Only Lisi was reflected in his deep, clear eyes.
It felt as if she might lose her way within them.
His hot breath touched the tip of her nose. Afraid that her own breath might brush against his, she held it and stared back at him.
A ripple stirred near her heart.
The gentle wave spread softly, stimulating her heart.
In her previous life, a man’s gaze had been nothing but a source of fear and disgust to Lisi.
That was why the strange emotion she felt now, while facing his gray blue eyes, left her bewildered.
“Ha…”
Without realizing it, she exhaled.
The breath that slipped from between her red, moist lips brushed against his own, and his thin lips moved slightly.
They were so close that warmth could be felt even though their lips had not touched.
Lisi wanted to move away from those blood colored lips that looked as though they might devour her at any moment, but instead she stood straight and gazed at him calmly.
“Am I not too large to swallow in one bite?”
His eyes narrowed.
“That remains to be seen.”
His low voice flowed out with a breath that brushed against Lisi’s lips.
Lisi slowly closed her eyes and then opened them again.
In this life, she had already resolved to do anything for the sake of her new life.
Sleeping with Kayvrant Green, who had become such a valuable opportunity for her, was not a great sacrifice.
Through her thick eyelashes she saw his face, waiting for her answer.
His straight forehead, his dark brows slightly raised at the ends.
His deeply set eyes shone quietly, as if testing her.
At last, Lisi spoke.
“Then do as you wish.”
The moment her answer ended, his thick arm wrapped around her slender waist and pulled her close.
Her body pressed tightly against his.
His burning body heat passed through the thin robe.
With his arm around her waist, he laid her down on the bed.
Her long silver hair, tinged faintly with red, spread across the bed like a flower.
Lisi felt the softness of the bed beneath her back and the hardness of his body against her stomach.
The large robe wrapped around her body fell open, revealing her round, slender shoulders.
He lowered his head and pressed his lips against her shoulder.
The hot pressure of his lips felt like a brand, and Lisi flinched.
Kay gently caught the wrist she had raised without realizing it.
His large hand held her thin wrist and pressed it lightly beside her face.
His lips, wandering across her shoulder, slowly followed the line of her collarbone and stopped at the back of her neck.
The moment his hot breath slid along her neck like a shackle, Lisi remembered her previous life.
The crushing weight of Alford pressing down on her.
Lisi swallowed a scream.
‘I must endure.’
She squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them again.
She had to accept this situation completely.
Closing her eyes and running away belonged to the foolish, weak Iris of her previous life.
The Iris Green of this life could never close her eyes before fear.
And so Lisi suppressed her terror, gritted her teeth, and stared at the ceiling.
She did not even notice that the hot breath brushing her neck had moved away.
“You are like a statue, Lisi.”
Only when his low voice reached her did Lisi move her eyes.
His face, which had been near her neck, had risen until it was level with her own.
“Whether a woman becomes a statue in bed or a flower that opens its petals depends on the man, does it not?”
Kay looked down at Lisi quietly.
Perhaps he was angry.
Blaming a man while lying in bed with him was enough to crush his pride completely.
But Lisi had no intention of taking back her words.
If his pride had truly been wounded, he would do one of two things.
Either take her by force out of anger.
Or leave her alone forever out of wounded pride.
Either outcome was acceptable.
Kay gently brushed the corner of Lisi’s eye with his thumb.
The touch was unexpectedly gentle, and Lisi felt a flicker of surprise.
She had thought he would be angry.
Kay carefully arranged Lisi’s hair that had spread across the bed.
Then he quietly lay down beside her.
Lisi turned her head toward him.
“Is that all?”
At her question, Kay turned his head and looked at her.
“I prefer to eat things while they are hot.”
“Oh my. How particular you are. But what should we do? I do not heat up easily.”
“We shall see about that, Lisi.”
His calm voice sounded pleasant to her ears.
The tension left her shoulders.
The moment she closed her eyes, exhaustion washed over her.
So much had happened today.
She felt him gently pulling the robe closed around her body, but a heavy drowsiness overwhelmed her before she could even move.
“Sleep, Lisi.”
As she drifted into darkness, she heard his voice.
“You will have good dreams.”
Would she?
Lisi had never once had a good dream.
Still, she thought his voice sounded kind as she fell asleep.
+++
Listening to Lisi’s steady breathing, Kay quietly rose from the bed.
After the previous Count Green had passed everything to him and retired, Kay had many responsibilities as the head of the family.
Naturally, he had never even had time to think about women, and he had assumed it would remain that way.
But…
‘She is a strange woman.’
