Deceived, Yet Drawn to You - Chapter 4

“That…”

Even against the backlight, Blair rolled her eyes as she looked up at the man’s sharply defined face.

It was difficult to continue speaking. After all, how could she say that behind this very door some shameless couple was in the middle of a private act? Nor could she possibly advise him that it might be better to wait here until they were finished.

And to a man she had just met!

Yet simply stepping aside in silence wasn’t the best choice either.

If the balcony door opened as things were, those moans would only grow louder, falling upon Blair and the man. Overcome with embarrassment, they would freeze like ice, and in the worst case, they might end up face-to-face with those half-naked lovers.

‘That’s the one thing I can’t bear.’

After imagining such a dreadful scene in an instant, Blair met the man’s eyes again.

Standing tall with perfect posture, the man still hadn’t moved a muscle. In the shadowed lines of his face, there was only a flat expression, as if he hadn’t felt a single reaction.

Yes. He surely hadn’t heard those moans. That wasn’t the look of someone who had heard such obscene sounds. At least, that was how Blair judged it.

“So…”

Her hand had risen to her chest in confusion, but she steadied her breath. She had to say something. Once again the scent of the cigarette he had smoked brushed the tip of her nose.

At that moment, the conclusion Blair reached was nearly impulsive.

“Actually, I came here to smoke too…”

“Ahng!”

She squeezed her eyes shut against the moan drifting faintly from behind her and raised her voice a little.

“I came here to smoke.”

The man still looked down at her with the same unchanged expression. Only a subtle glint in his gray eyes suggested he was trying to read her.

What did that have to do with her request that he step aside? To him, Blair certainly didn’t look like a smoker, and his gaze seemed doubtful.

Yet instead of saying so aloud, the man finally moved his lips.

“Smoke as much as you like. But first, if you would kindly step aside, I would be grateful.”

“…Could you spare me one?”

“……”

“Of course, only if it’s not an imposition on you.”

In fact, Blair was indirectly asking if he might stay and be her conversational partner for a while, as men were said to bond in smoking rooms by borrowing each other’s cigarettes.

Perhaps thinking her request shameless, he let out a short laugh that scattered the night air. Those once indifferent eyes now held Blair fully. After a brief pause, he slipped his hand into his jacket pocket and gestured toward the balcony railing.

“I see no reason not to.”

“Thank you.”

Blair walked over to the spot as he turned his back, and followed him. Once away from the door, those shameful moans seemed to fade like smoke. It was a relief.

Standing side by side at the railing where the moonlight poured down, Blair felt his solid frame brushing her shoulder. Far in the distance, the city lights still sparkled, but the midnight balcony was hushed. Feeling a tension she couldn’t explain, Blair quietly sighed. The foreign sensation of a man’s firm body so close pressed against her shoulder unsettled her.

What on earth was happening?

Thinking the distance too close, Blair subtly shifted away, grasping the railing. She had no nerve to return with him into the room where those naked bodies were tangled in their frenzy.

“There happens to be one left.”

The man took the last cigarette from the pack and held it out to her. Taking it, Blair glanced up at him. Seen now in clearer light, his face was undeniably handsome. His features were sharp and straight, so striking it was hard to look away.

“Do you enjoy smoking often?”

“I’m not a heavy smoker, but whenever I need one, the pack empties quickly.”

What could he mean by “whenever I need one”? Blair didn’t ask, only awkwardly pressed the cigarette to her lips. His hand approached, flicking a lighter open from his breast pocket.

Click— with the sound, a thin flame sprang to life.

As the man lit it for her, Blair bent her head toward the fire. Remaining still, she heard a low, gentle voice fall over her, like that of a teacher instructing a child.

“Don’t just hold it in your mouth. Draw in, or the fire won’t catch.”

“How do I…”

“You asked a stranger to lend you a cigarette, and yet you have no idea how to smoke?”

Well, of course she didn’t. She had never smoked before. Staring at the glowing tip, Blair widened her round eyes at him.

If his expression could’ve been translated into sound, it would have been the click of a tongue. Yet, as refined as his handsome appearance, he refrained from committing the rudeness of doing so to her face.

“Alright. Give it here.”

