Jayden made his way down to the ground floor of the arena. After pushing through a huge crowd and standing in a long queue, he finally achieved his goal.

When he returned to the VIP viewing section with two cups of lemonade, he was surprised to find that Kyla, who he had expected to be waiting for him, was nowhere to be seen. Silas had disappeared too.

Jayden handed one of the drinks to Penelope and took a seat.

“Thank you.”

Penelope accepted the glass with a bright smile, the ice inside clinking clearly against the cup.

“Miss Rothermere, where did Kyla and Silas go?”

“Miss Feilding stepped out to fix her makeup, and His Grace went to wash his hands for a moment. It’s been a while since they left, so they should be back soon.”

Penelope took a large sip of the cold lemonade.

“Ah, that’s so refreshing. You saved me.”

“I’m glad it helped.”

Jayden smiled, but he couldn’t shake the worry that something might have happened to Kyla. The memory of how pale she had looked earlier lingered in his mind.

“For now, just sit and wait. It’s not like anything could have happened, right?”

Watching Penelope laugh lightly, Jayden thought she seemed more cheerful than usual.

“Yes, let’s wait a little longer.”

He set Kyla’s lemonade on the table and looked down at the arena, unease settling in his chest. After a moment, Silas appeared.

“Silas, have you seen Kyla? I heard she’s been gone for quite a while.”

“Miss Feilding is in the lounge right now.”

Silas answered calmly as he took a seat beside Jayden.

“She’s in the lounge? Why would Kyla be there?”

Jayden shot to his feet. Just as he thought—something must be wrong with her. He should have stayed by her side instead of going off to buy lemonade.

“Calm down and sit, Jayden. Miss Feilding is fine. The second group’s race is about to begin.”

Silas tapped Jayden’s arm lightly.

At the reassurance that Kyla was alright, Jayden sat back down, but the horse race no longer registered in his eyes.

“Silas, what happened?”

“I ran into Miss Feilding in the corridor. She didn’t seem to be feeling well, so I took her to the lounge. She said she wanted to rest quietly, so I left her there. I’m not sure exactly what’s wrong, so you should ask her yourself later.”

Silas spoke as if it were nothing.

‘But is anything ever a big deal to this guy?’

Jayden couldn’t feel at ease.

“If she said she wanted to rest, then she must be seriously unwell. I should go check on her.”

As Jayden moved to stand, Silas grabbed his arm.

“Hold on, Jayden. She didn’t say anything because she knew you’d worry like this and wouldn’t even be able to enjoy the race. She might already be asleep by now—wouldn’t it be better to just let her rest?”

“What does a horse race matter? It can’t be more important than Kyla being sick. If she’s asleep, I’ll just wait by her side until she wakes up.”

In the end, Jayden shook off Silas’s hand and left the viewing stand.

“That’s quite the devotion to his sister.”

Penelope, who had been listening to the two men, spoke as she gazed out over the arena.

“Even for a real sibling, I don’t think it would go that far.”

She turned her eyes toward Silas, carefully studying his expression.

“Is that so.”

Silas answered shortly, then pressed his lips shut.

“I envy Miss Feilding. To be cherished like that—even by her brother.”

Penelope forced a smile, but it was more of a grimace.

The man sitting beside her had no idea, of course.

He didn’t notice the faint twitch in her expression, nor did he realize that she had seen him with that woman.

She had seen with her own eyes how Kyla had captured his heart.

It wasn’t elegant or refined like music.

Just moments ago, that woman had seemed perfectly happy, smiling carefree. Then, suddenly, she pretended to be unwell in front of him, swaying as if she might collapse. Her face turned pale as she gasped for breath, clinging to his arm.

She clung to his arm.

She even shed tears as she played the part of someone fragile and pitiful.

Watching it all, Penelope felt her blood boil with anger.

Despite dressing like a nun and playing the piano as if she were an artist, her true nature remained crude.

Penelope couldn’t understand it.

Why would Silas turn away from someone who genuinely loved him for a woman like that?

She resented him for being so easily swayed by such an obvious act.

It was almost unbelievable that a man who was usually so cold and rational could show such poor judgement when it came to women.

The moment Silas said he was going to wash his hands, she instinctively knew that he was going to follow her.

She should have pretended not to notice.

She shouldn’t have let her curiosity get the better of her.

Why had she followed him secretly, only to see them together?

The regret was suffocating.

They weren’t even engaged, let alone married.

She had no right to be angry.

She had no right to question him.

Penelope was feeling utterly miserable and was unable to show her jealousy.

She had never felt so wretched.

She turned her head and looked at Silas.

He was looking through binoculars, his gaze fixed on the arena below.

His short, black hair was neatly brushed back and, even now, his profile was strikingly handsome.

It felt unfair.

Nevertheless, her heart continued to pound as she looked at him.

