The Maid Under the Stairs - Chapter 14
< Chapter 14 >
Todo-dook.
Tcheeeeeeoek?
The sound of William unbuttoning and pulling off his shirt, which clung tightly to his body as if ready to rip, was vividly audible.
Mabel sat on the edge of the bed with her back turned, staring at the empty wall. Fortunately, Mabel’s small room had a separate bathroom, so there was no worry of William seeing her flushed face.
Mabel felt the situation was surreal. A man, especially such an attractive one, in her dorm room—or strictly speaking, her bedroom—dressed in a half-robe.
“Sorry, but I think I need to use this towel, Miss Mabel.”
Mabel quickly turned her head to respond to William’s voice and had to suppress a gasp. Standing in the middle of her small, colorful bathroom, William’s unfamiliar body was visible.
‘Who says there’s nothing to see on a handsome man’s body, Aunt Louise!’
Mabel blamed Aunt Louise, the kitchen maid at Oxford, who was probably gossiping about someone else again.
From his broad, open shoulders to the muscles rippling across his chest and abdomen, William’s well-toned body glistened with a mix of golden syrup and moisture, while his wet shirt hung limply on his arms.
“Sorry for the interruption.”
William said, seeing Mabel frozen in place. He must have felt just as uncomfortable as her, standing half-naked in front of a lady. Mabel quickly averted her gaze and spoke.
“I, um, apologize. I spilled syrup on Mr. Edmundstone’s shirt… Oh, please give me the shirt. I can dry it downstairs by the drier and return it to you soon.”
Still dazzled by his striking appearance, Mabel tried to focus on the floor as much as possible.
‘Mabel Willis, pull yourself together. You’re a maid under the stairs now. Yes, maids under the stairs sometimes bring noble’s bath towels. Mr. Edmundstone, who is familiar with such things, will probably just see you as a household item. It’s extremely rude to blush and stare at him alone.’
Mabel, who was trying to hold William’s gaze, missed the slight frown on his eyebrow.
“I never asked Miss Mabel to dry my shirt.”
His voice was somehow heavier than usual.
“Oh, no. Of course, I’m just a maid downstairs, so I never had to dry clothes…”
“No. I’m saying I’m not Miss Mabel’s employer.”
William interrupted Mabel’s words. He was holding the shirt with one arm and gripping the top of the bathroom door frame with the other.
His tight waistline stretched as his arm reached out towards the door frame. His suit pants draped over his lower body looked precarious.
“Hmm, but you can’t go out wearing a wet shirt. I, I’m Lord Alfred’s maid, so it’s only natural that I’ll take care of Mr. Edmunstone…”
Mabel stumbled through her words, almost as if she couldn’t find an answer. Her face was flushed, and it seemed like she might burst into tears if she looked at William’s body just one more time.
“There’s nothing else to be done.”
After a moment of silence, William walked unsteadily towards the center of the room where she stood. With each step he took, the muscles of his body seemed to ripple with tension, as if they were reaching out towards Mabel.
When Mabel finally managed to steady herself on trembling legs and stood her ground, the distance between them shortened by about an inch. Then, William simply sat down on the long sofa right beside Mabel.
“The shirt will dry eventually, so we’ll just have to wait here until then.”
William, now seated on the sofa in his half robe, looked at her with a relaxed expression. He seemed to sense her embarrassment, as he leaned his head on one hand and gave her a reassuring smile. The light from the lamp nearby accentuated the curves of his body even more.
“You wouldn’t kick a friend out in the middle of the night with nothing to wear, would you?”
William emphasized the word ‘friend.’
“Not that I blame Miss Mabel for spilling the syrup on me.”
With that, he seemed to provoke Mabel’s guilt. She was taken aback by his provocative attitude, especially considering that William had always been so polite and kind.
She had thought of him as nothing more than a well-behaved and courteous person, but now, on her bedroom sofa, a tall and handsome wolf seemed to be preparing to spend the night.
As Mabel was searching for something to say, familiar footsteps could be heard from beyond the dormitory room.
“Mabel? Are you in your room, Mabel?”
It seemed that Mary was coming to Mabel’s room after the party.
Since they shared a bathroom, Mary also had a key to Mabel’s room. Mabel freaked out and gestured to William, who was sitting on the couch, toward the narrow closet.
‘You have to hide in there!’
Her original plan was to hide only William and deal with Mary herself. However, just as she was about to hide William’s wet shirt in the closet, it was too late.
“Can I come in?”
Mary opened the door with her key and entered. So, Mabel unknowingly closed the closet door and ended up hiding in the closet with William.
The closet was crammed with Mabel’s clothes and other unorganized belongings, leaving no room for anything but the floor. Hiding in the closet, William, who didn’t understand, was forced into an awkward position as Mabel pushed her way in.
Due to his long legs, William could only lean his shoulders against the wall and keep his lower body on the floor in a nearly lying position. He managed to squeeze his legs between the closet’s walls, but like a cat, Mabel had wedged herself in between and nestled against his stomach, leaving him helpless.
Thump, thump, thump…
Mabel felt like her heart would explode from the embarrassment of being so close to William’s face and their tangled bodies. Every part of her that touched him seemed to sizzle like it was on fire.
Even though she appeared to be on top of him, the presence of William underneath seemed overwhelming.
‘Mr. Edmunstone’s body still has some moisture left, so my hands might slip.’
Mabel trembled against his lower abdomen, hoping her hands wouldn’t accidentally touch his abdomen. However, she didn’t know how her actions affected a man’s body.
“…Mmm.”
A groan escaped William’s embarrassed face. Beneath his gaze, Mabel, who fit snugly against him, looked up at him with a finger pressed to her lips, looking at him with pity.
‘We need to be quiet. We can’t get caught here.’
William swallowed a sigh and leaned his head back. Whether Mabel knew his discomfort or not, she continued to tremble on top of him.
Unable to resist, William grabbed Mabel’s hands and wrapped them around his chest. Soon, Mabel’s body clung tightly to him, stopping her trembling under his stomach.
‘Oh, my!’
Mabel let out a silent scream as she felt her raised cheek touch William’s bare chest.
With his eyes piercing through the dim darkness and his sturdy chest pressing against her, she felt overwhelmed by him.
Mabel felt like she might lose her mind as she watched his Adam’s apple move in rhythm with the sound of his breathing above her head.
“Hmm, she left the party earlier, but I wonder if she still hasn’t arrived…”
Outside the closet, Mary mumbled with a slightly intoxicated voice. Eventually, as she gave up and was about to leave the room, Mary noticed William’s black coat that Mabel hadn’t been able to hide.
“This coat!”
Mabel snapped back to attention at Mary’s exclamation, looking back into the crack of the closet.
“Is this my brother’s coat? He was looking for Mabel. Was it because of this coat…?”
Mary pondered for a moment before exclaiming loudly.
“Then I’ll take it to him!”
Clutching William’s coat tightly, Mary bounced out of the room like a squirrel finding an acorn.
As soon as Mary left the room, Mabel jumped up—or at least she tried to. It would have been possible without the strong arms wrapped around her waist.
“No, not yet. Just a little longer.”
William whispered, exerting more strength in his arms around Mabel’s waist.
Mary’s footsteps were still quite close to Mabel’s panicked ears.
In the end, she had to comply with his words and nestle a little closer against his smooth chest.