It is Lady Melanie’s feelings that he should be thinking about now.
And not a love affair that he has decided to abandon.
Leopold, in his clumsy way, desperately tried to wrap his head around this idea.
How can I remove Lady Melanie’s concerns?
How can I reassure Lady Melanie when she is being engaged to a man who, just a few months ago, was in a relationship with another young lady?
— “If… she is rude to you, please do not be offended.”
Vivian bowed her head, and Leopold also hung his head deeply. That was the end of the conversation.
…
So I came today prepared to be told something.
I was going to respond with sincerity and wholeheartedness, even if she cursed at me, was sarcastic, or made fun of my relationship with Natalia.
But contrary to expectations, Melanie said nothing.
The subtleties of the subject are still too difficult for Leopold to understand if he should bother to talk about it when he is not asked.
…I should have consulted Rembrandt.
Leopold, who has complete trust in Rembrandt, is deeply remorseful, but it didn’t occur to him that Rembrandt doesn’t actually have a lover, let alone a fiancée.
Just smile.
I want her to know that I enjoy being with her and that I am comfortable spending time with her.
To convey that I have no negative feelings about having Lady Melanie as my fiance.
“…Lady Melanie.”
Leopold smiled and turned his head towards Melanie.
“Do you like flowers?”
When she looked up when her name was called, Leopold spoke softly to her, and Melanie nodded her head, a little embarrassed.
“…I love to look at them and take care of them.”
“I see. That’s great. I’m not familiar with them, I don’t really know the names of these flowers or what species they are.”
Yes, it was hard to give her a bouquet of flowers because I couldn’t even tell the flowers apart. I didn’t know what to give, so I just asked Natalia to tell me some of her favorite flowers…
He then came back to himself at this point.
What am I doing?
I’ve already broken up with Natalia.
“Well, did any of these flowers happen to be a favorite of Lady Melanie’s?”
“…yes.”
Melanie looked around and eventually indicated one flower with her hand.
“If it were a flower of the season, it would be over there.”
Her hand points in the direction of a pure white flower.
“It’s beautiful. What kind of flower is it?”
“It is called autumn chrysanthemum. It is also called autumn peony. I like it because it is very elegant and gorgeous, but not too assertive.”
“I see. I’m learning.”
Leopold chuckled.
Melanie looked up at Leopold and smiled at him a little sadly.
“Lady Melanie. Thank you for being so forthcoming about your engagement with me. I hope to be able to spend more time with you like this next time.”
“…”
Melanie blinked slightly and stumbled over her words.