me?”
“Because you’re waiting for him.”
Oliver frowned, thinking Olivia had clearly lost her mind.
“You do it. I don’t care if the Commander comes or not.”
With that firm rejection, the corners of Olivia’s eyes shot up. She loosened her shoulder muscles as if ready to swing a punch. Her neck cracked from side to side as she glared at him like a street thug.
“Seriously! You do it! You like him and are waiting, so why should I have to do it?”
At Oliver’s words, Olivia froze, trying to rise.
“What?”
‘I like him? Me?’
“What nonsense… huh?”
It was understandable for Olivia to feel confused. He had never seen her show affection for anyone before, so she certainly didn’t recognize what she was feeling toward Asher.
“You’ve just gotten better at pretending to be demure in front of others as you’ve grown up, but when it comes to this, you’re like a child.”
Oliver clicked his tongue and handed her a romance novel from his shelf.
“Read this; I hope you gain some insight.”
Olivia accepted the book. The hardcover cover boasted an elegantly embossed title in gold foil:
<The Duke is Too Much>
“…You read stuff like this?”
“Enough with the questions. Now get out!”
Cast out, Olivia read the book he had given her in just half a day.
“So this is what love is?”
In the following days, she devoured any romance books she could get her hands on. The ‘How to Captivate a Young Noble’ series proved particularly useful.
The books were divided into sections about emotional and physical connections, and after comparing them, she found the physical section to be more practical. The author elaborated on physical interactions and ended the last page with the quote that men are ruled by their desires.
Even while Olivia was engrossed in studying romance and the male body, Asher still did not come to the Duke’s residence. Eventually, she made up her mind to make that timid, cowardly man hers.
For the first time, Olivia sent him a letter, filled with elaborate text designed to capture his attention so that he couldn’t resist coming to see her.
[Please save me.
Olivia Flonari.]
* * *
Oliver, watching the black horse galloping towards the estate, raising a cloud of dust, thought that the inevitable had arrived. It seemed their wild child would be getting married soon.
“Where, where’s Olivia?”
Asher’s once-glossy black hair was now disheveled, and dark circles under his eyes suggested he hadn’t slept well.
But what was strange was that, among his disheveled features, one part stood out, glistening as if it had been well-cared-for.
“She said she needed saving. Did she get kidnapped or something?”
His full, vibrant red lips were particularly striking, perfectly smooth without a single rough spot.
“Oliver!”
At her urging voice, Oliver pointed toward the back hill, and Asher hesitated before heading in that direction. His pace was noticeably slower than when he had arrived.
Left standing alone at the entrance, Oliver watched Asher’s retreating figure for a long moment and thought,
‘Maybe there’s something that connects strange people.’
