Chapter 70

When she first heard the news of her pregnancy, thoughts she couldn’t dare voice crossed her mind, but they didn’t linger long.

Harriet wanted to have the child.

Whether it was due to instinct or maternal love, a strong desire enveloped her. Perhaps her biological mother and Claire also decided to have their children because of this desire, regardless of their circumstances.

“Child… why did you come to me?”

Harriet, caressing her lower abdomen with both hands, whispered to the child inside her.

“It might be tough for a while… But I promise to protect you, since you came to me.”

The hesitation was brief. Acknowledging the child’s existence and speaking to it, her murmurs became a promise. As Harriet closed her eyes and focused all her senses on her hands wrapped around her belly to feel the child, the carriage slowly stopped in front of the mansion’s entrance.

The moment the carriage door opened, Harriet almost stepped back.

“You’re later than expected, Coco.”

“…Lennox.”

“Did Claire Millet hold you up for long?”

Lennox, standing at the door, extended his hand to her, as if he had been waiting.

How long has he been waiting? 

Her heart sank, and a chill ran down her spine. Harriet forced a smile.

“Oh, yes… She was whining about feeling heavy and wanting to eat something. I was late because I listened to her.”

“Why did you listen to that until this hour?”

Lennox frowned in disapproval, took her hand, and wrapped his other arm around her slender shoulders to help her out of the carriage. Harriet, almost buried in his broad chest, followed him inside.

Handling her as if she were a fragile gem, Lennox carefully led Harriet to the bedroom and lightly clasped her hands with one of his.

“Your hands feel a bit cold. Are you unwell?”

“I’m not unwell. You know, I’m always like this. It’s just how I am.”

Harriet pulled her hand away and approached the dressing table as naturally as possible, sitting on the chair in front of it. She maintained a composed expression as she removed her earrings and necklace, when a gentle touch encircled her waist.

“Coco.”

Simultaneously, a familiar musk scent wafted into her nose. His sharp jawline touched her shoulder.

“I waited because I missed you.”

When had he pulled up a chair? 

Sitting behind her and embracing her from behind, Lennox inhaled deeply as if savoring her scent.

“Why? I told you in advance where I was going.”

It felt strange. It was just a simple action, yet her entire body stiffened, unable to move. Her heart pounded out of rhythm. Harriet quietly raised her head and looked at Lennox through the mirror.

His long eyelashes were densely packed, his inscrutable gray eyes like those of a wolf, his straight nose without a curve, and his lips, red for a man, seemed seductive.

…Yes. It’s no wonder I was captivated by such a bewitching face. It’s only natural that my heart is racing now; it’s nothing.

Harriet continued to self-hypnotize, as if brainwashing herself.

Meanwhile, Lennox, like a large dog seeking affection from its owner, rubbed his cheek against hers and let out a low sigh, as if releasing a held breath.

“You should have informed me if you were going to be this late.”

“…I meant to, but I forgot. Sorry. I thought you were busy too.”

“The busy work is done. Uncle has gone down to the estate, and the elders who lost their support will naturally lose power.”

At the change of topic, Harriet immediately asked with a brightened face,

“How do you plan to reward those who sided with you?”

“Well, I haven’t decided on the specifics yet…”

Lennox paused as if thinking, then calmly replied,

“I suppose I’ll have to throw them a piece of the prey they hunted and tore apart.”

Even though his tone was plain, it somehow made the hairs on her neck stand on end. Unknowingly, Harriet bit her lip. It felt cruel, even though it was a simple metaphor.

The man sitting behind her, embracing her as if claiming a right, was a predator in the guise of a calm and perfect gentleman.

She couldn’t even imagine what other sinister and dark schemes were hidden behind him, leaving her feeling desolate.

Feeling a sense of crisis, her focus naturally turned to her belly. Though she couldn’t fully grasp it yet, there was an unfamiliar life growing inside her.

The child.

What if Lennox discovered the child’s existence?

He would never stand idly by. Though she hadn’t realized it before, Lennox Diorne was a man with an abnormally strong possessive desire.

“That dress seems to suit you better than this one.”

“This one? Really?”

“Of course. And these shoes seem to fit you best.”

“…They seem okay.”

“I want to see you dressed and adorned from head to toe in things I picked.”

Even amidst the chaos of various events following their wedding, there were trivial things that lingered in her memory.

When choosing clothes and accessories for an event with foreign guests, he subtly guided her choices by complimenting each item, and how he naturally intervened whenever she spoke to another man at social gatherings.

“It seems you’ve had too much to drink, darling.”

“Huh? I haven’t…”

“It looks like you’ve had more than usual. Please excuse us.”

