When You Started to Regret - Chapter 23

It was late in the evening. After a hasty dinner, Vanessa paced nervously through the first-floor drawing room, wringing her hands.

What should I do…?

Ever since that day—when she had seen Dominic stepping out of the carriage alongside Lady Elaine—Vanessa had been visibly anxious, unable to hide her growing unease.

It was Dominic. He’s back. Dominic has returned.

At first, she thought it must have been a mistake. Then, she convinced herself it was just someone who looked like him. But when that tall man strode up to her and greeted her directly—

“Dominic Cheshire, at your service.”

—And when she looked into his dark eyes and caught the unmistakable flash of madness within them—
Vanessa nearly collapsed from the shock and terror that gripped her.

Dominic.

He had come back. To Hermanda.

How is this even possible…?

Five years ago, she and Fernando had made certain that he would never return. He had been put on a ship and sent far away, to another continent.

He’s back for revenge. That’s the only explanation. He’s come to get back at me and Fernando. That’s why he’s getting close to Elaine.

Vanessa wanted to curse her past self for ever supporting Elaine’s so-called first love.
Fernando had been right all along.
Elaine may have believed herself grown up after her coming-of-age ceremony, but she was still a child—far too young to judge what kind of man was truly suitable for her.

What should I do? Should I tell Fernando? Should I tell him that the man Elaine is seeing… is that Dominic?

But just imagining Fernando’s reaction was enough to silence her. She couldn’t bring herself to confess the truth.

What they had done to Dominic in the past—it had been wrong, yes.
But in some twisted way, it was done for him.
There was guilt, yes. Even a flicker of pity.
Even now, seven years later, Fernando would occasionally recall the lowborn slave boy and his tragic sister with a kind of distant sympathy—one born of the noble class’s deluded sense of superiority and moral detachment.

Vanessa, too, might have been willing to make amends—if Dominic had come to them directly, asking for restitution.
But involving Elaine… that was entirely different.

Fernando had a volatile temper when it came to Elaine.
And now Dominic had struck at his most sensitive nerve.

If Fernando finds out, there’ll be chaos in the mansion. Maybe even bloodshed…

As Vanessa wrestled with her thoughts, Fernando and Elaine emerged from the dining room, having finished their meal.

“What’s wrong, Vanessa?”

Fernando approached, noticing her pale face.

“Oh… Fernando.”

“You don’t look well. Are you feeling sick?”

He gently cupped her cheek with concern.

“No, it’s nothing…”

“You’re not ill, are you?”

Elaine clung to Vanessa’s side, wrapping her arm around hers.

“You can’t be sick, Sister. If you’re sick, I’ll be so sad.”

Though she now called herself an adult, Elaine still clung to Fernando and Vanessa with the affectionate clinginess of a child. Vanessa looked down at her lovingly.

Sweet, innocent Elaine… You poor thing. You don’t even realize you’re being deceived by that man.

Elaine was like a little sister to Vanessa in every way.
And that angelic face, full of trust, knew nothing of the danger that loomed.

I need to warn her. I need to tell her that Dominic is approaching her with ill intent.

But doing so would mean opening up the past—confessing what had once happened between them and Dominic.
And Vanessa… she had always been the “good one” in Elaine’s eyes.
She didn’t have the courage to shatter that illusion.
She didn’t want Elaine to be disappointed in her.
She didn’t want to expose her own youthful sins.

“Vanessa? Are you really sick?”

When Vanessa stood there blankly, unable to respond, Elaine blinked in surprise and began to fuss over her condition.
Fernando, growing alarmed, called for a physician to be summoned immediately.

Crack.

Vanessa bit the inside of her cheek. A metallic tang of blood spread across her tongue.
She was suffocating with the weight of everything she couldn’t say.

Why had Dominic come back?

Why was he getting close to Elaine?

Oh, Elaine…
Poor, sweet Elaine…
You looked so happy—so radiant—when you fell in love…

Over the past few days, Elaine had been visiting Dominic’s mansion more frequently.
She now felt right at home in his study, where she sat perched on the edge of his desk, looking at him with bright eyes.

