The Contract Wife Tries to Leave - Chapter 65
“You’re not angry? After what just happened? You can’t possibly be fine with it.”
He sounded irritated, as if something was deeply bothering him. Johanna was at a loss, her lips moving soundlessly as she tried to comprehend his mood. She couldn’t figure out the right thing to say and feared that the wrong words might spill out. In the end, she uttered the safest, most meaningless phrase she could think of.
“…I’m fine, really.”
“….”
“It doesn’t bother me.”
“Hah…”
“If… If I’ve done something to offend you, Marquess…”
“It’s that attitude that bothers me.”
He cut her off, snatching her words away. Johanna looked up at him, wide-eyed. His sunset-colored eyes were as sharp as his tone. What did he mean by “that attitude”? She had no idea.
“Don’t you want to make a good impression on me?”
“Pardon…?”
Leonid suddenly asked, running a hand through his hair in frustration, muttering something under his breath. Johanna, still confused, fidgeted with her fingers. Should she try to appease him? After a brief hesitation, she responded.
“Of course, I want to make a good impression.”
“…But you act like that?”
“I… What did I…?”
At this point, Johanna was genuinely perplexed. She had no idea what she had done wrong.
“If you could just tell me what I’ve done…”
“Ha… Forget it.”
He sighed, shaking his head as if too tired to continue. Then, he finally released his grip on the door handle.
Waving his hand dismissively, he signaled for her to leave. It was clear—he wanted her gone. Still bewildered, Johanna opened the door and stepped out into the cold, dark hallway.
“At least one thing’s clear now.”
Before the door closed, she heard Leonid’s cold voice behind her.
“You really have no interest in me at all, do you, Miss Lucerne?”
Their eyes met for the briefest of moments, his gaze icy and piercing. Then the door shut with a heavy click.
“…”
Standing alone in the pitch-black corridor, Johanna stared blankly at the closed door for a long time.
* * *
[I deeply apologize about last night.]
While having breakfast in her room, a maid delivered a note and quietly left. There was no name, no signature, but Johanna instantly knew who it was from, just from the content alone.
“…”
Johanna stared at the neatly written words. The handwriting was so meticulously precise that it seemed to reflect the sender’s character perfectly.
A faint smile briefly touched Johanna’s lips as she looked at the note, but it quickly vanished. She set down her fork and took a sip of water, feeling her throat dry. Folding the small note carefully, she slipped it into her pocket, her thoughts drifting back to the events of the previous night. Her mind was still unsettled.
She should have known something was off the moment he kept urging her to drink more of that strong liquor.
It seemed he wanted to lower her guard by getting her drunk, hoping to uncover her true feelings. She wasn’t entirely sure, but she was almost convinced. Then, when the Alpha instincts overwhelmed him, what happened was an accident. Yes, an accident… nothing more, nothing significant. It was an incident that held no real meaning.
As for why he got so angry…
She still couldn’t figure that out.
She knew something about her had irritated him, but she had no idea what it was. If there was something wrong with her behavior, she wanted to correct it. But how could she, when the person who was bothered wouldn’t even tell her what it was? The confusion lingered.
Johanna shuddered as she suddenly recalled the sensation of his touch from last night. It felt as vivid as if it had just happened, yet also surreal, as if it were something from a dream.
She would have to share such intimate contact again once they were married. The thought left Johanna with a mix of emotions, none of which she could easily sort out.
As noon approached, Johanna made her way to the Bamberg Boarding Academy. She was there to see Daniel. With the wedding just days away, she was feeling unsettled and needed to see her brother’s face. There were also important things she needed to tell him.
“Is that really her?”
“The fiancée of the Marquis of Neubitz…”
“They say she’s Daniel’s sister.”
“Daniel? Who’s that?”
“Don’t you know? He’s the one who transferred in recently…”
The murmurs of the students reached Johanna’s ears as she crossed the courtyard, but she pretended not to hear them. The garden, now in full bloom for spring, was a riot of color with tulips, hyacinths, and pansies. The countless flowers displayed their myriad shapes and hues.
“Sister!”
As she neared the library, where they had agreed to meet, Daniel spotted her and came running. She couldn’t help but smile when she saw her younger brother, who had grown even taller since the last time she’d seen him. He had been on the shorter side for a dominant Alpha, which had worried her a little, but now he seemed to be growing rapidly, filling her with a sense of pride.
