“She carries herself very skillfully. Without much eloquence, but she knows how to charm people as if it were her gift.” - Edwin said, watching what was happening.
"This is weird?" - Genevieve was surprised.
“More than. You don’t know, Genevieve, but Adaline used to be completely invisible.”
“Lady Adaline? Unnoticed? - she asked with disbelief.
“She was not just next to Shane, but his fiancée. From a very young age."
“Oh...” was all Genevieve could say.
“Shane had an endless number of fans. The youngest Duke, a full member of the Senate, one of the twenty Masters of the Sword in the entire Empire... and at the same time filthy rich. Well, how can you not take a breath?”
“Well... yes...” Genevieve agreed reservedly.
“And he kept looking only at Adaline. He chased her like the sun. The rest of the girls, of course, were burning with envy. She was constantly bullied. Shane protected her secretly, so no one dared to go too far.”
Genevieve nodded. [It was like Shane. Even now he would hardly forgive those who hurt Adaline.]
“They were rumored to be in a 'bad relationship' but that didn't stop Shane from continuing to pursue her. It was exhausting to explain everything, and Adaline just pretended to be modest. She lived quietly, citing poor health. She attended only the obligatory balls and parties. Despite this, thanks to the influence of the Marquis Bertrand, she had a good reputation. But now...look at her."
Adaline entered the hall, holding Shane's arm. She smiled welcomingly, nodding easily in response to pleasantries. The young girls turned pink with embarrassment and immediately huddled in flocks around her.
Genevieve felt strangely excited.
It was like looking at myself five years ago.
[Like Edwin said, Adaline did not have any hypnotic eloquence. But she had a rare gift for capturing people’s weaknesses. When she looked kindly and spoke with soft warmth, the interlocutor began to believe that she really sympathized with him. At least I felt special.]
[It's...inevitable.]
Genevieve was living proof.
Edwin muttered quietly with slight fatigue:
“Yes, she openly seduces women...”
“Aren’t the ladies afraid of His Lordship?” - Genevieve asked with a hint of irony.
“Some, on the contrary, are counting on this. They think that the husband pays attention not to his wife, but to them. It excites them."
[This is courage.]
“What's going on in their heads? It's like they specifically want to piss Shane off..."
"They're up to something again." - Genevieve remarked with a grin.
---“Maybe that’s enough already, Adaline?” - Shane said quietly, but with irritation.
“Oh, what did I do?” - she responded innocently.
"Stop teasing."
Shane clenched his teeth.
“When did I tease you? You yourself are nearby all the time, I don’t even leave..."
“Even approaching other women is teasing.”
"Approach?"
"Don't hug them, don't smile, don't talk to them."
Adaline thought about it.
[In order to approach the people on the list that Lloyd gave her without suspicion, she was deliberately friendly, behaved openly, and tried to win her over.]
[But she certainly didn’t think that she looked like a drunkard in love.]
She was about to turn everything into a joke, but froze, Shane’s gaze was too serious.
“What are you up to, Adaline?”
"I'm not up to anything."
“You always avoided crowded places.”
“I’ve been locked up for five years, I just miss people...”
“Don't lie. I’m burning with jealousy and can hardly control myself.”
[What if he stops holding back?]
Adaline thought about it. [What will he do? Will she lock her at home again?]
[I purposely appear in public so as not to arouse suspicion. So that no one will think that I am being kept under lock and key again.]
She looked at Shane, who was frowning.
[Until the sorcerer was caught and dead, she couldn't say it was all over.]
[She dreamed of being with him...but she wasn't sure that she wouldn't run away again if the nightmares returned.]
[And will I be able to escape at all?]
She still couldn't make a final decision.
[It would be too cruel to pretend to accept him and leave again.]
For Adaline, the only option was to keep her distance, gently but persistently.
But at such moments her resolve cracked.
“I didn’t hug anyone. Unless she put her hand on her shoulder...” she muttered.
"..."
“This is a hug.” - Adaline whispered quietly and pressed her chest against him.
Shane tensed, froze, and then exhaled heavily, hugged her waist and kissed the top of her head.
“Do whatever you want, to hell with you...”
[Did he allow it? Or did he forbid it?] - Adaline thought, holding her breath.