CHAPTER 58 - ROSES FOR HARRIETLiam walked through the garden after returning the pregnant woman's medical notebook he borrowed from the best midwife in town. He had been going back and forth in the city, troubling several midwife clinics since morning.
He jumped quickly and landed on the roofs of buildings, as usual, armed with such a good mood since last night. After that, he also decided to stop by to buy a bunch of flowers for his wife.
He picked out a red tulip and carried it back into the castle through the side fence. He planned to walk straight to the garden where his wife and his two in-laws had lunch.
While walking leisurely, he felt that even if his wife was not pregnant, he would not be disappointed.
Even though Harriet wouldn't be able to get pregnant, and even if she wasn't his mate, Liam wouldn't blame anyone or feel sad. For him, Harriet was more than enough.
Although of course, initially, he was willing to accept Harriet because he knew he had an obligation to carry on the clan's lineage. But right now, at this second, he was more hopeful that Harriet could get pregnant without thinking about that obligation.
But that was his own thought.
As he watched and heard Harriet say that she would love to have twins, Liam felt something sting in his chest. Maybe this was one of the side effects of falling in love. He was afraid that he would not be able to give the woman he loved what she wanted.
In the far distance, in a marble pavilion at the edge of the garden, three people were sitting chatting in a sunny atmosphere. Liam could already see them from where he was standing, and it made him smile.
But suddenly, his chest hurt.
"…Aah…" Liam groaned softly and leaned his arm against a tree.
A gardener who saw him quickly approached.
"Y-Young Lord, are you alright? I-I'll call someone," said the middle-aged man, but Liam grabbed his arm, holding him back.
"It's okay," Liam said quietly. He handed the bouquet to the gardener and smiled faintly and weakly. "Please deliver this to Madam. Send my apologies for not being able to join her for lunch. Don't say anything about my condition."
"But, Young Lord…"
Liam shook his head, cutting off the gardener's words. He then looked at the three people in the pavilion and smiled sadly.
"Go," Liam said.
The gardener looked doubtful, but he just went to fulfil Liam's request. While the man was walking away, Liam hid a little against a tree, looking at Harriet who was smiling warmly at his two in-laws and listening to their conversation.
Just before Harriet received the flowers from him, Liam forced his body to jump away. He could not hold it anymore.
At the top of the tower in his room, Liam nearly tripped as he tried to reach his bed. The man managed to land himself on the bed and decided to take a short nap. In his mind, he was disappointed not to be able to see Harriet smile directly as she received flowers from him.
And then he fell asleep.
***
Harriet received a bunch of red tulips from a gardener in the middle of her lunch. Upon questioning, the gardener explained that Young Lord Almandine had stopped by to ask him to deliver the bouquet for Madam and conveyed the message that he was sorry he could not join them for lunch.
Miriam and Heath could clearly see the change in mood on Harriet's face. Worry and disappointment filled her usually calm and gentle face.
"Thank you," Harriet looked down at the bunch of red tulips in her hands and felt some bad feelings in her heart for some reason.
She hadn't touched her lunch much, and now her appetite had completely disappeared. Harriet took a deep breath and decided to get up and walk away. She turned for a moment to her brother and his wife and smiled warmly, reassuringly.
"You guys continue eating, okay? Sorry, but I'm going to find your brother-in-law. I haven't seen him since morning, so, I'm a little worried," said the young woman.
Harriet didn't wait for Heath and Miriam's response, and the two saw the young woman walk briskly back into the castle.
It was nearly one o'clock in the afternoon, and she knew Liam couldn't be so busy he couldn't have lunch together. She knew Liam was busy with his research to heal himself, and she knew he had been going somewhere since morning. But usually, Liam would come right away if she asked him to come.
There must be a problem.
As she walked down the hall, she tried to guess where the man was. She looked for Liam in her own room, in the Old Duke's study, in the library, and Daniel's room, but couldn't find him.
Hugging a bunch of red tulips against her chest, covering the top of her elegant crimson dress, Harriet felt even more worried. The rustle of the jewellery she wore all over her body echoed softly down the hall, Harriet thought about where else could she find Liam, and decided to walk towards the tower.
But she ran into a young man at the turn of the hall. Harriet automatically lost all expression and smiled gently, then bowed in perfect posture.
"Madam Goldlane," Crown Prince Ezekiel Euclase stared coldly at Harriet.
"Your Highness," greeted Harriet softly.
Ezekiel glanced at the bunch of flowers in Harriet's arms and narrowed his eyes. The red tulip was a symbol of perfect love, and in the arms of the woman in the crimson dress before him, everything seemed perfect.
Red jewellery adorned the woman's body and pale lavender hair.
Almandine.
The gemstone that adorned the woman's entire body was a dark red Almandine ruby, and Harriet's pale body made the perfect canvas for that bold colour. Seeing her standing in front of him like this made him remember the rare and exotic orchid that only grew in tropical countries.
He didn't know why Harriet was so over-adorned every time he saw her in this castle. Perhaps the Old Duke preferred the women living here to be decorated like this?
But for whatever reason, Harriet was the type of woman whose appearance would shine brighter the more glamorous the way she decorated.
He could imagine Harriet draped all over in a long pearl necklace, and she might look like the queen of the ocean. She was so different from Cecilia, who would look the most beautiful with simple and refined clothes.
"You look busy," Ezekiel said flatly, almost forgetting he shouldn't stare at other people's wives for long.
"That's right, Your Highness. If you allow me, I will excuse myself," said Harriet, bowing again.
Rude.
It was really rare for Harriet to act like this.
Where would she go with a bunch of tulips in her hand? Did she just receive it secretly from her secret lover?