Reasons for Contract Marriage - Chapter 170

“Luce!”

Brianna abruptly turned and glared at him.

“What are you doing, suddenly hugging me like that? It’s dangerous.” She gestured with her eyes toward the sharp point of the scissors.

Lucius snorted. “You’ve threatened me with a gun twice before, so this is nothing.”

A maid cleaning the parlor looked on in shock with her mouth wide open. Brianna quickly sent the maid out and then scolded him.

“If you say things like that when someone else is around, they’ll get the wrong idea…”

Lucius silenced her grumbling mouth with his lips. As his hot tongue slid in, he took the scissors from her hand and placed them on the sofa. Then, holding her chin, he thoroughly indulged in the softness of her lips and mouth.

When the sweet kiss ended and he pulled away, hazy teal eyes stared back at him. Lucius wiped the corner of her lips with his finger and pulled her back into his arms.

“Why don’t you leave this sort of thing to the maids?” He twirled one of the flowers she had been holding and asked.

Brianna let out a small sigh. “I was planning to. It’s fine when there are no guests, but it’s a bit embarrassing to display it in front of others.”

Indeed, the flowers in the vase looked a bit clumsy. In contrast to the perfectly harmonious arrangements always crafted by the Dowager Duchess, these lacked that refined aesthetic.

So there are things she’s not good at, too.

Lucius thought with mild fascination as he looked over the flowers scattered across the table.

“Hydrangeas, peonies, and lilies. They’re all summer flowers you like.”

“Yes, they’re all flowers I like…”

Brianna agreed absentmindedly, then suddenly froze as if something seemed odd.

Come to think of it, these were all the flowers included in her wedding bouquet. Instead of the usual roses, it had been filled with her favorite flowers.

At the time, she’d assumed they were simply fitting choices for a bouquet.

When Brianna suddenly turned and looked at him seriously, Lucius tilted his head slightly.

“What’s the matter all of a sudden?”

“Did you know? That I liked these flowers?”

“Yes.”

“How?”

“Well…”

Lucius paused for a moment, then gave a faint bitter smile.

“Florian always told me. About you.”

It was the first time since their marriage that he had mentioned Florian voluntarily. Until now, the name Florian had been almost taboo between them.

Brianna murmured in surprise at the change, “But even so, how could you remember all that…”

“I didn’t realize it at the time, but thinking back, I remembered everything. The things you liked, the things you didn’t, your birthday, and so on…”

“You know my birthday?”

Her voice burst out in near shock. She had never told him her birthday.

“It’s April 1st. Florian would start fussing about what gift to get you a month in advance. Most of the birthday gifts you received actually reflected my taste quite a bit, you know. I hope you recognize that now.”

Brianna stifled a groan, hand to her lips. It was only then she realized she didn’t even know Lucius’s birthday.

“I’m sorry. I don’t even know your birthday…”

Come to think of it, that wasn’t all. She hardly knew what he liked or disliked. She said she loved him, yet she hadn’t made any effort to get to know him.

“My birthday is in December. But because you ran away just before it, I never got a gift.”

He gave her nose a gentle bite, as if scolding her, then walked around the sofa and sat across from her.

Brianna clutched her tingling nose and blankly stared at his face.

“Luce, then the reason my wedding bouquet was filled with my favorite flowers… you asked for it to be that way?”

When she asked, he nodded.

“Why?”

Back then, he must have only married because of Florian’s request. So why had he bothered to pay attention to even such details?

Lucius answered, “Because I knew you didn’t want this marriage. I thought maybe seeing your favorite flowers during the ceremony would make you feel a little better.”

At those words, Brianna’s eyes wavered greatly.

This person, maybe he wasn’t treating her just out of sympathy or a sense of duty.

To go so far as to track her down when she ran away, to get jealous seeing her with another man, to remember every little thing about her—could all that truly be explained by mere sympathy or responsibility?

“Before you ask for a divorce again, think carefully. Is there really nothing left between us but a contract and physical desire?”

Since returning to the ducal residence, Brianna had often recalled those words he once said. And now, she had no choice but to admit that it wasn’t just those two things.

“…It’s very late, but I’ll give you a birthday present. Tell me if there’s anything you want.”

At her words, belatedly offering a gift for last winter’s birthday, he burst into laughter.

“But Brianna, if we’re keeping count, your birthday just passed too, so I think we should take care of that first.”

“But I’ve already received a lot from you.”

“All right. Then let’s do this. I actually have something I wanted to give you, so let’s exchange gifts. We’ll each give something we want to give.”

“You have something you want to give me? What is it?”

“Brianna, gifts should be a secret until you receive them. That way, the joy is even greater.”

Brianna recalled how she once tried to gift him her father’s watch. Back then, she had also eagerly anticipated his delighted expression as she prepared the surprise.

If only she hadn’t discovered Florian’s letter and had simply given him the watch back then, would many things have turned out differently?

Brianna soon nodded. “All right. But give me time to prepare.”

***

A few days later, Brianna left the ducal residence with a maid.

The reason given was shopping for Lucius’s birthday present. When she mentioned the outing, Lucius had let her go without hesitation. Since returning to the ducal residence, he had accompanied her on most outings, but today was different. He himself had said he shouldn’t know about the gift in advance.

Brianna had prepared gifts for others many times before, but today was the first time she earnestly tried to choose the best gift for someone. She visited clothing stores, jewelry shops, and countless others.

But she couldn’t find anything that felt just right.

In the end, it had to be that.

Riding the carriage to the next location, Brianna thought of that one thing. After much deliberation and looking at many items, she still felt the only gift she truly wanted to give him was her father’s watch.

Perhaps, no matter how things turned out, that watch was always destined to end up with him.

“We’re done with shopping, so could you ask the coachman to turn around?”

At Brianna’s words, the maid sitting in front widened her eyes. “Pardon? But Madam, you haven’t bought anything yet.”

“I don’t need to anymore. But before that, let’s stop by the bank for a moment.”

The maid quickly informed the coachman of the change in plans. The carriage, which had been headed to the shopping district, changed its route to the bank instead.

The reason Brianna planned to visit the bank today was because of a letter she had recently received from Natalie. More precisely, a letter ghostwritten by Levin.

In the letter, Natalie firmly refused to accept the money. Though she was grateful, she insisted on raising Romi on her own and told Brianna to take the money back.

So Brianna thought of a compromise. Instead of retrieving the funds, she would set up a trust for Romi to access once she came of age.

Of all people, Brianna knew best what a great comfort it could be to a powerless young girl just entering the world to know there was a sum of money in her name.