Episode 10

Olivia had been confined to her room for a week, and no matter how much she insisted she was fine, the duke adamantly refused to allow her to leave.

She was surprised to see how stubborn the duke could be.

Throughout that week, the duke stayed to sleep with her, which wasn't good for her heart; having him so close made her heart race so much she felt it would burst from her chest.

Fortunately, she was still being given the medicine the doctor had prescribed, which made her sleep soundly throughout the night.

That day, after much pleading, the duke had agreed to let her leave her room, if only for dinner.

When she descended to the dining room, the duke was already waiting for her. As she sat down, one of the maids brought her a bowl of soup that smelled wonderful, and without hesitation, she began to eat. As she enjoyed her soup, the duke said,

"In two weeks, there will be a ball in my honor, and you shall make your debut."

On hearing this, Olivia dropped her spoon into the soup, causing it to spill across the table.

"Ah...?"

Seeing Olivia's reaction, the duke said,

"It seems you should resume your etiquette lessons with Professor Wilson before the ball."

Olivia always thought the duke would never formally present her to society since he had only married her at the insistence of the crown prince, and the duke had made it very clear to Olivia that he had no interest in her. Thus, his announcement took her by surprise. Shyly, she asked him,

"Is it really alright for me to attend that day?"

Olivia had said this, hoping that he would realize she didn't really mean it and would tell her it was a mistake.

"Yes," he answered, "I've already told Alfred to summon a designer to create a dress for you."

After receiving the news from the duke, Olivia could no longer enjoy her dinner. Afterward, the duke said nothing more, and they finished dinner in silence. When Olivia returned to her room, Rose and Mari were waiting for her. They were both very excited and told her,

"My lady, we've learned that you will make your debut at the ball in the duke's honor."

"We will ensure that on that day our lady looks truly beautiful."

While Olivia considered this impossible, she did not want to wipe the smiles from their faces and simply thanked them for their good intentions.

"Thank you very much, I will leave it all in your hands."

That night, the maids prepared a lavish rose bath for her, complete with essential oils that gave off a very pleasant scent. After her bath, Olivia's skin was softer, and her body emitted a subtle rose fragrance.

They combed and dried Olivia's hair, and once they were done, they left her in bed and departed. Olivia tried to stay awake for the duke but eventually, sleep overtook her, and she fell asleep.

After dinner, Leonard stayed in his office late into the night finishing paperwork. Finally done, he went to his room to sleep and, passing by Olivia's room, he stopped to check on her, half-expecting to find her asleep on the floor, which wouldn't have surprised him given her bad habit of sleeping.

Inside, he turned on a small light and tried not to make noise so as not to wake Olivia. She was sleeping askew on the bed, covers on one side, her nightgown slightly above her knees, and he thought,

She's a complete mess; no wonder she catches colds sleeping like that.

Leonard approached and adjusted her in bed. Not trusting Olivia would stay put, he got into bed, wrapped his arms around her petite waist, and brought her to his chest. With her so close, he could smell the soft rose fragrance emanating from her body, which was so pleasant it helped him relax and fall asleep.

The next morning, he woke up very early, as he had to go to the General Headquarters for training with his soldiers. But as he was about to get up, Olivia entwined her legs with his and slid her soft hands under Leonard's shirt, preventing him from leaving, which elicited a natural reaction to the stimulus.

It wasn't that he felt desire for Olivia, but since marrying her, he hadn't had time to vent his desires with any woman, having been too busy defending the border to have time for such things. And with the sweet scent from Olivia's body and the softness of her skin, he couldn't help but feel desire for her.

Normally, he could keep his desires under control, but since it had been a while, he couldn't prevent his virility from awakening.

At that moment, Leonard wanted to wake Olivia and give in to his instincts and possess her completely, but he had work to do, and he couldn't indulge himself, so, reluctantly, he got out of bed and headed to his room to take a cold shower to cool down.

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