The Maid Under the Stairs - Chapter 41
< Chapter 41 >
Leon’s lead seemed to be unpredictable, contrary to expectations, he did his best to assist Mabel in dancing.
Rather than leading Mabel, he skillfully filled in missed beats to allow her enough time between steps to complete the dance.
“Thanks to you, I felt joyful while dancing. Even though I’m known to have two left feet, dancing with Mr. de Percy made me feel like I could be Fanny Elssler herself.”
During the short interval while the band prepared for the next music, Mabel spoke with a bright smile.
“It wasn’t as bad as I thought. Alright, shall we try the next piece together?”
Leon, lifting one corner of his mouth as if disappointed, seductively replied.
“It seems Mr. Woolf is still keeping an eye on Miss Willis.”
“Even if you don’t scare me like that, I plan to dance together until the next piece!”
Mabel burst into laughter again at Leon’s teasing, taking his hand. Just then, his jovial face stiffened. Mabel glanced at Leon’s expression and asked.
“Uh, is there a problem…?”
“….”
Leon remained silent for a moment before quickly breaking into a mischievous smile.
“No, I just got momentarily scared I might step on Miss Willis’ feet again.”
Despite his teasing tone, Mabel couldn’t shake the feeling that he was avoiding her gaze. For a moment, she couldn’t rid herself of that thought. Pushing it aside, Mabel danced again with Leon’s support to the lively music.
Mabel seemed to understand that she was committing herself to the music for the first time, moving to the fast rhythm. However, as the flow of the string instruments imitating the banjo accelerated, Mabel had to send a signal that she couldn’t keep up with Leon anymore.
Leon looked at her with a teasing expression but smoothly guided her away from the dance floor, leading her to the edge.
“They say you become friends if you dance together twice, and lovers if you dance together three times. Unfortunately, it seems the third one might be a stretch.”
He casually brushed aside her disheveled bangs, speaking cheerfully. However, without responding to Leon’s banter, Mabel simply took a deep breath and sank onto a sofa on one side of the party venue.
As Mabel struggled to catch her breath, it was the moment she was about to say something to Leon. They both suddenly noticed a strange shift in the atmosphere of the party and glanced around.
A faint noise came from the entrance of the party venue. Sensing this, the attentive band lowered the volume of the music to allow the guests to focus on the new arrival.
“Ha.”
Leon chuckled as if he had discovered something, reaching into his pocket. Following the gaze of the bustling crowd, Mabel also hurriedly held her breath.
Standing next to the red-haired Crosby was William Edmundstone, commanding the attention of everyone at the party venue.
‘Oh!’
Mabel’s breath caught. It had only been a week, but his face, familiar yet unfamiliar, felt as if she hadn’t seen it in ages.
His face, sculpted like a sculpture, his prominent nose that touched her cheek, and his thick, handsome lips that kissed her all over. But today, William’s gaze reflected in her eyes seemed unusually cold and sharp.
Leon glanced at Mabel, who seemed uncomfortable and anxious. Unable to focus on Leon anymore, she didn’t know what to do.
“Miss Willis.”
Leon was about to turn her towards him when William, having finished exchanging pleasantries with the host, strode confidently towards Mabel as if he had been watching them all along, without a moment’s hesitation.
The murmurs in the party venue swirled as the guests’ attention, following William’s gaze, converged on Mabel. However, ensnared by William’s intense gaze, she failed to notice.
Without sparing a glance at Leon, William wordlessly extended his hand towards Mabel.
“Oh, um…”
Mabel glanced briefly at Leon. Typically, those who danced together for the first two pieces would either skip the third dance or pass the partner to someone else for the next one. So, it wasn’t entirely wrong for Mabel to accept William’s dance invitation.
Eventually, after exchanging a brief eye contact with Leon, Mabel had to accept William’s hand.
‘Darn it…’
Seeing Mabel take William’s hand, Leon felt a pang of pain rising within him. He understood well in his mind that it would be awkward for Mabel to stay by his side. Yet, it felt like a slap in the face as William, as if seizing his possession, forcefully took Mabel away with his icy demeanor.
