Deceived, Yet Drawn to You - Chapter 24

After hearing unsettling information about Isaac, Blair spent the night agonizing over what the best course of action might be. She couldn’t investigate by meeting the Dorman family’s personal physician or servants she didn’t even know. They wouldn’t go around gossiping about Isaac’s filthy condition to his prospective fiancée.

Then an invitation to a reading gathering arrived from Margaret Dorman. The intention hidden behind the verbose wording was simple. She wanted to bolster her own standing by showing off her prospective daughter-in-law as a model of propriety.

Blair hesitated at the unwelcome invitation, but the face that came to mind was none other than Isaac’s mistress, Nicoletta Underhill. Wasn’t she the one who’d been closest to Isaac all this time?

As expected, Nicoletta attended the reading gathering without fail, and Blair decided to draw some kind of answer out of her. She first wrapped herself in a calm exterior and waited for the right moment, then deliberately spilled her black tea.

Blair hadn’t expected Nicoletta to show hostility so quickly, and she blinked silently. Since Nicoletta didn’t even spare a glance for the ruined hem of her dress, it was almost a relief.

“I’m curious why you’d think that.”

“You singled me out instead of the other young ladies. I wondered if you were planning to interrogate me.”

“You’re the only one here I’m acquainted with, Lady Underhill.”

Blair sat down and looked at Nicoletta with steady eyes.

“And speaking of interrogation… is there perhaps something you feel guilty about?”

“What did you just say?”

As if holding back rising anger, Nicoletta’s chest rose and fell sharply. Blair let out a long breath. She had no intention of clashing with the mistress of a fiancé she didn’t even love. From the beginning, Nicoletta wasn’t even someone Blair considered worth arguing with. She simply wanted to know the truth before making a decision.

“To be clear, I’m not trying to assign blame. I’m only trying to confirm the facts.”

“Then explain yourself properly.”

“I understand that you have a private relationship with Lord Isaac Dorman. So….”

“So? What exactly are you trying to confirm?”

The corner of Nicoletta’s mouth twisted slightly. There wasn’t a trace of shock or guilt on her face. If anything, she looked like she’d expected this.

Were people who committed infidelity usually like this? Instead of fearing discovery, they almost seemed brazen. It was the same at the clubhouse. Nicoletta had appeared eager to subtly flaunt her affair with Isaac.

“I recently heard something concerning about Lord Dorman’s health. Since you’re close to him, I wanted to ask whether you’ve noticed any symptoms.”

After a brief hesitation, Blair added quietly, “Not just for Lord Dorman. For yourself as well.”

“Really now, this is beyond rude. Why are you saying something like that to me? Shouldn’t you ask Isaac, your fiancé, first?”

Nicoletta’s raised voice was excessively sharp. Blair closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them again, feeling a wave of fatigue.

“Of course I could ask Lord Dorman. But he’s the party involved, so he’d defend himself. He might conceal the truth.”

“And what about me? Did you think I have no reason to hide the truth?”

“You’re a woman. Unlike men, who value pride and appearances above all else, for us, a healthy body is life itself and our future. That’s why I thought that if I asked you directly, you’d tell me the truth.”

Nicoletta remained standing in silence, her lips pressed tightly together. The glare she’d fixed on Blair slowly dropped, as if pulled down by gravity. After a long pause, Nicoletta finally lifted her head. Her expression looked as though she’d made up her mind.

“Then I’m sorry I can’t live up to your expectations, Lady Twyford.”

“….”

“I have nothing to say about Lord Dorman. Even if I did, it’s not something I could say to his fiancée.”

Watching Nicoletta, who rarely revealed her true feelings, Blair slowly drew in a breath. It was clear she was hiding something, but there was no way to press further. What was that woman trying to protect? Her pride? Or loyalty and love toward a man not worth either?

“Lady Underhill, I’m not trying to compete with you over Lord Dorman.”

“Since you’ve only just stepped into high society in the capital, let me give you one piece of advice.”

Cutting her off mid-sentence, Nicoletta lifted her chin and met Blair’s eyes. Perhaps because she wasn’t wearing heavy makeup today, her complexion looked oddly pale as she continued speaking.

“Honest people don’t last long in Borsa. If you ask honest questions and expect honest answers….”

With that, she grasped the handle of the lounge door and looked back at Blair.

“It would be better for you to return to your northern estate while you still can, Lady Twyford.”

The door closed, leaving Blair alone in the narrow space. For a long while, she simply listened to the sharp sound of Nicoletta’s heels echoing down the library corridor.

***

Blair left the reading gathering early under the pretext that her dress had gotten wet, her heart weighed down with turmoil. All she’d gained were unsettling advice and anxiety-ridden speculation.

After leaving the Royal Library, Blair descended the steps and headed toward the street where the driver was waiting. Then she suddenly frowned. It was because of the man in a bright suit approaching from the other side.

The man, who had been walking along humming to himself, also noticed Blair’s gaze. It was Isaac Dorman.

“Oh, Lady Twyford?”

Isaac stopped in front of her, his steps loose and unhurried.

“Did you attend my mother’s reading gathering today?”

“…Yes, Lord Dorman.”

“Oh? But is it already over? I came out to escort you at my mother’s request, but isn’t there still time left?”

“The gathering is still ongoing. As you can see, my dress ended up in quite a state… so I asked for her understanding and excused myself early.”

“My, my. How did a proper young lady manage such a mishap?”

Isaac clicked his tongue as he looked at the skirt of Blair’s dress, stained with tea. Blair was momentarily at a loss for words at his brazen composure. Even if he thought she didn’t know the truth, the fact that his fiancée, his mistress, and his mother were all gathered in one place didn’t seem to bother him in the slightest. There was even a sense of power in his shameless, unflustered behavior.

“Were you on your way back to the townhouse?”

“Yes. The driver is waiting right over there.”

“That’s good. You should head back quickly and change your clothes. I’ll let you go now.”

Isaac wrapped up the conversation as if doing her a favor. Even then, his gaze kept drifting toward the library entrance, as though his attention was focused on someone else attending the gathering.

A surge of indignation rose in Blair’s chest. The sheer audacity of it made her teeth grind and her mouth go dry. In the end, she couldn’t remain silent.

“There’s something I want to ask you, Lord Dorman.”

Nicoletta had said that honest questions and answers didn’t suit the capital’s social scene. She might have been right. But no one with sense could simply let this pass without asking.

“What is it?”

“Do you truly want this marriage, Lord Dorman?”

Isaac’s eyebrows twitched. Blair steadied her breathing and continued in a low voice, “Even if that’s the case, I know that the reason isn’t affection or interest directed at me as a person. You have another woman in your heart, and even after our wedding, you plan to continue seeing her.”

“…What? Lady, what are you talking about?”

Isaac suddenly let out a hollow laugh and shot back in a tone full of disbelief.

“Now I’m the one who’s curious. Did you really believe that marriages between nobles are born of affection? Are you dreaming of a love story that even my cousin, who’s just started primary school, wouldn’t believe in?”

“I never believed that. But at the very least, I expected that we wouldn’t harm each other.”

“What do you mean by that? Did I ever lay a hand on you?”

“Violence isn’t limited to physical blows. I believe secrecy can be a form of violence too. Marriage is a vow that requires staking my entire life, so I couldn’t help but worry about what kind of danger you might be carrying within you, Lord Dorman.”