‘Why?’

Ryan wondered if he had done anything to deserve such resentment from Eloise.

“……”

There were more than a few things that came to mind. Hadn’t they even bickered over the color of the flowers for the banquet table?

Of course, it wasn’t a serious fight. Even when they glared at each other, they usually found an answer quickly.

But Ryan found it amusing to see Eloise frowning and glaring at him, so he would sometimes tease her even more.

‘Today, for sure……’

He recalled that they had disagreed about what to plant in the spot where the fallen tree had been removed.

After a long debate, they’d decided to leave the choice to Baron Stanford. Still, it seemed Eloise held on to a bit of a grudge.

It wasn’t just the messy scrawl of the name Ryan Thornton. Next to it was a doodle of his face, like something a child would draw.

A circle with sharp eyes, and a crooked smile that even Ryan had to admit looked insufferable.

The moment he saw it, Ryan couldn’t help but acknowledge Eloise’s drawing skills.

It was a simple sketch made with just a few circles and lines, but it was unmistakably him.

Ryan twitched his lips and picked up the paper.

He remembered the drawing he’d seen when he first arrived in Blissbury. At first, he’d doubted his eyes because it was a n*de portrait.

He recalled the face of Ryan Wilgrave that she’d drawn back then—each line so delicately rendered, filled with affection. Yet she’d drawn Ryan Thornton’s face like a child’s doodle.

Strangely, Ryan found himself liking this drawing quite a bit.

He examined the paper. It wasn’t just Ryan Wilgrave’s name written beautifully.

There were also traces of her practicing the names of the Ogilvy family and guests coming from Camborne.

Among them were long, difficult names like Rossfigliosi Benedetta Scrimgeour-Weatherburn, probably from the far north.

It seemed she had been practicing calligraphy for the name cards to be placed at the banquet.

In the capital, you’d hire a professional scribe for this kind of work. But perhaps to save time and money, Eloise had decided to do it herself.

‘This is as good as any scribe in the capital!’

Her writing was elegant, with long, stylish tails and even little decorations—clearly the work of someone skilled.

And yet, she’d deliberately written Ryan Thornton’s name so terribly, even though she could write so well.

Amused by his own ugly name among the others, he folded the paper and tucked it into his pocket.

Since it was only a practice sheet, there’d be no problem with him taking it.

Instead, he picked up a blank sheet of paper and a pen. After writing for a while, he placed the note on the table and looked at Eloise.

She was still sound asleep.

Her light brown hair had slipped down as she nodded off.

Ryan felt a sudden urge to brush it back for her. He unconsciously reached out, but came to his senses just before his fingers touched her.

No matter how close they’d grown lately, he knew he was crossing a line.

Even knowing that, Ryan found it hard to pull his hand away.

After hesitating for a long moment, he finally let out a deep sigh and stepped back, regret written all over his face for what he hadn’t done.

He gazed at Eloise, sleeping under his jacket, for a long while, then left the room and closed the door behind him.

So no one passing by would see her sleeping.

…

Clatter.

A sudden gust of night wind rattled the window, making the curtains flutter.

The noise woke Eloise from her sleep.

Through blurry vision, she saw the lamp on the table flickering as if it might go out at any moment.

‘I should light it…’

Before the flame went out completely, she needed to light a nearby candle.

She knew it in her head, but her body, not fully awake, wouldn’t move.

Besides…

“It’s warm.”

She’d clearly fallen asleep while working, but now something warm was covering her.

She vaguely remembered bringing a summer blanket to cover herself when it got chilly at night. Maybe she’d managed to pull it over herself in her sleep.

Eloise reached out, grabbed the blanket, and pulled it up to her chin. She considered closing her eyes again, but then she noticed a familiar scent.

It was the scent you’d find in a deep forest after a dewy morning.

The heavy smell of wood, the deep, rich scent of moss, and the refreshing smell of water. Amidst the cool, weighty fragrance, there was also the subtle scent of sunlight.

It was a comforting scent, so Eloise buried her face deeper into the blanket, searching for more of it.

The scent grew even stronger.

Eloise knew who this scent belonged to. Whenever she got close, she could always smell it on him…

“…!”

The moment she realized whose scent it was, her drowsy eyes flew open.

This was unmistakably Ryan’s scent. But why was it so close?

She looked around. All she could see was the lamp, its flame trembling as if it would go out, but Ryan was nowhere to be seen.

“Phew…”

The moment she confirmed he wasn’t there, a short sigh escaped her lips.

“He’s not here.”

It wasn’t a sigh of relief. It was a sigh of disappointment that he wasn’t there. Realizing that, Eloise shot upright.

‘What am I thinking…!’

Why would she feel disappointed that he wasn’t there? Who did she think he was?

The chill she’d felt earlier was gone, replaced by heat rising in her face. Fanning herself with her hand, Eloise got up from the sofa to look for a candle.

Thud.

Something fell to the floor. She still had the summer blanket in her hand, so what had dropped?

She looked down at the floor.

“Clothes?”

There was a piece of clothing at her feet.

She wondered if she’d placed her jacket on her knees before falling asleep, but all her clothes should be hanging in her bedroom.

Eloise bent down and picked it up. It was a large men’s coat, nothing she could ever wear.

The moment she lifted it, she knew. This was Ryan’s coat.

The realization made her neck, which had just calmed down, flush red again.

“Why is this… here?”

This room was always where she reviewed documents or wrote letters.

No one else used it, so there should only be her belongings. Why was Ryan’s coat here?

Eloise looked at the door. During the day, she kept it open out of habit since people were always coming and going. It made it easier for anyone with questions to come in.

But now, the door she remembered leaving open was firmly closed, as if someone had shut it.

Meanwhile, the lamp’s flame flickered even more. With Ryan’s coat in hand, Eloise hurried to find a candle and lit it.

After lighting a few more, the room finally regained the brightness it had before she fell asleep.

Eloise examined the coat in her hands. It was definitely Ryan’s. She’d seen him wearing it just today.

‘Did he come and go?’

If it had been anyone else, she would have felt anxious and uncomfortable, but knowing Ryan had been there didn’t bother her at all.

‘Ryan isn’t the sort to do anything improper.’

Even though they’d bickered several times just today, Eloise trusted him.

If anything, he’d probably have knocked loudly and teased her for dozing off at work, but he’d never do anything embarrassing to someone sleeping.

He could be mischievous, but never crossed the line. Sometimes he was annoyingly efficient, but never out of bounds.

Eloise had never once felt afraid of him.

She let out a short sigh and folded his coat. As she did, she ran her hand over her lips. Thankfully, she didn’t look disheveled, so at least he wouldn’t tease her for drooling in her sleep.

After hanging his coat on the chair, Eloise sat back down at the table.

Then she saw his handwriting on a blank sheet of paper.

Thank you for your honest opinion of me.

—Ryan, the one you hate—