Chapter 9
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 9
"River Ross."
"Yes?"
Limping on her left foot, Vanessa approached, her eyes widening when ‘River Ross’ answered reflexively to his name. Realizing his blunder a moment too late, the real River Ross frantically waved his hands.
"Ah, no. It's nothing."
Vanessa tilted her head in confusion, then made a polite request. "Excuse me, but would you mind leaving us for a moment? I need to ask Mr. River Ross for some advice… about a new rose variety."
Theodore couldn’t help but burst out laughing. Her sharp gaze immediately shot toward him, but once his laughter started, it wasn’t easy to stop. What now, Vanessa? Unfortunately for you, I don't think anyone here is falling for that lie.
"Uh… but, well, I…"
The real River Ross fidgeted, glancing anxiously at Theodore as if seeking permission he didn't need. When Theodore finally gave a small nod, the man bowed deeply and hurried toward the far side of the garden. A smirk touched Theodore's lips as he watched the man's clumsy departure.
It was Gardener Ross who had advised the Duke to pose as his nephew, River Ross. Although the photographs and portraits of Theodore released to the public were all from when he was around eight years old, a sharp eye might still grow suspicious. In such a case, if the old gardener, who had long been devoted to the family, firmly vouched for his identity, the chances of being caught would be significantly reduced.
Conveniently, no one here knew the real River Ross from his childhood. Though he had unintentionally stolen his subordinate's name, he didn’t consider it much of a problem. After all, once summer was over, this uninvited guest would vanish without a trace.
"River Ross. Are you listening?"
But he hadn't expected things to turn out like this. The sudden voice shook Theodore from his thoughts. Looking up at him, Vanessa's pale face was now tinged with an anxiety she could no longer hide.
Seeing her already looking so desperate, he could foresee a terribly exhausting future if he allowed them to become any more entangled. Theodore replied, his expression flawlessly polite.
"I am listening."
"We need to talk."
"I'm not sure what we have to talk about, my lady."
"River. What's wrong with you?"
Theodore strode past the bewildered Vanessa and stepped deeper into the rose garden. As he picked up the canteen he had tossed under a tree, she hurried after him. With every limping step she took, the white ribbon tied around her slender left ankle fluttered.
Finally overtaking him, Vanessa blocked his path, stretching her arms out wide.
"Listen. The wedding date has been set."
"Congratulations."
"It's Count Roden."
Theodore paused, the canteen halfway to his lips, and looked down at Vanessa. Count Roden was a man well over fifty. Though he had amassed some wealth through his mining business, he was a notorious lecher rumored to have laid hands on every pretty maid in his household.
After rumors spread like wildfire through the high society of the capital, Linden, that he had gotten a war widow in his employ pregnant and then abandoned the child, Theodore had thought that any family willing to marry their daughter to that piece of trash had gone extinct.
Theodore clicked his tongue. It seemed Count Somerset had gone out of his way to choose the absolute worst of the worst. He felt a pang of regret for offering his congratulations so lightly. Of course, a flicker of pity didn't change the fact that the woman was a nuisance. He canted his head, looking down at her from an angle.
"If you're in such a hurry, why not just buy a man instead of bothering me?"
Vanessa shook her head, her face deeply gloomy.
"My outings are strictly restricted. The surveillance is at least a bit lighter inside the castle."
"Then call someone here."
"Everyone who can enter this place is employed by my uncle."
"Bribe a doctor, then. For a few coins, they'll gladly testify to whatever you want."
"That won't cause a big enough scandal. My uncle can silence a doctor, one way or another. But a pregnancy… that’s something no one can hide."
Theodore raised an eyebrow. He was already finding this situation exhausting.
"Then just run away, Vanessa. Far away."
"Even if I leave, I have to return to this country someday. That's why I need to make my uncle give up on me."
"Do you have a hidden lover living nearby?"
"My parents are buried not far from here. I'm the only one who tends to their graves."
"So you'll stay here and drag your name through the mud for your dead parents? To be paraded around as Somerset's whore, devoured by high society gossip?"
The woman's pale face twisted with anxiety once more. Her trembling lips, which had been on the verge of tears, pressed into a firm line, the vulnerability vanishing as if it had never been there. Perhaps she simply had no room left to think.
"River… do you really not remember me?"
Theodore looked up at the absurdly blue May sky, then lowered his gaze to Vanessa, who was tightly clasping her trembling hands. It seemed there was some twisted logic behind her insane proposal—a childhood promise, perhaps. Should he tell her now that he wasn't the person she thought he was?
Why bother?
If he did, she would just run to the real River Ross and make the same proposal. The hopelessly naive River Ross would get swept up in her scheme, unable to properly refuse. It was obvious what a scandal with a ruined noble lady would do to a promising naval officer—especially a commoner with no family to back him.
As always, Theodore arrived at a clean, efficient conclusion. He turned to face Vanessa, his lips twisting into a smirk.
"My price is far higher than your measly coins. And I'm not so desperate that I'd tumble into bed with a woman I have no feelings for."
Vanessa was now quietly hanging her head. He had no idea what calculations were running through that small head of hers, nor did he particularly want to know. It was bound to be some consistently insane idea anyway. Just as he was about to step past her, a small hand caught his sleeve.
"Then I'll love you."
Love. The cliché, exhausting word made him sick. He let out a sharp sigh and looked down, his eyes meeting Vanessa's pale face. At that moment, Theodore burst into a hollow laugh.
In the entire world, Vanessa Siren Somerset was probably the only woman who would speak of love with such a look on her face. She spoke with the expression of someone prepared for death, her eyes like a warrior entering a duel.
"I just… if I absolutely have to marry, I want my husband to be someone who doesn't care about this. And to make sure of that, I need to get rid of it."
This. As if her virginity were nothing more than a nuisance to be discarded. Theodore’s lips twisted.
"So you'd offer your virginity to a man you don't even care about."
"Men can enjoy physical intimacy without feelings. I assume you're the same. So I see no reason why I can't do it, too."
She was a woman who uttered shocking, rebellious words with an utterly submissive face. Her view of men as little more than horny dogs was absurd, yet not entirely inaccurate.
Because they were common enough, those bastards. The kind who wasted their lives on women, alcohol, and gambling.
Wicked old memories drifted like dust over the idyllic, rustic scenery. Theodore unconsciously tugged at the collar of his shirt, which suddenly felt tight. His breathing grew constricted—the way she looked at him was far too innocent for the words coming out of her mouth.
How innocent could a woman who wanted to buy a man with money really be? Theodore laughed irritably, as if to banish the unpleasant thought.
"And you were willing to throw yourself at me, assuming I was just that kind of man?"
"You're handsome… and you're in the Navy."
"And?"
"Coercing a military officer is a serious crime. And someone in the Navy could be deployed overseas for years at a time."
It was a surprisingly shrewd calculation. She had even considered that her uncle couldn't easily touch someone of his status if things went wrong.
"The servants in the castle all have their lives rooted in the South. You, on the other hand, are a complete outsider, so I figured a scandal wouldn't affect you much. Since you're not a noble, you have no honor to lose."
"And what if I were a gentleman who valued his honor? Would you not have made this offer?"
"If the man who ruined my honor were a wealthy noble, my uncle would just find a way to force a marriage."
"..."
"So, let's be temporary lovers while you're on leave. Just like when we played house as children… only this time, we’ll get to know each other… a little more intimately."
"Lovers."
"It's only for the summer. It will all fade with the season."
Vanessa's cheeks were flushed the color of summer peaches, so fresh it seemed sweet juice would spill out if he were to bite into them.