'Is Karina a strong drinker?'
As Jeremiah was thinking about that, he suddenly remembered that he had never seen Karina drink alcohol. When he looked at Karina again, she had a pouty expression on her face as if she was dissatisfied with something, and she was sticking out her lower lip.
She looked like a small animal. Jeremiah felt the urge to pinch her reddened cheeks and poke her pouting lower lip with his finger right away.
'What am I thinking right now?'
Jeremiah quickly pushed away the thought that had just occurred to him. Then suddenly, Karina began to take off the shawl she was wearing.
"...?!"
Jeremiah was so flustered that he couldn't even stop her. The shawl fell off, revealing Karina wearing only a thin layer of fabric that showed off her body lines.
"...!"
Karina's clear, pure white skin, long neckline, and elegant body curves were all visible. The long, flowing red hair that flowed down above them gave off an incredibly captivating feeling. Jeremiah's face felt hot. Not knowing where to look, he quickly turned his head.
'Why the shawl all of a sudden...? Surely you don't have a drinking habit of taking off your clothes...?'
Jeremiah, who was impressed, felt quite serious. At the same time, the afterimage of her that remained in his eyes continued to wander through his mind, making him feel embarrassed. It seemed as if the composure he had managed to maintain was about to be shaken.
'I just came today to talk to Karina. I'm not doing anything.'
He had no intention of touching her until she truly wanted him. Jeremiah chewed his lower lip and consoled himself. He quickly came to his senses and got back to the main point.
"Karina. You don't have to pretend to be in a relationship with me."
He spoke again to Karina, who had a question mark floating above her head as if asking what he was talking about.
"I'm saying that there's no need to force yourself. I want to talk to you."
But Jeremiah's words that he wanted to talk were met with fierce opposition.
"I have no intention of speaking to His Highness the Grand Duke. Let's get this over with quickly."
He told her that she didn't have to pretend to force a merger, so he didn't understand why she was reacting like this.
"You're not really thinking of merging, are you?"
So, she must have insisted on 'pretending to merge'. But Karina's reaction was fierce.
"This is what I want!"
"..."
Jeremiah was obediently dragged by Karina's hand that was pulling him. He couldn't figure out what Karina wanted. So he planned to do what she wanted. However, Karina acted completely differently than he had expected.
"..."
Jeremiah was really surprised by Karina's actions of throwing him down on the bed and climbing on top of him.
"Karina! Wait..."
Jeremiah was startled and frozen by the sight of Karina grabbing his shirt and caressing his body.
Karina's warm palm touched his chest. He felt her hands sweeping over his stiff body.
'Is this a dream?'
There was no way. But there was no way Karina would do something like this in her right mind. Jeremiah bit his lower lip at the vivid warmth he felt from the touch. His throat trembled visibly.
'I should have done this right away when I found out she was drunk.'
Jeremiah took Karina's hand and said.
"Karina... You seem very drunk right now. I don't think we can talk today, so let's talk again tomorrow when you're sober..."
"I said it's not necessary!"
It was a cry of resentment. Karina suddenly pursed her lips as if she was about to cry. Jeremiah could feel her whole body trembling, starting with her hands.
"Because of you... how much... how hard it was for me..! You want me to go through that again?!"
His heart beat faster at the sight of Karina rolling around as if she might collapse at any moment.
"I really... hate you so much."
"...!"
"I don't even want to see your face... I don't even want to touch your fingertips!"
"...!"
Jeremiah felt as if his heart was being stabbed with a long iron skewer every time Karina spoke a word. He felt both despair and desperation at the sight of Karina rejecting and pushing him away. It was the same feeling he had when Karina had cried in his arms while in a dream. Seeing Karina suffer made him feel like he was going crazy.
"You made me like this... and now you're acting all alone and pretending like nothing's wrong... Stop it. It's disgusting, so throw it away!"
"..."
Jeremiah honestly didn't understand why Karina was saying this to him. But he knew that Karina was deeply hurt. Honestly, he didn't know she was this hurt. After they got married, he couldn't deny that he had treated Karina coldly and ignored her for about two months while she was in the North. Because he was too busy with work because he was only focused on his own wounds because he was blinded by betrayal.
Whatever the reason, everything was an excuse when Jeremiah truly wanted Karina. Jeremiah decided not to make excuses. He wanted to comfort Karina and embrace her pain. Jeremiah believed that he could change Karina's heart. He was confident. He held Karina in his arms, comforted her like that time, and spoke sincerely.
"Karina, don't cry. I'm sorry."
But.
"Ha."
Karina's short laugh came as an unbearable shock, like a huge rock falling on the calm water.
"What are you sorry about? Do you know why I'm doing this? Even though you don't know anything."
Jeremiah couldn't answer Karina's words. He didn't know exactly what it was, but it made his current thoughts and determination seem trivial in an instant. He could barely breathe as his breathing became blocked as if there was a thorn stuck in his throat.
"Don't say you're sorry. I don't need an empty apology."
Jeremiah opened his mouth hurriedly as he stood up and followed Karina away from him.
"This is not an apology in name only."
No. I said no. I meant it.