Instead, he took the cigarette from Blair’s hand and placed it between his own lips. With a practiced motion, he lit it and drew in a deep breath. Dimples formed on his cheek as the end of the cigarette flared red. Thin smoke spilled from between his teeth, and Blair, somehow entranced, couldn’t look away.

As the smoke spread close by, Blair inhaled sharply through her nose and burst into a coughing fit. The dry coughs came one after another, bringing tears to her eyes. He glanced down at her as she raised a hand to cover her mouth.

“You could barely handle the smoke itself, and yet you thought to smoke it.”

“…I don’t understand why anyone would enjoy something so harsh.”

“At first, it’s always like that. Once you grow accustomed, addiction becomes only a matter of time.”

“How did you know it was my first time?”

“Would it not be strange if I hadn’t noticed?”

“Then did you stop me to keep me from smoking?”

The man laughed as though he had heard a joke. Blair watched his large hand rise toward his lips. Somehow, she found herself holding her breath as she looked at the thick veins across the back of his hand and the strong wrist revealed beneath his suit cuff.

“Well then, if you sought rebellion, surely there are better ways than this.”

Once again, smoke scattered into the air. Watching the fading haze, Blair slowly rubbed her fingers together. A discomfort pressed against her chest as though weighing her down. It wasn’t as if the heat of the man’s touch had reached her through the air, and yet it felt that way.

‘…How did I end up having such a conversation with a stranger?’

A chuckle escaped her lips at the unexpected turn of events. If her father learned of this, it would not end with a few strokes of the rod.

She belatedly worried about the smell clinging to her, but after having brushed shoulders with several gentlemen at the banquet, Blair already reeked of alcohol and smoke.

Thinking that no one would ever know eased her mind somewhat. More than anything, standing here beside a stranger, shoulders nearly touching as they looked out over the fading city, did not feel unpleasant. It even felt liberating, as if she had cast off the tight dress that bound her.

Rubbing at her eyelids, Blair then stared quietly at the man beside her. Once more, her gaze fell upon his flawlessly tailored suit.

“It seems you and I attended the same soirée.”

“So it appears.”

“I heard it was an event of some significance, hosted by Duke Libert. I wonder if I’m taking too much of your time.”

The charity event Blair had attended that day was hosted under the authority of the famed Duke Libert. Though now over fifty and suffering from an incurable illness, earning him the nickname of a toothless tiger, he was still head of the most prestigious house in the Kingdom of Genoa. It was only natural that numerous political figures, members of the upper class, and nobles from old families would attend. The man before her was surely one of them.

“To be exact, I heard it was an event hosted by the duke’s son. As his condition worsened, the tiresome duties fell upon the son instead.”

The man smiled faintly with self-mockery as he continued.

“Don’t worry. Had you been a hindrance, I would have refused your request from the beginning.”

“Ah.”

“I, too, needed an excuse to linger somewhere quiet.”

He spoke plainly, releasing a trail of smoke as he looked down at her.

“And you, my lady. Are you not staying away too long? You must know the purpose of such an event is to build connections among the attendees.”

The concert she had been obliged to attend before the banquet had been exorbitantly priced. Ostensibly, the money went to charity, but in truth, the fee was no different from a social tax, meant for those who wished to mingle with key figures at the subsequent party.

Naturally, the man understood this. He assumed Blair had attended the banquet for the same purpose.

‘But to me, this is less about socializing…’

Earlier, under the influence of drink, her father had grumbled that the event was nothing but a filthy, tiresome investment. Listening closely, Blair had realized that the banquet was arranged to secure a reliable partner for his business—in other words, to find her a fiancé.

Recalling those unpleasant men, the way their eyes swept over her as if appraising the price of a commodity, made her chest tighten again.

“For a little while, it will be fine. I only needed a moment to breathe.”

“Is that so?”

“To be honest, I don’t wish to return to the banquet hall at all.”

And besides, she had no choice but to wait until those lunatics inside the parlor finished their business. Suppressing that final thought, Blair gave a weary smile. The man lifted his cigarette to his lips and let out a faint laugh.

“It’s hard to disagree. A banquet is nothing more than a negotiation table draped in finery.”

“Or perhaps a marketplace.”