Working at a Haunted Mansion Chapter 66

Part 9. Reunion

There had been a reason behind her choice, and even if she went back, things would have ended the same way. But at this very moment, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she was a sinner.

With her eyelids lowered, Lily’s head slowly bowed as well. Just as her eyes were about to land on the hem of her skirt—

“Would you let me in, first?”

As she lifted her head, their eyes met. Before she had time to blink, a flurry of rejection spilled from Lily’s mouth.

“Mr. Idiris is away at the moment.”

Aiden gave a faint, awkward smile.

It was a smile that politely asked whether the person before him really meant what she was saying—and, if so, how he should go about responding to it.

Lily quickly realized that mentioning Mark Idiris’s absence in front of Aiden Kashimir might call her intelligence into question.

Aiden, for his part, seemed eager to show who he really was and how much he still cared for her. Anyone with half a brain would have noticed.

But Lily didn’t care what he thought—as long as she could keep him from coming in.
Even if he thought she was a fool. Even if he thought she was shameless…

“It’s fine. I came here to see you.”

Lily spoke frankly.

“I have nothing to talk about with Your Grace.”

“But I do.”

She swallowed and replied even more honestly.

“To be precise, I don’t want to talk to you, Your Grace. The fact that you came here like this is very upsetting.”

Aiden’s smile faded. His lips twitched slightly, as if struggling to maintain an expression that had already started to fall apart. It looked like even his smile muscles were confused.

Lily turned her face halfway to the side, avoiding his gaze. She refused to meet eyes and let lingering emotions sway her.

Let him call her selfish if he wanted. She just hoped he would give up and leave before she had to say something even harsher.

As if mocking her silent wish, there came a shaky step and a low groan.

“Ugh.”

Aiden was doing a frustratingly good job of keeping her from looking away.
Annoyed, Lily turned her head again.

He was gripping the handle of his cane with both hands, his entire weight resting on it.

His face was twisted in pain, his eyes shut tight. Through clenched teeth, with his jaw jutting sharply, he murmured the name of his aide.

Wolfram moved instantly.
He had been like part of the background until he suddenly stepped forward, startling Lily enough to make her flinch.

Supporting Aiden, he turned to Lily and spoke.

“His Grace should not be overexerting himself. Just a short rest won’t trouble Mr. Idiris.”

“If you return to the carriage…”

As she spoke, Lily looked out toward the road.
But the carriage had already left.

She let out a sigh and stepped aside from the doorway.

Lily led them into the parlor.

Aiden sat on the sofa and began slowly massaging the outside of his thigh, while Wolfram asked for water, saying the Duke needed his pain medicine.

Seeing Aiden biting his lip in pain, Lily had no choice but to move.

She placed a bottle of water and a glass on a tray, then hesitated before opening the cupboard and taking down a tin case.

It had been delivered just yesterday. Inside were round chocolates. Lily would never have bought such a luxury for herself.

Like the grapes from before, this had been a direct order from Mark Idiris. He was a master who took very good care of his household staff.

The dark brown treats, some topped with nuts or striped with white, were something Lily had planned to savor slowly. So far, she’d only eaten one—just one space was empty in the tin.

Now, a second chocolate was placed on a small glass plate and set next to the glass. With the tray prepared, Lily headed to the parlor.

Her steps were quick.
He was someone she had wished to keep only in memory—but now he was here, saying he was in pain.

Unable to bear even a short while standing, having to knead his own leg in front of others…

“After all this time, he’s still in enough pain to need medicine? Shouldn’t the Duke’s personal physician have resolved this by now? That person’s not some fake doctor like me—he’s a real one.”

She remembered the face of the doctor who used to scold her. If he was useless with spirits, he should at least be competent with the body.

“If he wasn’t fully healed, that doctor should’ve stopped him from coming to the capital in the first place. Do they know how far it is from there to here? Is he going to use a cane for the rest of his life? He never even limped before… What is this?”

Lost in her uncontrollable concern, Lily reached the parlor.

The knight was guarding the entrance, and Wolfram was nowhere to be seen—he must have stepped out.

Aiden, eyes closed and breathing deeply, straightened up when he heard her enter. She noticed the small medicine bottle on the low table in front of him.

Lily set the tray down and poured the water. But when she handed him the glass, Aiden didn’t take his medicine—he simply put the glass down.

“After a short rest, I’m feeling much better. Thank you.”

Lily furrowed her brows. Already better?

That was good news, but something felt off. A sudden suspicion crossed her mind—what if this had all been an act just to get inside?

She eyed him with suspicion.

Aiden smiled, as if confused by her stare. But his gleaming eyes held the persistence of someone who didn’t know how to back down.

Whether it was a performance or genuine pain, Lily could sense it clearly—he wasn’t leaving until he said what he came to say.

It was that same, exhausting determination.

“My neck’s starting to ache—how about sitting down?”

At his suggestion, Lily held back a sigh and sat across from him.

“Looks like you won’t grant my request to leave. Fine. Go ahead. Say what you came to say.”

She braced herself.

If, by any chance, Aiden refused the breakup and tried to persuade her to start over, she was ready to jump up immediately.

No matter if he tripped chasing after her on that aching leg—she’d walk out of the townhouse without even looking back.

 

 

 

****

 

 

Aiden brushed off her wary look with a smile.

He could practically read Lily’s thoughts—they were that vivid. She was no doubt grumbling inwardly about the entire situation.

Lily Dienta was never the patient type.

If she seemed unusually tolerant right now, it was absolutely not a good sign. When she acted like that, it usually meant she was silently putting together a plan of her own.

Aiden had fallen for that tactic more than once. Their breakup was the most notable example. Probably the only person in the entire Empire who saw it coming was Lily Dienta herself.

The escape she swore was just a vacation, the sudden announcement that she was now Julius’s spiritual physician—things involving her always happened out of nowhere.

Aiden watched Lily closely. As expected, she was sneaking glances toward the door.

If things didn’t go her way, she looked ready to leave the house and abandon him on the spot.

She even subtly checked his knee—probably thinking that in such a case, Aiden Kashimir’s injured leg would work to her advantage.

The familiar sight made him both amused and wistful.

Either way, he had completed step one: sitting down to talk with Lily Dienta.

He glanced down at his knee. It was perfectly fine. In fact, it had been fully healed since he arrived in the capital.

In other words, he had never actually been in pain in front of Lily Dienta. The cane and the painkillers were nothing more than harmless props.

He felt no shame for pretending to be weak while perfectly healthy. No guilt for deceiving her, either.

This kind of lie—wasn’t it harmless, like a little puff of cotton?

Besides, it didn’t even count as a real lie. It was just him being coy in front of the woman he loved.

In a calm voice, he said:

“I need your help. You’ve probably already guessed—it’s about my friend.”

Lily’s eyebrow twitched. Her expression said she had a lot to say.

To give her more ease, Aiden motioned for the knight to step outside. But even then, it took a bit of silence before Lily opened her mouth.

In the meantime, Aiden took in every detail: the way she bit the inside of her lip, the way her brows drew together, the twitch of her cheek.

He could have spent the entire day like this. Just being with her—the one he longed to see even in his dreams—was enough