Hmm?
"Do you think so?"
"Yes, I could see the emotions of longing and true happiness in their eyes. As a woman myself, I know that those emotions cannot be faked. They are truly attached to you. What’s more, they are all beautiful. With them by your side... I feel like I have no chance."
At the end of her sentence, Elenaor’s voice became as low as a mosquito. Compared to the other girls by his side, who were well accomplished and irreplaceable in their fields, she felt like she was lacking.
Not only had her first impression gone completely wrong, but she was reliant on him and still afraid of the world. Qualities that she was sure were not appealing to him.
Looking at her despondent self, he drank a sip of his wine and spoke in a serious tone.
"Why do you think like that?"
Eleanor looked at him, her eyes slightly self mocking. "But isn’t that true? The first time we met, I was a mess. I mistook you for intruders and even shot you with a gun. My living condition was abysmal and my mental condition unstable".
"Now, that you mentioned it, it was quite the first impression. I don’t think I’ll be able to forget it even if I want to".
"You are teasing me? I thought you came over to console?"
Eleanor opened her mouth wide in shock. Wasn’t this the part where the man consoled the lady, leading them to becoming more closer in the future?
"If I have learned one thing after falling victim to you the first time is that you are an excellent actress."
Too bad for her, Reinhardt was someone from the modern day Earth who had watched his fair share of movies and dramas.
"You think I’m acting?" Eleanor pouted.
Be angry or sad, choose one? Seeing the woman quickly change emotions, he wanted to retort.
"Indeed, our encounter was unique, but isn’t that uniqueness what makes it unforgettable?".
"Do you really mean it?"
"Yeah, I hadn’t seen a woman as dirty and unstable as you on that day. Even if I want to, I cannot forget it".
The woman stomped her foot; you can literally see her mad and embarrassed from the way she behaved.
Having teased the woman enough, he spoke his real thoughts.
"Jokes aside, why do you think you are replaceable? The person I employed was the sensational star who won numerous awards just after her debut. The woman who was called the unofficial queen of the theatres. I don’t see any other Eleanor Lycote who can replace you".
Reinhardt was a fan of the actress, well, the past him was. A woman as talented as her cannot be replaced, even if he searched the Seven Kingdoms.
BADUMP... Eleanor’s eyes moistened, and her acting wavered for a second. The man was already extremely handsome. On top of that, he says something so sweet like this. It was clearly unfair.
"B-But you pushed me away in our first encounter?"
Ah, it seems the woman was still holding a grudge over that.
"It’s because you were covered in dirt and grime that time".
"I was kidnapped. And although I managed to keep my sanctity intact, they still played with my body."
Eleanor tightly held onto her body, still traumatized from those events.
"There are many people in the world with checkered pasts. Besides, aren’t you trying your best to get over it? That means more to me than anything else".
"I imposed all those conditions on you".
"A superstar deserves a corresponding reception".
For every question and self doubt of hers, he already had an answer prepared. What’s more, every word, every line he said, came from his heart. There was no falseness in it.
Becoming able to read people’s emotions very well, Eleanor knew that. Her moist eyes became a little more glossy.
Though she did not cry this time, instead she tiptoed and tilted the glass of wine in Reinhardt towards her own lips. She drank from the very same spot he put his lips on, sharing an indirect kiss.
The full moon, the glass of wine, and the indirect kiss... the scene was so beautiful that it imprinted itself in his mind.
Before Reinhardt could get over her action, he was pulled by her towards the hall.
"I suddenly feel good thanks to you. The party might have been over, but let’s dance".
Eleanor took the lead, and a few seconds later, they were dancing.
The servants of a duke’s household were all tactful. When they saw the situation, a servant quickly went to the piano and started playing it. A slow jazz, elegant and smooth, perfect for the undertone of the night.
A foxtrot!
She tucked her right hand in his left, guiding his other to her shoulder blade. Elbows up, shoulders relaxed, left foot forward, right to follow, heel to toe, toe to heel glide.
"How is it? Dancing is fun, right?"
"Yeah," Reinhardt nodded his head. Right now, he was having his first dance with her, and he had to say it was magical.
That’s right, both his previous and current life, it was his first time dancing in a pair in the middle of a ballroom. It was the same for this body, too.
As an aristocrat and the son of a duke, there were many social occasions where one had to dance. And so, he received such an education in his early years. As could be seen, his core was balanced and controlled, and his footwork impeccable.
Nevertheless, this was still his first time dancing with anyone. Not because he did not have a partner, in fact, he was so popular that girls simply crowded around him. However, he would always escape from their clutches and shrug off dancing with one excuse or another.
So the fact that he was dancing with her was a big deal. That being said, he had no intention of telling her this.
The moment was perfect just the way it was.