The head of House Lester.

A duke who possessed vast lands.

He had inherited the steel company founded by the previous duke when he was young, and not only had he preserved it without faltering, he had also expanded it, amassing even greater wealth.

Could she really give up on a man like him?

Just because of an insignificant orphaned teacher?

‘Why should I?’

Penelope clenched her teeth, forcing a smile as her fists trembled.

***

Jayden stepped into the first-floor VIP lounge.

The room resembled the drawing room of an elegant, upper-class home.

Five or six tea tables were spaced comfortably apart, surrounded by sofas of various sizes and a few armchairs. Sunlight filtered gently through the large windows, softened by thin white curtains, and cast a warm summer glow across the room.

Kyla was leaning back against a long sofa with her eyes closed.

Thinking she might be asleep, as Silas had said, Jayden quietened his footsteps and approached her.

Her head was tilted slightly to one side, so he sat down where he could see her face clearly.

But she didn’t look asleep.

In fact, she looked as though she had fainted.

Her complexion, which was always pale, now seemed almost lifeless.

Silas had said she was fine, but Jayden thought otherwise.

‘Just leave her to rest? Heartless b*stard.’

He found himself wondering if Silas treated his younger siblings this coldly, too.

With her bonnet removed, Kyla had beads of sweat forming on her forehead. Jayden instinctively reached out to wipe them away with his handkerchief, but then stopped. He didn’t want to risk waking her up if she had just fallen asleep.

Slipping the handkerchief back into his pocket, he quietly watched her.

“Would you like some tea or a drink?”

At the voice from beside him, he looked up to see a maid standing there. He shook his head and placed a finger to his lips, signaling for silence.

Just as the maid bowed quietly and stepped away—

“…Brother?”

Kyla slowly blinked her eyes open.

Jayden let out a soft sigh.

“You’re awake? How do you feel?”

“I feel better after resting.”

She pushed herself upright and gave a faint smile, and the sight made his chest ache.

“Get some more rest.”

“No, it’s okay. I’m really fine, brother.”

Her voice was clearer than he had expected.

“I see. Next time, if you’re not feeling well, don’t try to endure it—tell me, alright?”

“Okay, I will.”

“I thought you were always healthy…”

Emotion welled up in him, but he forced it down.

“Could it be… that working at the ducal house is too hard for you?”

“No, it’s not like that.”

She shook her head firmly.

“Then tell me what it is. I just can’t understand why someone as healthy as you would suddenly become like this.”

No matter how he thought about it, it must have been down to her work as a piano tutor.

Her whole life had changed, how difficult must that have been for her?

All he had done was worry; he hadn’t helped her at all.

Jayden was furious with himself for being unable to help her.

Kyla gazed at him quietly.

“Brother… I’m sorry for making you worry. I’m really not sick.”

She recalled Silas’s words—telling her to be honest with Jayden.

If she didn’t tell him the truth, this would only happen again. And each time, Jayden would worry and suffer like this.

“Brother, actually…”

“Yes, Kyla.”

Jayden looked at her with gentle eyes, as though he were ready to listen to anything she might say.

If it were her brother, perhaps he would understand without her having to explain everything.

Kyla assumed that Jayden already knew, at least roughly, about her mother’s death and their father’s s*icide.

However, there was a vast difference between knowing something in passing and truly understanding how deeply it had scarred her.

Even speaking of it was painful.

She didn’t want to burden Jayden further by revealing the full extent of her suffering.

He was already worrying about her enough as it was.

Kyla parted her lips carefully.

“Actually… I once saw a polo match before.”

“A polo match?”

“Yes. It was before I came to the Feilding family… when I was still Kyla Snowdon. Back then… I witnessed an injured horse being euthanized.”

“Euthanasia? With a gun… for a horse?”

Jayden’s expression darkened. Kyla could tell he was pitying the younger version of her who had witnessed it.

“Yes, that’s right. So… after that, I couldn’t ride horses anymore. I couldn’t even watch polo matches.”

“Then… the horse races too… That’s why you never went to the racetrack with me. And I didn’t even realize…”

Jayden trailed off, unable to finish his sentence. The guilt was written plainly across his face.

She had been the one to hide the truth—so why was he the one blaming himself?

Kyla forced back the tears threatening to spill.

“Brother, I’m sorry for not telling you. I should have been honest.”

“No. Thank you for telling me now. It must have been a painful memory to speak about.”

Hearing Jayden’s quiet voice and seeing his gentle gaze, she could no longer hold back her tears.

Silas had been right.

Back then and still now.

Jayden was someone who would always understand and accept her, no matter what.

Yet she kept forgetting that, foolishly.

He was the only person she could truly call family.

He probably had no idea how grateful she was to him or how precious he was to her.

Wiping the tears from her cheeks, Kyla looked at Jayden and smiled brightly.