Chapter 5.2

And at this moment, Eileen, who was stunned to see him, realised that she was acting rudely, so she hastily stood up from her seat. By then, Diego and the other soldiers were already standing at attention. 

His gaze turned to the table, and when he saw the half-empty keg, he smirked.

“Did you drink?” 

Eileen used the back of her hand to cover her lips. She couldn’t believe that she had spoken when the stench of alcohol still lingered on her. It was a terrible thing to do. 

In reality, Eileen didn’t enjoy drinking. She would usually prefer to drink hot chocolate or honeyed milk over beer. However, she asked for a beer this time because she didn’t want Diego to treat her like a child. 

She regretted acting so rashly, but she still tried her best to answer his questions carefully. 

“Yes. Just a little.” 

She gripped the hem of her skirt lightly, but as she spoke, she clenched her fists so tightly that her fingernails began to turn white. 

“I have a question for you.” 

“Go ahead.” 

Even though she had easily obtained his permission, she couldn’t bring herself to ask the question. Chezare leaned forward towards Eileen. His shadow easily towered over her frame, and she held her breath without realising it. She could clearly feel the stark difference in their physique. She couldn’t bear to look him in the eyes, hence she lowered her gaze. 

“What’s the matter? Can’t do it?” 

She might have been fine if there was just Diego around, but in the face of other unfamiliar soldiers, she felt anxious about bringing up her personal affairs. 

Chezare smiled, and whispered to the hesitant girl, “Would you like to speak to me privately?” 

His playful tone sounded even sweeter than honeyed milk. She could feel her cheeks heating up, and she replied meekly, “Yes…” 

Yet, she regretted her reply almost instantly, because all of a sudden, her line of vision shifted, and she was looking up at the sky. Chezare had carried her princess style. 

“Your Excellency!” 

“You said we should speak privately.” 

He carried the grown woman up the stairs as though she were as light as a child. However, Eileen was trembling, feeling extremely scared.

“I can walk on my own!” 

“The stairs are old, and there might be some broken spots. It’s very dangerous, so just stay calm.” 

“But… but…” 

He lightly pressed his hand on her back and kept her in place. When Eileen felt the large palm on her back, she instantly froze. Chezare lightly patted the girl, who finally calmed down, as though he were praising her. 

She felt almost ashamed that he still treated her like a child. What was even more embarrassing was that the people around didn’t seem to think there was anything strange with this situation.

Neither Diego nor the soldiers so much as raised an eyebrow. They seemed to think that it was natural for the Duke to carry Eileen. 

And this was all because of Chezare. 

It’s because you keep doing this that everyone has become over-protective of me.

Since he had set the example, everyone else followed suit, creating a ripple effect. Of course, she would easily allow others to carry her around in the past, but she had already grown up. She would be able to hop past two or three steps of that damaged staircase on her own. 

However, it would be futile to ask Chezare to set her down now that she was in his arms. She did not move in the slightest as he walked all the way up to the top floor. 

Eileen curled her body up as much as possible as they made their way up. That was because her heart was pounding rapidly from the touch of the muscular body against her, and she was afraid that he might hear how fast her heart was beating. 

Fortunately, Chezare immediately dropped her when they reached the top floor. She fell to the ground and followed him with shaky steps of her own. 

The room they arrived at was decorated like a drawing room. Usually, she would have looked around, but because she was too affected by the presence of the man beside her, she couldn’t do anything at all. 

Despite being unable to look at the man, Eileen still snuck a glance at him but was startled when their eyes met. She flinched, causing him to smile, his eyes widening into small slits as he did so. 

“I haven’t done anything yet.” 

He got Eileen to sit down on the couch, then walked towards a shelf on one side of the drawing room. 

“Would you like some snacks? I don’t have tea here.” 

It seemed useless acting like a grown woman in front of him. She calmly said yes. 

This seems like a drawing room, so why is there no tea? 

She observed her surroundings curiously but quickly lost her inquisitiveness when Chezare took out a small bag of snacks and placed it on her lap. 

He sat across from her, his arms open against the wide back of the couch, his crimson eyes staring intently at her.