Theodore was sitting up, leaning against the bedpost.
He had also taken a shower, so his silver hair was a little damp, and he had also changed into comfortable clothes and was wearing a nightgown over it.
(M.M.: Picture of the abaya at the end of the chapter)
When Annette's eyes met his in the dark room, she felt as if a bucket of ice water had suddenly been poured on her head, so her sleepy mind was completely awakened and she opened her eyes wide.
“Didn't you go to your room?”
“The maid told me that you would be skipping dinner, so I thought it would be better if you had something simple to eat with me in your room instead of going to the dining room alone.”
On the table were two portions of food and Annette's share of routine medications.
“Oh… I had no idea about this.”
Annette lifted her heavy body again and straightened her back.
Seeing her standing, Theodore turned his face away from her, then took off his cloak and wrapped it around her body.
Theodore helped Annette put on the cloak that was much larger than her size while looking in the other direction, so Annette felt curious about the reason for his strange behavior and her gaze fell to her chest.
Her thin dress was soaked in water, so it stuck to her body, exposing her soft, bare skin.
Annette felt as if her cheeks were starting to burn with embarrassment.
She felt embarrassed, so she immediately threw herself on the bed and hid her face under the pillow.
Annette felt that her current appearance, which resembled a cat lying on its stomach while hiding its head, was more embarrassing than having her body exposed to a man considered her legal husband.
“It would be best for you to go and eat your meal in your room, Your Highness.
I want to sleep now.”
"I'll eat here with you.
But in order to do that, we have to deal with that wet hair first, right?"
“Do you want to dry my hair, Your Highness?”
“I'm not good at doing that kind of kindness.”
Theodore suddenly pulled Annette up and placed her head on his lap.
"What are you doing now?"
“I can't dry your hair, but I can also get wet with you.”
Theodore's knees became wet with the water in Annette's wet hair.
Theodore could not dry her hair lovingly, nor was he a gentle husband who knew how to gently help her sleep, so he could only put her on his lap while he began to stroke her head as if trying to soothe a kitten.
Others might think his behavior was strange and suspicious, but it was the best thing a person who had never received any kind of care his entire life could do.
Theodore wanted to give Annette the comfort he had never received from anyone before, and he wanted to be by her side during her time of grief when no one else shared his sorrows, so of course he could only struggle clumsily and try everything in his power to be there for her in her weak moments.
Annette was the only one who felt a tenderness in his clumsy touches that could not even be called consoling.
Because after all, when she felt the warmth from his clumsy hand, she remembered that she was human too.
“This really surprised me, but... is your injury okay?”
“It's been a long time since I've been cured.”
Annette stared blankly at Theodore's waist.
Even though he told her that he was already healed, he didn't hate the worry Annette showed towards him for no reason.
Theodore's knees were wet with water because of Annette's hair, but he did not feel cold at all.
He would have liked to talk to her a little more.
So that day, the two exchanged meaningless words all night until Annette's hair dried and she went to sleep.
* * *
“Did you summon me, ma'am?”
“Ah, are you coming, Lisa?”
Annette, who was in her office, greeted Lisa with a warm smile.
Looks like something nice happened to her last night.
Beside her, Ernest was struggling with a pile of papers piled up like a mountain.
He had dark circles under his eyes and his cheeks were hollow and lifeless.
Within a few days, Ernest had become a completely different person than he had been when he had first come to the Flores Palace.
At that time, the maids made a fuss about where this handsome and charismatic man came from, but today Ernest was not even able to smile with his usual charming and gentle smile that had captured the maids' hearts due to his stress at work.
Unlike Lisa, who had nothing to do in the palace, Ernest was mistreated by Annette, who did not even allow him to rest.
“Can I treat this person?”
Lisa naturally approached Ernest and tried to examine him.
“Hahaha..
I look sick now?”
Ernest laughed awkwardly.
His laugh was painful and miserable to anyone who saw it.
Of course, it seemed that his mental health, not just his physical one, was deteriorating as well.
“He'll be fine with a few hours of sleep, so don't overdo it.”
The person who Annette said would get better after sleeping a few hours actually slept less than two hours a day.
Ernest did indeed have a health problem from a medical standpoint, but Lisa couldn't point it out when Annette said he was fine.
“You're very noisy, so go to your room and finish your work there.”
“How mean you are.
After all my hard work all night, can’t you treat me even a little bit better?”
“If you don’t shut up now, I will deduct your weekly salary.”
“I will go to my room and finish the rest of the work there.
Have a nice chat.”
Ernest jumped up and left the room hastily, as if he had not complained at all a few minutes ago.
Lisa was alone in the room with Annette while she waited for her instructions.
“I have a favor to ask of you.”
“Please talk to me comfortably, ma’am.”
Lisa somehow felt that Annette was different than usual today.
Although she lived as her maid, Annette did not make Lisa do any work in particular.
All Lisa did was hang out with Annette when she went outside the palace or chat with her from time to time.
She couldn't say it herself, but after Annette's health improved, Lisa felt that she had become useless.
But that didn't mean she could leave the Flores Palace.
Lisa kept her mouth shut, but she was fully aware of the danger she was in.
