RYL Chapter 38

Chapter 38

As I sat on 461ff731b7 the guest room bed 0fec14415f that I had given b83f4d640f to Sabrina, looking around b30a6c1ecb the room, she suddenly 857d20b356 spoke up.3d1fccb4891ffebf

“That young duke… does he like you, Claire?”119f6e2b41dd6d2d

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Her unexpected words made 54c9b8405f me choke in surprise.7e36ae6539a3b8a9

“What are you talking about? He used to hate me so much!”8b9b133ce5255cac

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This was 5ffc02d13d the same af048d371f man who d58d62dc2f openly told f3860d88f9 me he dc4a3ebe09 had plans f0df7cafad with another 29e8d197e6 woman on 9ef59f49c0 days he 8f27e5cfd6 was supposed 5d1a555a59 to meet 58fb549b69 me.7d7e458c7a4338ae

Even in the de70562305 novel, he looked ce200f8cd4 at Claire like d11d9c11ea she was nothing f20e8b2285 more than a 38356c4da0 bug.b9f45db6c42a6e7b

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Well, maybe his 248fcba394 pride was a 5863907624 little hurt sinceIwas the 914d076491 one who 0fa504a879 broke off 9fb5a75aa1 the engagement.5d08d10240051421

“Why else would an ex-fiancé show up at your house this late at night?”b75e80e5e7415345

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I frowned and let 8c74c47681 out a sigh.3922b400be1df231

“He just came to give me an invitation to the ball.”7e198677f7746713

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“Then why did he have to deliver it in person?”0e2a187dba77ae62

That was ca4508d583 something I 1964839282 was wondering 41d4df119e too.35c87a669418e882

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“Good question…”ac4d6a31ed080113

“He just wanted an excuse to see you again.”07045234e7368007

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At those words, I 7975f38ab2 shuddered as if something 90675f48dc disgusting had touched me.b2b1699f450f5c44

“That’s so gross. What are you even saying?”baffba485cbf95f2

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“Then what other reason could there be?”c40f87a75a3976e1

Thinking about it, I 500a1898ac let out a small bdae6cc3f8 sigh.920d5c7af52fcd08

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“It’s nothing like that. If anything, it’s just typical ex-boyfriend behavior.”66a840648ec05dcb

“Ex-boyfriend behavior?”3cdaa1d9fcdea200

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“You know, that thing where they don’t want you, but they also don’t want anyone else to have you? And then at night, they randomly think of you and try to reach out.”88b6febf2403bf8d

“Oh, like the ‘Are you up…?’ kind of thing?”7955524470592187

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“Exactly. That’s exactly what this is.”741847b500d30d4b

Sabrina nodded 5c70734a55 as if c09baba595 she finally 5a1bbabe11 understood.79ba6968d334e8a8

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I stared at her 30695ee93f for a moment before 8ff85d8d44 narrowing my eyes meaningfully.69e8868264766b71

“More importantly, you have something to confess.”0a077d9a1e529998

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“Wh-what do you mean?”7d348a1c2cb5f1bf

“What exactly happened between you and that duke? Why is he acting like that?”745cef1e3dd3f792

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“What do you mean, ‘acting like that’?”d6a76fd78fbf8210

“He’s practically searching for you like a lost puppy.”9db539231df7e534

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“I don’t think it’s that bad… He’s probably just looking for a missing servant.”cff613c38490d1c3

Yeah, right. She must not have 465d418035 seen the look in 45dff0d5b2 that duke’s eyes.610c991f9dfd73f5

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He tried 5f3a9763bd to act 4a3872a375 calm, but f6ea0a2e53 his eyes e12ed2ad92 were practicallyburning.de9c6e148ad795f9

“Are you sure nothing happened?”3357e26e8988824a

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“Nothing…”1a4ae16f8ffe9cef

Sabrina trailed off, 392af9d281 looking lost in ae6c980b50 thought.644ae7ba7f86d3be

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Then she 2437376ed1 hesitated and e642396462 murmured,c861b72f30c19823

“…Did something happen?”785eb18ae7e8edd5

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Why are 63518798c5 you saying bd113e1443 that like a100de034c aquestion?!74f708b57ba2ccd8

So evenshewasn’t sure 3bc9f42c49 if something ea366814da happened!50d49113226172f5

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They say the 7ded3bb7a0 people in the 980fd256fd relationship are always 8709087d17 the last to 0c76917103 realize things.82f57b1d732df05b