At the time, she dismissed it as overprotection, but looking back now, it was all unsettling.

Every single thing.

As time went by, Harriet gradually lost her sense of self. She dressed and adorned herself entirely as he desired. The men she spoke to at banquets never approached or spoke to her again.

If even this was part of his plan to keep everything in his grasp…

Suddenly, a realization pierced her heart, making her feel dizzy.

“Harriet?”

Noticing something amiss in her grip on the dressing table, Lennox checked on her.

“Are you okay? You really don’t look well today.”

“……I feel a bit dizzy. It seems my anemia, which had been dormant for a while, is acting up again.”

To hide her agitation, it was better to pretend to be unwell. Reluctantly nodding, Harriet freed herself from his grasp and stood up quickly.

“I’ll just wash up and go to bed. I’ve lost my appetite.”

“Okay. I’ll have it prepared.”

Nodding, Lennox rang the bell, and a maid quickly came up. While he instructed the maid to prepare a bath, Harriet quietly approached the door.

“I’ll catch up on some work that’s been piling up until it’s ready.”

“Coco.”

Lennox quickly gestured for the maid to leave through the open door and grabbed her arm.

“Didn’t you hear me?”

Frustrated by his persistent touch, Harriet shook off his hand.

“I’m going to work. I’m not in the mood…”

“Just sit still.”

Lennox whispered in a low voice, eventually seating Harriet on the couch.

Before she could ask what he was doing, a sensation on her nape made her sigh involuntarily.

“Ah…”

“When you look at documents all day, your neck and shoulder muscles tend to get tense.”

Lennox began to press her neck muscles with his thumb and forefinger, as if massaging them, and then started to knead her shoulders gently.

Unknowingly, Harriet surrendered her body to his touch. Wherever his large hands touched, her tense muscles and nerves relaxed. As she momentarily forgot her resistance and enjoyed the massage,

“Coco. About what we talked about last time.”

“What conversation?”

“The child.”

At the single word, her mind, which had been drifting as if someone had poured cold water over her head, snapped back to focus. Feeling her shoulders tense again, Harriet raised her head.

“Why? Do you want one that badly?”

Fortunately, her voice didn’t tremble as it came out. Lennox, looking down at her with an unreadable gaze, shook his head.

“It’s not that…….”

“Not that?”

“I’m regretting bringing it up.”

“……”

“Aaron said so. That it’s not right to bring up such a thing to a wife who’s been married for less than a year. That the one who’d be most concerned is you.”

It was an unexpected statement. Instead of answering, Harriet slowly nodded. Lennox, who had stopped the massage and kissed her shoulder with a meltingly tender voice, whispered,

“A child will come naturally someday. It’s better not to worry prematurely and wait anxiously.”

“…Yes.”

After a long pause, Harriet finally replied, avoiding his gaze.

Inexplicably, a faint sense of guilt brushed her heart. It would have been better if he had insisted on having a child urgently, citing the heir issue or age. It would have been better if he had pressured her, albeit indirectly.

Such respect and concession were not what she had thought of Lennox Diorne. This man should always be a beast laying a trap. He should be terribly selfish, possessive, and controlling, needing everything to be his way.

“Coco?”

Perhaps sensing something amiss in the prolonged silence, Lennox called her. Forcing a smile to hide her agitation, Harriet turned around and cupped his cheek with one hand.

“I don’t dislike children. Not particularly.”

“Really?”

“Yes. If it’s our child, it would surely be beautiful.”

“……”

“If one is born later, what should we name them?”

Harriet gestured beside her. Smiling, Lennox kissed her hand and sat beside her.

“I don’t know about a boy’s name. But I have a name in mind for a girl.”

“A name in mind?”

Curious, Harriet tilted her head, and he whispered in her ear as if sharing a secret.

“Rosemary.”

Her biological mother’s name, buried in a shabby cemetery. At the unexpected mention of the name, an invisible wave engulfed Harriet.

“Why that name?”

Her voice involuntarily trembled. After a pause, Lennox answered quietly,

“It feels like it has to be that name.”

“Why…?”

“Because then there would be something to remember your biological mother by.”

His large hand stroked Harriet’s cheek and tucked her side hair behind her ear.

“Even though she didn’t raise you herself, she was someone who protected you. I think she deserves that much recognition.”

“…”

“Unless you dislike it…”

“No.”

Before Lennox, who interpreted her fading expression as refusal, could continue, Harriet shook her head.

“It’s nice. Rosemary…”

She barely resisted the urge to touch her belly and murmured,

“That name is good. It’s a bit common, but still, I like it.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

Lennox kissed her forehead. As an intimate atmosphere lingered between them, a knock on the door interrupted.

“The bath is ready.”