Chapter 31

“Um, are you really okay?”

Ruth asked carefully, eyeing Theo’s dark aura.

“Yeah.”

Summoned early in the morning, Ruth had been reviewing documents for hours, feeling like he was sitting on needles. Theo’s heavy face had only spoken three words all morning: “Yeah.” “No.” “Okay.”

“You didn’t fight, did you? It’s your honeymoon.”

Theo didn’t answer, but his twitching eyebrows made the situation clear.

‘They fought. Why fight on their honeymoon? They were so crazy about each other, couldn’t live without one another.’

“If you can, make up first.”

“I don’t want to.”

Theo’s petulant voice surprised Ruth. It was hard to believe that Theo, endlessly generous with Rosie, would say such a thing.

Theo’s eyebrows showed his discomfort. Rosie didn’t understand his feelings at all. No matter what, Theo hated leaving her alone on their honeymoon.

He never wanted to be apart from Rosie. He wanted to stay inside her, feel her all day, all trip long.

“Why are you angry?”

Ruth asked, and Theo chewed his lip. He couldn’t admit he was angry because Rosie wanted to meet her ex-boyfriend.

“No, but you two were getting along so well. What, is your wife’s ex on the ship or something?”

Ruth meant it as a joke, but Theo’s face twisted.

“Really? Wow, what a coincidence.”

“Coincidence?”

Theo glared fiercely at Ruth.

“No, uh, more like accident? Accident is better.”

Theo irritably flipped through the papers.

“You’re married, so what’s the problem? She’s your wife now. One of the five got caught, huh. Who is it?”

Theo slammed his papers on the table and answered in an annoyed voice.

“Stefan Allred.”

“Oh.”

Ruth sighed. The famous Stefan Allred.

He remembered because Theo’s mood had been so bad when Rosie dated Stefan, Ruth had suffered a lot.

“Loranta’s performance is today, right? Try winning her favor with that. You worked really hard to get those tickets.”

D*mn Loranta. D*mn Stefan.

Theo wiped his face. He knew Rosie loved Loranta. In fact, he knew better than anyone what she liked. When he heard there would be a show on the ship, he used all his connections to get tickets.

“That bastard asked her to go with him.”

“And you just backed down? You got tickets.”

“He knows Loranta’s manager, so he can get front-row seats.”

“Still. If your wife knew, she’d give up the front row and go with you.”

“Maybe.”

Theo looked up at the ceiling.

“I was going to tell her after breakfast. I have tickets too, so let’s go together, not with Stefan. If I’d calmed my anger, I could have said it.”

Ruth clicked his tongue.

“Why are you like this? You’ve got the face, the body, you’re inheriting the Dukedom. You’re tough with everyone but your wife.”

Theo turned to look out the window. The sun was setting. The show would start soon.

After thinking for a moment, he stood up, grabbed his jacket, and left.

* * *

Stefan greeted Rosie brightly.

“Rosie! Over here.”

She smiled awkwardly and walked toward him. She’d looked forward to the Loranta show, but felt no excitement.

“What about the Young Master?”

“Oh, um… He had urgent business.”

Stefan accepted her words with a bright face.

“I see. He must be busy. This trip is for business, right?”

She nodded quietly.

“Anytime you want to talk, let me know. There’s plenty to see on the ship.”

Stefan spoke kindly. Was he really doing this out of selfishness? Rosie watched him for a moment, then lowered her gaze.

‘I want to see things with Theo.’

She’d agreed to combine honeymoon and business for this trip.

‘Maybe saying he left me alone was too much?’

Her mood sank as much as Theo’s gray eyes had.

“Let’s go to our seats.”

Stefan smiled and took Rosie’s hand. She quickly shook it off.

“Ah… I’m sorry. I didn’t think.”

His face flushed, and he covered his mouth with his reddened hand.

“I don’t want you to misunderstand. I have no lingering feelings for you, Stefan.”

His face quickly fell.

“I know.”

“I’m married to Theo.”

“I know that, too. But…”

Stefan hesitated.