She had guessed her fate since the time she met Theodore at the villa.
Lisa knew many secrets about the Grand Duchess's health and some things about her marriage, which a simple nurse could not know.
So she knew she would be killed one day.
She knew so much about the Grand Duchess that it was only natural that they would try to keep her mouth shut in every way
Annette was a very good and kind person, but she was a noble after all, so Lisa couldn't feel completely comfortable with her.
Maybe today will be the day she dies...
As expected, Annette asked a question that Lisa had a hard time answering.
But Lisa did not worry about this anymore because she became convinced that this was the last day of her miserable life.
“Can you tell me about the accident you caused, Lisa?”
“If it was an accident I did, do you mean...?”
“I am asking you about the medical error that caused them to expel you from the hospital where you worked in the past.”
Lisa bit her lip.
Expelling her from the Flores Palace would be less cruel than killing her, but even so, she didn't want to say what happened in the past with her own words.
“As expected, this seems like a difficult story to tell.
I’m sorry to force you to bring up such a sensitive topic, but I would like to know every detail about this matter.”
“Don't say that, ma'am.
It's no big deal, but it's not an entertaining story either.”
After Lisa made up her mind, she told Annette the story behind why she was accused of causing a serious medical error.
“I originally wanted to be a doctor...however, it was difficult to achieve in reality, so I became a nurse instead.”
Lisa could not become a doctor because she was a woman.
Up until that point, this had been a normal thing for everyone to go through, so Annette didn't feel there was anything unusual in Lisa's story.
But the real problems started after Lisa became a nurse.
Lisa was well known even to doctors at other hospitals for her excellence in her profession and her great skills in treating her patients.
She didn't mean to be praised, but her talent went beyond the limits.
The doctors became uncomfortable when a lowly nurse became more popular than them.
And one day...
A hospital doctor caused a medical accident.
The patient died, and Lisa told her family the truth about the medications her doctor was using and that they were the cause of her death.
But then the hospital turned upside down and Lisa was fired after the manager blamed her for covering up the doctor's mistake.
Thus Lisa became a nurse who caused a medical accident, lost her job overnight and ended up in the villa with Annette.
Lisa said:
“The hospital director used his authority so I was not admitted to other hospitals either, and he also spread rumors that I was always causing trouble during my work.
So I had nowhere else to work as a nurse.”
Lisa's voice was drowned in sadness.
This story clearly reminded her of the things she wanted to forget from the past.
Lisa devoted herself to serving patients at the hospital, but was eventually fired without even receiving a letter of recommendation.
No matter how much she knocked on doors, no one would hire her.
In the last job she found after risking her life, she worked for a new woman named Annette.
Initially, Lisa sought to cure Annette because her life would be at stake if she could not be saved and the Grand Duke would kill her himself.
But ever since she saw Annette, Lisa had done her best because she was happy to be able to treat patients again.
At that time, Lisa gave up her life as a professional nurse and decided to sacrifice her future in order to bring Annette back to life.
Lisa may have become fond of working for Annette because she thought she would be her last patient for her entire career.
Lisa felt a lot of complicated emotions when she saw Annette slowly come back to life.
She wanted Annette to survive and live a very long life.
So even though she knew Theodore would kill her one day, she didn't escape the palace and stuck to her job as Annette's nurse.
Annette listened to Lisa's story quietly and nodded.
“As expected, Lisa is the right person for the job.”
"What?"
“I want to ask you something.
Are you planning to work in the hospital again?
In fact, I will take over the management of Favoritin Hospital, but I need someone I can trust to work there with me.
Lisa, you were originally a talented nurse, right?
After hearing your story, I feel that you have a great deal of management skills as well.
So I am wondering if you would consider working as the head nurse in the hospital, what do you think?”
Lisa's eyes widened in surprise and she covered her mouth with both hands.
I realized the meaning of Annette's words too late.
“Do...do you want me to be the head nurse?”
“Of course.
I think this will be a good opportunity for you, Lisa, to restore your lost reputation in society.
I purchased the hospital because it is essential for my future plans, but since I cannot entrust its management to anyone casually, I want you to do it personally.”
“I...really?
Do you mean me, Your Highness?”
Lisa barely caught her breath.
She thought she was going to die today, but instead she received an unexpected offer that would change her life forever.
“I'm touched by your story, Lisa.
To be honest, I was just going to ask you to spy on what's going on in the hospital and tell me everything that's going on behind my back, but still, I think it would be a good idea to hire a patient-minded person like you for this job.”
Annette smiled sweetly.
“As long as you fulfill my request, you can treat patients as you wish, Lisa.”
Lisa couldn't contain her surprise and hiccupped.
Annette pretended not to notice and continued with her suggestion.
“Can you work at Favoritin Hospital, Lisa?”
“I…I never thought I would be able to work as a nurse again in my life.”
“You saved my life when I was already dying, so Lisa is the greatest nurse in this world to me.”
The moment she saw Lisa she smiled
Annette's angelic nature, she wanted to do anything for her even if it meant sacrificing her life.
So in the end, Lisa accepted Annette's offer with tears of joy moistening her eyes.