The overpowering charisma of William, accompanied by the band, resumed playing as soon as William and Mabel stepped onto the floor as if it had been prearranged. With that, the guests regained their composure and resumed dancing, and the party gradually came back to life with excitement and joy.
“It hurts.”
Mabel murmured. It was only then that William realized he had been holding her wrist too tightly and loosened his grip.
“Why did you come back within a week?”
“I guess I wasn’t sincere enough in handling my affairs during that time.”
“Pardon?”
Mabel asked inquisitively at William’s muffled reply. His voice, heard for the first time since he entered the party venue, still retained its inherent warmth, tickling Mabel’s heart.
“Because of you.”
“Me…?”
“I had to come back quickly because I missed you. Every time I thought of you, I felt motivated to work harder. Thanks to you, I also realized that love can boost productivity at work.”
William said gently as he looked at her. Then, he lightly kissed the back of her hand that he was holding.
Mabel blushed once at his affectionate confession, and again at the kiss on her hand. She whispered, as if it would blend into the music,
“Mr. Edmundstone, you should be careful. People are watching.”
“William.”
William whispered close to her ear, his lips barely touching.
“Yes?”
“Call me William.”
“Oh…”
Mabel moaned with her eyes tightly shut at his provocative voice.
“I can’t…,”
Calling William Edmundstone by his first name in front of others would be tantamount to publicly acknowledging him as her lover.
“Then there’s no other way to make it clear.”
As William’s lips seemed to move away from her ear, they touched the delicate curve of her jawline. Startled by the intimate touch, Mabel looked around. Fortunately, it seemed like nobody noticed William’s kiss amidst the focus on the dance and music. The dim lighting, fitting for a moonlight party, also helped conceal them.
“What if someone sees us, Mr. Edmun…….?”
Mabel stopped mid-sentence, surprised as she noticed William’s gaze turning cold instinctively.
“I don’t mind who sees.”
William said softly. But despite his calm and relaxed smile, his gaze was dark.
“Last time, you remember when we went to the movies together and ended up in the newspaper? Mr. Edmundstone told me not to worry, but if such articles keep piling up, it will surely affect your work. And…”
Mabel spoke with a determined tone. She wasn’t fully prepared to push him away, but at least she knew she needed to keep a distance that wouldn’t leave her regretful in the future.
“I’d rather hear that you missed me.”
Reading Mabel’s melancholy, William smiled faintly as he spoke. At his words, Mabel finally raised her eyes to scrutinize William. It had only been a week, but she had missed his presence intensely.
Feeling a pang of guilt, Mabel hesitated before whispering,
“…I missed you too.”
William slowly caressed her cheek and then trailed his hand down her neck. His hand finally stopped at the silver bird-shaped pendant hanging from a silver chain under her pearl necklace.
His lover. The delicate silver bird, illuminated by the cold moonlight, seemed ready to fly away at any moment, symbolizing his lover, who appeared fragile as if prepared to fly away at any moment.
“Well, Mr. Edmundstone, you do captivate everyone’s attention. If our closeness were to be revealed, I don’t think I could continue my college life as usual. That’s important to me, as much as my promise to Lord Alfred…,”
Mabel spoke, furrowing her brows as she thought of a reason that William could understand. But seeing William’s expression remaining calm and unchanged from the beginning, Mabel felt a bit uneasy.
“Yes. Your wish is my wish, my Mabel.”
Finally, William responded to her anxious words. The music was coming to an end.
“However…”
William paused for a moment.
“You’ll have to get used to being by my side.”
As the music reached its climax and ended, William pulled her close and embraced her tightly.
“You’re my lover, after all.”
His gaze pierced through her soul, sharp and intense. Mabel felt a pang of guilt at his declaration of her as his lover. However, to smoothly navigate through today, with her college friends and Leon present, she could only respond with a faint smile to William’s intense gaze.