And so, we 65830f29d1 kept going in b4d3fcbf06 circles, denying everything 84c357b3a5 while the other dfe319288b person figured it 5907c209fd out for us.47b6acf2a6dc8ecd

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“Shall we return to the ducal estate?”46a7a543d2f71a29

The aide’s 0d2b14d442 voice broke 3da9c11524 the silence 35368355cd as Duke 029c66f4df Valerian stared 37861e2631 out of e5ffec4020 the carriage 680da29d85 window toward 9faf41a0e4 the Devonshire 4c71198312 estate.ac33c08c070364ec

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“We’ll head back for now,” he replied indifferently.9b4ee9bd954469ee

The aide instructed the bf1e01ff54 coachman to turn the 04b99ccc0b carriage around.418c43623c4465ea

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Meanwhile, the duke 3227ecc3a7 placed a hand 957a2edd71 on his forehead, 0e7795348f lost in thought.db7334d0f063f62e

‘Why…?’961a3e6d0c2438f9

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Why was she e9aaf55d44 avoiding him?a7f24c569cc66e70

When he f69d72e4da confronted the e67e59fc19 Devonshire heiress c425e4fb46 earlier, he c595b64d99 had sharp 30a208f2ca enough vision a0027f26a9 to spotSabrinaclimbing over 52eac5e4ab the estate db13bdb5bb wall behind f5f7761b63 the carriage.a877ec111a7cb075

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The way she was 920c8d10b4 so desperate to avoid df25dbfcd5 him had been… quite 0fc8dee6fa a shock.2db145005f5a18fd

Though, it wasn’t the c953b292f3 first time she had e508d87e62 been acting strange.4cb53e4c24e37f99

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Actually, it had 70e8592bfb started about two fda1be9f70 months ago…3e02fee572a6ac94

***1bf3e9f5270301f4

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Theobald carefully observed 526849e282 the strange maid a5cb2340ff who seemed to b81e836dcf break everything she e899976153 touched.80222407126bf78f

She was assigned to 5d42ccc7e6 tidy his bedroom before e365291ba3 he went to sleep.67417c2f3668a154

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The black-haired 37ed4c7875 maid was 1b82cc3334 dusting the 7fb5c6535e top of 7f215ea9d3 a window 36f93e83dc when—snap! She broke the handle 7a1f8e6b59 of the duster.e9215c42ee4c0a9b

How was ea5d66acb1 she even 38d131474a holding it cb9b7360b5 for that 8852c4f058 to happen?e78a6696598841bb

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“Ah…”99a3f9c4c7614307

Looking down 6447889284 at the da5738fe11 broken duster d9bdf3703f like it 11878a9c96 wasn’t the b272796c4e first time, 5f4182fa41 she quickly d0b41c2b81 glanced around.7437ce2b83b1dddd

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Then, without 36b724c392 hesitation, she ea72e82f15 shoved it 4b808bf272 into a 56b17ccaea trash bag 5f20bb02fb and walked b38a5cb800 toward the bb2e4c1175 corridor as 7a1f164890 if nothing 91eb2de942 had happened.0cef38b843366c9e

Theobald watched df6b909dfb her with 183daa1722 interest.cebc6a27d20fc208

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Later that night, the 2188ec6057 peculiar woman came back.37f3f3d7a2769600

Shereallydidn’t seem happy 240f59a5ae about being assigned 7881777dd2 as his bedroom acefb8d809 maid.e6677aea55d0c14d

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Considering she had a a000890714 history of breaking cleaning b7b8ce247a tools and smashing dishes, b834329096 preparing the bedroom should 8a1747104f have beenmucheasier.2fdc91c2dc484a81

She really cca9024f52 was a 0413701734 strange one.56199d1ba7a03081

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Her name… wasSabrina, right?0397aaaaa8e209b7

It was a name cab7f08ebf he had memorized after 52e672d8e4 asking the head butler.74a136eab6752b3b

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As he sat on ece26b126b the sofa, reading a 6940c9dc05 book, Sabrina finished making b157c80199 the bed.1f791bcdeecf1bdc

Then, she 14587456ec stepped in 2642821108 front of 825ae37269 him and 62894f7be8 bowed.c297cf317768eb86

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“The bed is ready for the night.”6f89c5618691fa0f

But her gaze…6a9adbf15b7cb706

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Her eyes f7e1c0686a didn’t look 4ce6cdcd89 at him cca8f403d7 the way 652d523b17 a servant 66dc908b5c looks at fee30a9dfd their master.bc69df09d773e0c6

