Chapter 5

To explain the tangled relationship between Harriet Coco Vanetti and Lennox Diorne, one would have to go back a long way, to about ten years ago when Harriet was 14 and Lennox was 12.

To her, Lennox Diorne was initially just a friend of her brother, who looked like a doll, nothing more, nothing less. However, as it is human nature to love beautiful things, Harriet was quite kind and gentle to her brother’s pretty friend.

“So, you’re Lennox Diorne. The famous Young Master.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“Come visit often. Aaron talks about you quite a bit.”

At that time, or even then, Lennox Diorne was a perfect young boy in anyone’s eyes. He was very polite to Harriet, his friend’s sister, and even at a young age, he knew how to behave like a gentleman, making him an impeccable nobleman.

The relationship between the two, which maintained neither too close nor too distant, began to change from one day.

“Sister, can I call you by your name?”

“…Name?”

“Yes. I want to call you by your name. You’re Aaron’s sister, but not mine.”

“Well… Sure.”

Nodding absentmindedly was the beginning of the problem. Lennox slowly closed the distance with Harriet, who had let her guard down, and at the same time, the way he addressed her gradually became more familiar.

“Sister.”

“Harriet.”

“Coco.”

At first, Lennox Diorne seemed like an obedient purebred dog, but his true nature was that of an insolent and dark-hearted wolf.

“I told you not to call me Coco.”

“Why not?”

“It sounds like a dog’s name when you say it.”

“Do you feel like obeying when you see me?”

“…Have you ever been beaten until you faint with a fan?”

Perfect, a model of a nobleman, an example for all young men.

Unlike his public face, filled with such grand descriptions, Harriet gradually learned things about Lennox that even his best friend Aaron didn’t know, despite not wanting to.

While contemplating how to give the increasingly irritating fellow a piece of her mind, ‘that incident’ finally happened.

It was the night of her wedding three years ago. The day when her youngest sister and her fiancé eloped, leaving her at the altar. The terrible day that still occasionally appeared in her nightmares.

That day, in a drunken stupor, she seduced a man at a masquerade ball in a fit of reckless abandon. They spent the night together… and when she woke up… that’s what happened.

Since that incident, Harriet had been extremely reluctant to see Lennox. Even when he returned home sporadically from studying abroad, she went to great lengths to avoid him. The awkward emotions did not fade with time and instead grew stronger.

The walk from the drawing room to the entrance hall, where the carriage awaited, felt like an eternity. As soon as she stepped outside the mansion, Harriet quickly withdrew her hand from his arm as if she had been waiting for the moment.

“Thank you for escorting me, Young Master. I’ll take my leave now.”

“Running away like that day?”

As she was about to descend the stairs with quick steps, his bombshell remark made her stumble.

“Ah!”

A large hand lightly caught her waist, preventing her fall. Her face was buried in his broad chest, accompanied by a faint musk scent. As if scalded, she jumped out of his embrace, and sharp eyes gleamed in the darkness.

“Explain yourself, Coco. You didn’t read a single one of my letters, nor did you reply.”

“How do you know whether I read them or not? And let go of me!”

Below, the coachman was waiting. Harriet, her face flushed red, desperately pushed against his chest. She could feel the hard muscles beneath his smooth suit. In the next moment, the hand that had held her arm as if it would never let go released her cleanly.

“I just stopped by to say hello today. Coco, there’s no need to run away like a rabbit who saw a wolf.”

“Who said I’m running away? That’s quite an exaggeration. I’m just heading home because I’m sleepy. Goodbye.”

Feeling a strange sense of emptiness, Harriet quickly nodded and descended the stairs. She felt persistent eyes on her until she climbed into the carriage with the coachman’s help. Harriet exerted all her effort not to meet that gaze. Her heart pounded wildly, and her face burned with heat.

She arrived home in a daze, unsure of how she got there. As she stepped out of the carriage and rang the bell, someone who had been waiting greeted her. A middle-aged woman with a cozy demeanor and a petite stature.

“I’m back, Ellen.”

“Welcome home. It was a rare family dinner, but you’re back early?”

“You know how suffocating it feels once I step into that mansion. It feels like I’m being strangled.”

“Oh, you’re exaggerating.”

The housekeeper, Ellen, took her coat with a laugh, but something in Harriet’s voice made her look up. Seeing Harriet’s complexion, Ellen’s face filled with concern.

“Did something happen? Your face…”

“Is it pale?”

“No, it’s bright red. You don’t have a fever, do you? Miss Yvonne didn’t mention anything.”

As Harriet stood speechless with embarrassment, warm hands touched her forehead. Ellen checked her temperature with her palm and tilted her head in confusion.

“It doesn’t seem like you have a fever. Should I contact the doctor just in case?”

“No, it’s fine. I’m just tired from everything that happened today. What about the bathwater?”