Kay stood beside the bed for a moment, looking down at Lisi.
The rumors about Iris, the Flower of the Whitlow Ducal House, had reached even Kay’s ears despite his lack of interest in women.
They said the daughter of the Whitlow Ducal House was so beautiful that Duke Whitlow cherished her and never allowed anyone to see her.
They said that if even a small wound appeared on Iris’s fingertip, Duke Whitlow would tear up with concern.
But there were other rumors as well.
That Iris of the Whitlow Ducal House had actually been born to a maid.
That Iris was treated worse than a servant in the Whitlow household.
Those rumors had been so faint that most dismissed them as slander spread by people who enjoyed dragging others down.
‘Now that I have seen her, it seems those rumors were not false after all.’
Lisi was a peculiar woman.
She seemed arrogant and strong, yet at times looked so fragile that she might collapse at any moment.
Sometimes her eyes resembled weeds struggling to survive in the flames of hell, just as she herself had described.
There was something within her that a noble lady raised in comfort could never possess.
Those differences from ordinary women kept drawing Kay’s attention.
He had laid Lisi down on the bed because he wanted to know how it would feel to hold her, what kind of reaction she would show.
But Lisi had reacted differently from what he expected.
Though she maintained her proud expression, Kay, who was sensitive to the emotions of others, could tell that she had been terrified.
“What frightens you so much, Iris?”
Kay pulled the blanket over her.
“Surely Duke Whitlow has not done something unforgivable to you.”
The greedy face of Duke Globurn Whitlow came to mind.
“If that is the case, I will show him what hell looks like.”
He had no obligation to go that far for Lisi.
She was merely an ally who had struck a bargain with him by exploiting his weakness.
This marriage itself was only for mutual benefit.
And yet Kay liked Lisi.
Her proud strength that flowed through her entire body.
The fragile vulnerability that sometimes slipped through.
Her unconscious shyness and the occasional joyful smile she revealed.
Affection did not exist only between men and women.
There was also affection born from alliances.
Just because this was a political marriage did not mean he intended to treat her carelessly.
Whatever the reason for the marriage, Lisi was the Countess of the Green family.
“You are the flower of the Green family now, Iris. So…”
You may bloom without fear.
Everything belonging to the Green family will move for your sake.
Kay left the room and walked down the corridor when someone fell into step beside him.
It was Gillette Merdi, the maid who attended him.
Gillette was the daughter of Baron Merdi and had served as Kay’s maid for the past three years.
“Count, shall I prepare tea?”
“No. It is unnecessary. Go rest.”
Kay answered coldly and walked toward his study.
His subordinates were likely waiting for him there.
Gillette followed after him.
Kay stopped and looked back at her.
“Do you have something to say to me?”
“Yes, well…”
Gillette hesitated before lifting her head to look at him.
“Are you really… getting married?”
“I am not getting married. I already have.”
“The ceremony…”
“Is that necessary?”
“Ah…”
For some reason, Gillette’s expression brightened slightly.
“So it is a political marriage. It happened so suddenly that I wondered what was going on…”
“Is that all you wished to say?”
“Well… the lady is from the Whitlow family…”
“If you intend to discuss my marriage, stop.”
Kay said coldly before turning and walking toward the study.
Gillette did not follow him any further.
She stood still, watching his sturdy back until it disappeared.
Then she let out a long sigh.
Kayvrant Green.
She had admired him ever since she first saw him as a child.
After begging her father, Gillette had managed to enter the Green estate as Kay’s personal maid.
It was not uncommon for maids who served unmarried nobles to catch their attention, begin a romance, and eventually marry them.
Gillette had been certain that one day Kay would notice her.
She had always been told she was beautiful since childhood, and men had often proposed to her.
Yet three years had passed since she began serving Kay at his side.
He had never once shown the slightest interest in her.
Still, he did not seem to have any other woman either, so she believed he was simply too busy for romance.
She had believed that one day his gaze would eventually turn toward her.
But suddenly she heard that Kay had married Iris, the Flower of the Whitlow Ducal House.
Iris, whose beauty was said to rival that of an elf.
Many men were desperate to marry her.
Yet Gillette had never imagined that Kay would be one of them.
‘But that was not the case. It is only a political marriage.’
As proof of that, Kay had not even held a wedding ceremony.
Even in political marriages, grand ceremonies were usually held.
Yet Kay seemed unwilling to do even that much for Iris.
The dark cloud that had hung over Gillette since hearing about the marriage finally lifted.
Smiling to herself, Gillette turned and walked away.