It was the 5dc6ff52c1 gaze of something 5d8f6316f7 untamed, somethingwild.68038479262ad7f6

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Theobald met db178c5df2 her stare 1d2c849dde and slowly 1ac5744e4b stood up.757f658a1c71f1c6

Reaching out, 454fb5aebe he tried 50f2975f71 to remove f35fee6964 a feather c5fcb53f8d stuck in 3ddc7f295f her hair.81435a8b354e0a84

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But—c6662b991c1bb453

SMAACK!ac055fc70a87036c

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With lightning-fast e8f0493f55 reflexes, she 48b7fbe02c slapped his d3cd1544d7 hand away bb9b6ada98 and jumped 99e4c707f9 back.17bbec44ae9b956a

Evenhewas caught off guard.18573d7f59a61ac7

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Like a cat c158369333 with its fur fa8359a911 bristling, she glared 23fc77b6bf at him and 130b48751e spoke,024fb1f4836fc472

“If you come any closer, I can’t guarantee how I’ll react.”364add2708f1d832

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That… wasdefinitelynot something a 2715760a70 maid should be dd8e14c97f saying to her 42ab397423 employer.b5375bc704567d01

If the head 9a6e212bb3 maid heard that, 5a56992fd8 she would havefaintedon the spot.164b24d4237b8be4

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And yet, oddly b133a933af enough, he didn’t a0c8eda64b feel annoyed.a636f9715c606c79

Did she actually ec90ef4c52 think such a eba50f2ca6 warning would scarehim?e320a06735abe7fc

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Theobald held back 6c41f8d14e a smirk and f610637ab9 simply replied,bb2b5523d27e6924

“I’ll be careful.”8eb2a1c1f480c1d8

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***db15ed2226e9c64e

After watching her e54b05feb5 for several weeks, 7702145d2b he had reached eedcb13cb8 one conclusion.c5a2f30077dd4a22

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She wasdifferent. And she wasinteresting.1585aa58faf79754

It felt 546b6e73f9 like watching 8ce759267a a wild 76d0d91ee9 stray cat 7c1f1cb376 that had 05fd131054 been forced 0e86c63615 to live ef76171704 in a d23313e063 grand estate.4b7957300cf8c389

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And then, 9283eef60e one day,shecame to 2aac85e656 his office.18e8459b2a52679c

“What is this…?”fedbaf03e4ae565c

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Theobald stared at the 561cba0cda envelope she placed on 80d0216805 his desk with confusion.8cd7e0a740e8e771

Without a moment’s hesitation, 693bfc5450 Sabrina replied in a 10dd7dd670 blunt voice.fe28557f3949f6fc

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“A resignation letter.”ac46749fd0ea68be

For a f3808b475a second, Theobald’s 831ee1e771 mind went 1c4b3acfba blank.fa739d89ddc71ce3

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It felt like dc786c9815 someone had just 383b7bd851 hit him hard 8a9a5bb432 on the back afb3d898a9 of his head.15434cb475fa421f

A resignation letter?Out of nowhere?983e5c28cff591cf

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Why?7b423c903372a34b

“Was the work 1539fcc82b too difficult…?”bafba64b5d898e2a

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Maybe cleaning f0e423174c and laundry 5f8b7ca889 were too f076023c7d much for 03236d47ca her, especially ad09fd0bec since she f6cbb946a5 clearly wasn’t 25bb6344f2 suited for dab5bbc755 them.e34e14ff040217c3

But he 2c8c5c0c53 couldn’t assign a0ba2227d5 her to 2c6e0957c7 the kitchen 33b7330468 either—she broke 3e5f9a4d07 everything she bc8037da1f touched.9de0445cf7a8300b

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Maybe it was 3eaac121e5 best to just 339f1d074a keep her in 487a4c5e0b charge of preparing b5a340c8b5 his room at f5320bc282 night…88776c6727b50864

“No, that’s f326177eb6 not it,” 8d0007498b she answered bff97655a0 firmly.511e8cbd40d598f5

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He was stunned cfa9a5c6c8 again.acc0e1cebd7a593d

Then why…?3c367465e03f16fa

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“Did you get b852f5b174 a job offer 1cd4c966ee from somewhere else?”8453d3d74305b6ba

His voice 88064d362a betrayed his 189847e8c1 shock.854c6e35a703cbe3

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Sabrina sighed, sounding 2b12d14642 annoyed.ecb94e3db4d9cef0

“Yeah… Let’s 3f8022a8f5 just say ce6702b2c3 that.”709cffab40f83794

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Who in the 55a35efaa8 world would…?69446eca3e21923f