“Oh dear, I thought you’d come back later, so it’s not ready yet…”

“It’s fine. I’ll just wash with cold water. That might actually be better right now.”

Cutting off Ellen, Harriet immediately headed upstairs to the bathroom. As Harriet shed her clothes like a snake shedding its skin, Ellen hurriedly followed, picking up her clothes.

“I keep telling you not to undress outside like that. You still haven’t fixed that habit from when you were young.”

“It’s not outside; it’s my house. Besides, it’s only you and me here, Ellen. What’s the big deal?”

“What can I say, really.”

Ellen shook her head and sighed deeply. Outside, Harriet was a femme fatale, a rare female entrepreneur, surrounded by all sorts of accolades, but at home, and especially to Ellen, who had been her nanny and was now her housekeeper, she was just a laid-back girl who secretly craved affection. When her mother was engrossed with her newborn brother, Harriet would quietly hold Ellen’s hand and ask to be held.

“Don’t ever do this outside.”

“Do you think I’d be crazy enough to do that?”

Whether she understood Ellen’s musings or not, Harriet, now in her underwear, boldly opened the bathroom door. She stopped Ellen, who was about to follow her in to help with the bath.

“Miss?”

“I don’t need help with the bath. It’s late, so you should go to bed, Ellen.”

“But…”

Harriet smiled and took an envelope out of her coat pocket, which Ellen was holding.

“Lily has a day off tomorrow and is coming to visit, right? Have a nice meal at a fancy restaurant.”

Before Ellen could refuse, Harriet firmly placed the envelope in her hand and shut the door. Ellen, standing in front of the closed door in surprise, opened the envelope. Seeing the amount, she turned the doorknob.

“This is too much! Miss, I can’t accept this money. I already get paid well enough, Miss!”

“Spend a night at a hotel tomorrow!”

Though she knocked, the reply from beyond the locked door was resolute. Soon, Ellen gave up and turned away.

* * *

The next day, even though it was a rare holiday, Harriet’s mood was at rock bottom. She woke up late and had her favorite fluffy pancakes with poached eggs and even ice cream for dessert, but she still felt strangely empty and hollow.

She might have known the cause of her restless mind since last night, but she deliberately avoided thinking about it.

“Where’s Ellen?”

Harriet, who had been scraping her empty plate with a fork, suddenly looked up. Startled by the unexpected question, the maid stammered a reply.

“Uh, Mrs. Ellen is off today…”

“Oh, right. That’s true.”

Only then did Harriet remember last night’s memory of giving Ellen a generous envelope to have a nice meal with her daughter and spend a night at a hotel.

“She must have met her by now.”

Harriet absentmindedly brushed her messy hair back as she watched the maid pour her tea. The maid cautiously spoke to Harriet, who was stifling a yawn.

“Do you have any plans today, Miss?”

“Not really.”

Originally, she had planned to scold Aaron for keeping Lennox Diorne’s return a secret, but when she woke up in the morning, she felt too lazy to bother. Even if she went to scold him, she knew that cunning fellow would either be hiding in the mansion or have locked himself up in his villa, refusing to come out.

There was no need to go through all that trouble just to vent her anger. She decided it was best to consider it as having been bitten by a mad dog while walking down the street. If she avoided him long enough, he’d eventually lose interest.

To Harriet, Lennox Diorne was just that kind of presence. Her brother’s close friend and someone she had known since childhood, an ambiguous relationship. Regardless of their two-year age difference, he was an awkward person to be romantically involved with.

“Should I meet Yvonne?”

“Oh, actually, a messenger boy came early this morning and left this.”

Startled by the name she mumbled, the maid widened her eyes and pulled out a small telegram from her pocket, handing it over.

“What is this?”

Harriet opened the telegram after breaking the wax seal and immediately frowned.

“What does it say?”

“What kind of secretary is this?”

Shrugging her shoulders, Harriet showed the maid the telegram instead of answering. The neatly folded parchment had tidy and resolute handwriting.

[Director, 

I will use the vacation you gave me with last year’s bonus starting today for a week. Please don’t ask where I’m going. See you in a week. 

Yours sincerely, Yvonne, your most loyal secretary and subordinate.]

“Oh my.”

“It must be a man, right? Poor Aaron. He’ll be quite upset to find out Yvonne used him to enjoy a vacation with another man.”

Despite her words, Harriet’s expression was full of smiles. The contrast was somewhat chilling. The maid coughed awkwardly and averted her gaze. Simultaneously, Harriet stood up abruptly.

“Ah, I’ve decided. What I’m going to do today.”

“Today?”

“I can’t just sit around listening to Yvonne bragging in a week.”

With no boyfriend at the moment and an annoying man suddenly returning to irritate her, there was nothing better to distract her than a new lover. Preferably someone handsome, tall, and kind!

Having made up her mind, Harriet sat down at her vanity. The quick-witted maid promptly brought several dresses.