“I worked hard to become someone worthy of you, Rosie. Even more than the Young Master. I thought I’d come find you after this trip. If I’d known you’d marry him, I would’ve come sooner…”

Would her feelings have changed if he’d come sooner? Rosie shook her head.

Stefan was a good person. Kind and gentle. Many women admired his handsome face and innocent eyes.

When he broke up with her, how did she feel? If she’d been really hurt, she would have recognized him right away. No need to recall faded memories.

Rosie smiled at him.

“Stefan, you’re a good man. You’ll find someone even better than me, I promise.”

Stefan managed a sad smile at her bright words.

“The show will start soon. Please take your seats.”

The usher called out.

Rosie naturally looked toward the entrance. Was Theo really not coming?

She kept checking the door, then stood up as if deciding something.

“Rosie?”

“Sorry, Stefan. I think I’ll watch the show alone.”

* * *

“Sorry, admission is closed.”

The usher blocked the door.

Sweat dripped from Theo’s forehead. He’d run at full speed, but the door was already locked.

It didn’t matter that he was the Young Master of the Empire. Loranta didn’t allow interruptions at her shows.

“D*mn.”

Theo wiped his sweaty hair and walked out to the front deck.

The cool breeze over the sea cooled his sweat.

Thinking of Rosie sitting next to Stefan made his fists clench.

He wanted to see Rosie’s eyes light up at Loranta’s show. Her seat was always beside him.

“Stupid.”

Theo sighed deeply, leaning on the railing. The sky was already red from the early sunset.

He stayed there for a while. He needed to clear his head.

‘I was too desperate.’

He knew he shouldn’t, but when it came to Rosie, he couldn’t control himself.

“Ha.”

He sighed and dropped his head between his arms.

“Theo?”

His brow furrowed. The voice in the wind sounded like a hallucination. The sound of heels on the wooden deck was clear.

Theo slowly lifted his head.

“There you are.”

Rosie stood in front of him, smiling brightly.

“I went to the office, but only Ruth was there. He said you’d gone to the show, but you weren’t there. I searched everywhere.”

The deck lights turned on one by one above her. Rosie’s bright blonde hair sparkled under the lights. Her pale blue dress made her skin look even paler, like a fairy just out of the water.

Could she be the sea spirit that lures people? Or a vision?

He just stared, frozen, leaning on the railing.

Rosie’s smile slowly faded as he kept staring.

Her lips dropped, and she looked a bit awkward.

“Are you still angry?”

Finally, Theo moved toward her. He embraced her gently as always.

She was warm. Not a vision. Rosie was really in front of him.

“No.”

He let go and met her eyes.

“Sorry, Rosie. I was narrow-minded. I just hated seeing you look at someone else, even for a moment.”

She smiled and shook her head.

“No, it was my fault. I didn’t realize how important it was.”

She cupped his face with her hand. Her clear blue eyes held only him.

“I thought nothing would matter since I had no feelings for Stefan. Sorry for not understanding your heart.”

Theo kissed her palm, then pulled her closer.

“I love you, Theo. You’re the only one for me.”

The sky was dark, stars shining. Rosie, brighter than any star, whispered her love.

Theo’s lips curved into a smooth smile.

“Me too.”

He lowered his head and softly kissed her.

After their short kiss, they looked at each other and laughed.

“What about missing the show?”

Her heart, heavy from searching for him, beat clearly again as soon as she found him.

“It doesn’t matter. I’d rather be with you.”

Theo’s smile brightened as Rosie spoke.

He glanced away, shy for once, and cleared his throat.

“I have tickets. Not front row, but…”

Rosie smiled brightly and nodded.

“That’s wonderful! I wanted to see it with you. It’s not fun without you.”

His smile grew even deeper. He leaned in and whispered again.

“Me too.”

‘Ahead of us, there’ll be as many things as stars in the sky, but it’s okay. Because we’re together.’

As soon as their lips parted, Theo lifted Rosie in his arms.

“Let’s make the most of our honeymoon.”

Rosie laughed and hugged his neck tightly.

“Good. Anywhere, as long as it’s with you.”

FIN