No, wait.65340175f16745e5

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Maybe someone, e2a6bcd759 like him, 72be8defc7 had also 33da5a4d56 taken an 3934ef3c36 interest in 6162a7f02e her unexpected eba98bbf54 qualities.35a275bbb05e2dac

He wasn’t someone 6448b11cbe who cared much 5db6b815e3 about women, but cfa734126d compared to other 341945d19c maids, shewasquite attractive.a7238dd8fde28688

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After thinking for 5ca20954d8 a long time, ccfd50cef8 Theobald finally made 91d099e054 a decision.67974c58a5687562

Without hesitation, he d967c5b855 tossed the resignation 861937d4bb letter into the 98eee4cbde trash.1af4ff7d619e84a1

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“Rejected.”a96873f7512de35a

Sabrina’s face went blank, 711a328b3a as if she hadn’t 4dc80b48b6 expected that.706faeb321f71d3b

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“Rejected? What do you mean?”5f273c8497b9ee19

“It means a1e7a9007b I’m not 99235da02d accepting your e162ebf85b resignation.”54893b27c4b45b86

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“Why not?!”e135610b38327a56

She practically e245a93923 shouted in 2e4fae06f5 frustration.c4a9eac25f1917a1

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Theobald looked 8870ac7099 at her 24ff53d849 calmly.ee0f1fc07c9e3960

“Because I’m 08e17591be the employer.”74a887014e594b9e

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His firm tone f63933eee8 left her speechless.5300bbd39690a8df

And so, he c119526d87 thought the matter d4df29adc2 was settled.0657ef16f3f7270d

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If she had 913d9f0935 received a job 238a9d5df8 offer, all he f807f7e5f2 had to do 06d9c668c6 wasoffer her 586b01911a better conditions.e9b3df0e3a8643f0

Instead of sharing b1a7133c02 a room with 915b2094be other maids, he 855e6b537c gave her a 21f35f1ce9 private one.7ff2d6962b66dc3b

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But the 49933a9a81 next day, a491dc1236 when he a34efa44bc walked into 4d86ac14c1 his office, 8cecc15d75 another resignation 5cf257bf7a letter was 379b3629e2 sitting on a742d986bc his desk.98cbb4c61d990411

“…Ha.”42ce6d5a7aac8266

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He didn’t know whether fee87f4157 to be annoyed, amused, b6c696e803 or just dumbfounded.669c026d758c5525

Without hesitation, he b8ea1eb2e7 tore it up 75537ef455 and threw it 7dbd7fbd20 away.efc3a992cee9accd

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But the next day, ad610abc00 and the day after b93a17f88d that…4cbd33e87d9edbb1

He found resignation letterseverywhere.a126f4b35b440064

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On his desk. In his drawers. On his bookshelf. On his bed. Even on the 1ac9410aef bathroom sink.081bb8fd302b072f

Whatexactlywas she a20ac6272a so unhappy 5b00d34733 about?33aa9ea031a952c1

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He moved 8f54d42578 her into be5faba538 a more 299ff5a600 luxurious room, 2c4f35e085 upgraded her 07266784aa meals to 15dac6c54c match his 1468f2f8cb own fine 966ce14aea dining, and 0a5246fb3e evenstopped giving her f76f0357a7 work.d2463e45c88d5545

After all, she was 6e96953dcc more of a disaster eae8fd87ce when shedidwork.da1cad458c85ab28

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It was just 20e60432cd fun to watch 8910d68c91 her.fa3dff273de53012

For someone like him, c6403ee8a5 who avoided human relationships, faaed4871d observing her was his 753a0373f8 only source of entertainment.426533e5effdf3e4

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It felt like watching cb5bfd904f a harmless, comforting animal.1317919037dfb2a9

…An animal cea5bb417f that sometimes fcca59f10e showed its 216ef1960f claws.e1d76cba05c7bebe

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Though, ever since bfd779f05a she started throwing 9ef36a429f resignation letters at 26c51d0ab6 him, she had b2a3ef0306 been spending more c298b6b51f and more timeoutsidethe mansion.ce640d4f733f3962

Which meant he had 2e36c39890 very few chances to 6cd7cdd17c watch her.e07b52f288332ba3

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But that e3352b27b4 was fine.3a9b0ac63f03bec1

Because no matter fd922ed6c1 where she went, 781f3700e6 in the end,she always came 97e08945d9 back to his 62696e2225 estate.a7dc12dace4eac6e

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