The Contract Wife Tries to Leave - Chapter 131
“You’re not tired, are you?”
As they ascended the stairs leading to the main building’s entrance, Leonid casually asked. Johanna glanced at him briefly, considering her response before offering an appropriate reply.
“I’m fine. I can rest well tomorrow… I’ll come to your room around 10 o’clock, Marquis.”
Leonid suddenly halted his steps. Johanna, too, paused on the stairs and turned to look at him. His piercing gaze seemed to hold a hint of disbelief, and after a moment, his sharp voice cut through the air.
“Are you protesting right now?”
“Pardon?”
“Ha…”
He roughly ran his hand through his dark hair, which caught the glow of the setting sun, then glared at Johanna again with a harsh look. …Why is he suddenly so angry? Johanna couldn’t meet his eyes and instead fiddled with the hangnail by her thumb. Her startled heart pounded uneasily.
“That’s not what I meant when I asked if you were tired.”
“Oh…”
A sigh escaped her slightly parted lips as realization dawned on her.
Recognizing her misunderstanding, Johanna hung her head low. Her cheeks burned with heat. They were probably flushed bright red. She was too embarrassed to lift her face.
Johanna stammered an excuse.
“I… I thought you were asking because you were worried about my condition…”
“…”
“I apologize…”
Realizing she had misunderstood and given an irrelevant response, she figured it was no wonder Leonid found it exasperating. Though, she still thought it wasn’t quite enough reason for him to be so angry.
In any case, she had once again managed to irritate him. Despite her efforts to be careful, the atmosphere between them had grown awkward again. Maybe she and Leonid were just fundamentally incompatible. Johanna felt a wave of gloom wash over her.
“You’re bleeding.”
Leonid suddenly grabbed Johanna’s hand, scolding her. Startled by the unexpected warmth of his touch, Johanna flinched, but she quickly composed herself when she saw his exasperated expression.
He let out a deep sigh, clicked his tongue in frustration, and gently chided her.
“Stop picking at your hangnails. You do it all the time.”
“I’m sorry…”
“I’m not scolding you, so don’t apologize.”
“Yes…”
He took out a clean black handkerchief from his pocket and carefully wrapped it around her finger. Whenever he showed these small acts of kindness, Johanna couldn’t help but feel unsettled. If only he were always cold and distant… then her emotions wouldn’t swing so wildly.
“Today… No, for a while, I won’t do it.”
He resumed walking as he spoke. There was no need for further explanation; she understood perfectly what he meant.
“Stop acting like a frightened little deer. It’s starting to get on my nerves.”
“…”
Johanna nodded to indicate her understanding and followed him up the stairs. The sun, staining the sky and earth in shades of red, was disappearing beyond the horizon.
* * *
It was a Saturday, about two weeks after returning from the exhibition. Johanna met with Daniel for lunch, but she didn’t have much of an appetite and barely ate half of her meal.
“Are you feeling unwell, sis?”
“I’m fine. I just don’t have much of an appetite.”
She reassured the concerned Daniel and returned to the mansion, where she washed up and changed clothes. Feeling a bit fatigued, she intended to rest her eyes for just a moment but ended up sleeping deeply until late in the evening.
Later, around nine o’clock, she tried to have a late dinner, but suddenly, all the food tasted repulsive, and she felt nauseated. In the end, she had to vomit everything she had eaten.
After taking some stomach medicine, she went to bed. The next morning, she skipped breakfast and immediately summoned Victoria. Upon hearing Johanna’s symptoms, Victoria seemed puzzled.
“It’s too early for morning sickness to appear… Let’s check for pregnancy first.”
They conducted a simple test using a medical device made with magical engineering, which could determine pregnancy.
The result showed she wasn’t pregnant.
“Loss of appetite and vomiting seem to be stomach-related. I’ll prescribe you some medicine; take it three times a day as directed. There’s nothing seriously wrong with your health, so try not to worry too much.”
“…Alright, thank you.”
After Victoria finished her examination and left the room, Johanna stood blankly by the window, staring out at the garden. From there, she had a clear view of the six Osmanthus trees that Leonid had ordered the gardener to plant. It seemed deliberate, as if they were positioned perfectly to be seen from this window.
…The Osmanthus was said to bloom in September. It was still July… and autumn was far away.
‘…We spent a whole week together during the rut.’
Yet, it was hard to believe that no baby had come from it. They had knotted over ten times… How could this be?
Could there be a problem with her health? Victoria had assured her that there was no reason to worry… but still.
She couldn’t easily shake off the anxiety. If, by some chance, she fell ill… then the contract could be terminated.
‘No, don’t think negatively. It’s still July. If I become pregnant before the contract period ends… then everything will be fine.’