Jeremiah denied it with all his heart. But it was so frustrating and bitter that Karina didn't feel that way at all.
"But if that's how you felt, I'll be careful in the future."
But Karina's cruel words didn't end there.
"There is no 'forward' between you and me. There is only 'divorce' between us! There is only 'divorce'."
"...!"
It seemed like it was already ingrained in Karina's mind. Jeremiah felt a sense of despair as if he was standing on the edge of a cliff at the words that seemed like a declaration that could not be changed no matter what he did. Immediately after that.
"Huh...!"
Karina covered her mouth with a pale face and trembled. Surprised, Jeremiah quickly approached Karina.
"Karina, what's wrong? Are you sick somewhere?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Karina poured out everything that was inside her stomach onto his chest.
"..."
Jeremiah, who had been frozen for a moment, felt a sense of relief in his heart.
'Was it just because she drank too much?"
He supported Karina and gently stroked her back so that she could pour everything out. It would be better if she could pour out everything she wanted to say to him, everything she was hiding, even her feelings of hatred for him.
Swallowing his bitterness, Jeremiah dismissed all the palace servants outside the room and the soldiers who were watching them with their ears covered. Then, he carried the unconscious Karina to the bathroom right next to the room. He called Layla, who was inside and ordered her to wash Karina and take her to the room.
"Your Highness, are you okay?"
Layla glanced at Jeremiah's messy appearance and asked.
"This kind of thing can be washed. But..."
Jeremiah moved his lips as if he was going to say something more, but he didn't continue.
"..."
Layla had already heard of Jeremiah's plan before she went to the bedroom, so she knew the real situation. And she was the one who saw and heard the conversation between Karina and Jeremiah from the closest distance. Layla's eyes, which had figured out Jeremiah's intentions, were filled with pity.
"How about bringing it up again another day?"
Jeremiah shook his head at Layla's words.
"It seems like I have really earned her some hatred."
Jeremiah smiled faintly with a shady face. Then, Layla, who had worked for the Grand Duke for a long time, sensed Jeremiah's complicated state of mind and stopped adding more details. Instead.
"Don't worry, I'll take care of the aftermath."
Layla nodded, saying that she would not forget her duties, and went straight to wash Karina.
"Phew."
Jeremiah sighed deeply. He felt that he had to somehow appease Karina before he could have a conversation. But...
"..."
The answer didn't come easily. Fortunately, there were still three months left. And since they had decided to share the master bedroom to make it look like they were merging with the servants in the mansion, there was still a chance.
Jeremiah looked around the room with sunken eyes and thought that he should wash up too. Originally, he should have stayed in the master bedroom with Karina until morning, but the situation was not favorable. Nevertheless, Jeremiah's worries did not last long. After all, it was the first day, and since there were servants from the palace tonight, he thought that if he just cleaned up properly, there wouldn't be a big problem.
Jeremiah returned to his room without making any noise so that no one would find out. And so, the two's merging ended.
***
Karina forced her heavy, stiff eyelids open.
'Huh? What happened to me?'
She tried to get up, but her head was pounding like it was going to split open.
Crunch.
She felt a small movement and a human presence on one side of the room. Karina rubbed her eyes and looked around. Jen had brought food, so she had placed a tray on the table.
"Huh?"
It was a very muffled voice, but Jen turned around when she realized it was someone calling her.
"Your Highness, are you awake?"
"Can I get some water..."
First of all, Karina wanted to quench her thirst.
'I wish it was cold water.'
As if she knew everything about Karina, Jen offered her the cool water she had prepared. Karina barely managed to stand up with Jen's support. Then, she held the cup of water with both hands and drank it down in gulps.
"One more drink."
"Oh, yes!"
Jen poured water from the water bottle and handed it back to Karina. After drinking all the water in the bottle, she felt a little better.
"Whew."
Karina took a deep breath and exhaled.
"... What time is it?"
She must have slept quite late because the sunlight outside the window was strong.
"It is now a little past noon. His Highness the Grand Duke has told us not to wake the Grand Duchess until you wake up of your own accord."
Jen asked, observing Karina's complexion.
"Are you feeling better? I heard that even after waking up, the Grand Duchess won't feel well, so His Highness told the chef to only serve food that is easy on the stomach."
Jen looked at her with admiration, saying that Jeremiah was very attentive. But Karina looked indifferent.
"He said I'd feel sick if I woke up?"
"Yes."
"..."
That was right. Karina was feeling unwell right now, and her head was pounding as if it was being hammered inside.
'How can you not know?'
She knew she got mad last night when Jeremiah came into the bedroom and suddenly refused to merge, but she couldn't remember much from the middle.
'What did I talk about with Jeremiah?'
Trying to recall the conversation only made her head hurt more.
"What happened to me yesterday?"
Finally, Karina asked Jen.
"Oh, you must have been so nervous yesterday that you drank some wine... It seems you drank way more than you can handle."
Jen's expression as he spoke was cautious.
"I heard you passed out right in bed."
"What? I fainted?"
It was probably because she was drunk. Karina tried to ignore the throbbing headache and recall the memories of last night. However, the conversation she needed to remember did not come to mind, and only strange memories came to mind here and there.
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