Whether it was appropriate for someone to sit on a desk was a trivial matter by now.
They had already used every part of that study quite freely.

That day, Elaine sat right where she had previously learned some “creative uses” for the antique tieback, adorned with large ornamental spheres on either end—along with a feathered quill Dominic had once received from a nobleman in the Empire.

All the items that once belonged on the desk were now scattered across the floor.
But neither of them cared.
They made no effort to tidy up.

Among those scattered items were Lady Elaine Aiola’s cumbersome, expensive dress—now cast aside—and the clothing of the ever-composed Dominic Cheshire.

After the heat of their encounter, the room now echoed only with Elaine’s cheerful chatter.

“So then, Anna brought out the panini, and Turner took one bite, and you won’t believe what happened…”

Lady Elaine, draped only in Dominic’s oversized shirt that barely managed to cover her, chattered cheerfully but couldn’t seem to sit still.

“He looked at me like he’d chewed on something bitter and said, ‘Your maid may be plotting to assassinate the royal family, Elaine.’ Can you believe that? And in such a serious tone, too!”

She stretched out her pale legs, lightly tapping her toes against Dominic’s thigh, then his chest.
Dominic, half-listening, followed the delicate movement of her feet with his dark eyes.
Just a short while ago, those same soles had trembled beneath his touch—now they danced boldly, mischievously stealing his attention.

“Poor Anna was watching with such hopeful eyes as we took a bite of her very first panini. I was just teasing her a little, but—ah! Dominic!”

Her teasing toes were suddenly caught in his large hand.
Elaine twisted and giggled, squealing at the ticklish sensation on the sole of her foot.

“That tickles!”

“Oh dear. That wasn’t my intention at all,” Dominic murmured in mock regret, though he knew full well how sensitive she was.
He gently rubbed his thumb in slow, deliberate circles along the soft underside of her foot.

The loose white shirt slipped from her shoulder and fell to the floor.
Elaine’s petite body slid into his arms, and only then did Dominic release her foot.

“See? Now you’ve distracted me. What was I saying? Oh, right—Turner…”

“I’ve heard enough about His Highness the Crown Prince. I only want to hear about you, Dominic.”

Her words were soft, her tone languid and affectionate.
Blushing, Elaine leaned her head against his shoulder.
With nothing between them—not even a thread of clothing—her bare skin pressed against the firm warmth of his chest.

Though the situation might have seemed indecent, what Elaine felt in that moment wasn’t desire, but comfort—a deep, quiet peace that filled her chest.

“You’re making it sound like you’re jealous,” she whispered with a gentle laugh, the warmth of their bare skin brushing together.

Instead of answering, Dominic smiled faintly, tracing a gentle curve across her platinum-blonde hair with his fingertips.

“But I don’t think my story would be very interesting,” he said quietly. “I spend most of my time with you, after all—and you already know all of that. The rest of it is just time with Lord Fernando and Lady Vanessa, and… oh.”

Elaine had been beaming with a bright smile, but now her expression suddenly fell.

Noticing the change, Dominic looked at her with concern.

“What is it, Elaine?”

“Mm… it’s just…”

She hesitated, which was rare for her. Then she sighed deeply.

“I think something’s wrong with Sister Vanessa. I’m really worried.”

“Lady Aiola isn’t well?”

Dominic tilted his head slightly, genuinely curious.
Elaine began explaining everything she’d observed over the past few days.

Vanessa’s complexion had remained pale and drawn.
Her once-straight posture had drooped, and she’d been eating much less.

“I keep telling her to see a doctor, but she just insists she’s fine. I can’t help worrying.”

“It could just be exhaustion,” Dominic offered calmly.

“Maybe. Maybe that’s all it is,” Elaine replied with a faint smile, assuming he was only trying to comfort her.
But soon her expression clouded again.

“Her birthday is coming up soon… What if she still hasn’t recovered by then?”

“Elaine,” Dominic murmured gently, stroking her soft hair. “Don’t be too upset.”

“Mm…”

Despite his soothing tone, Elaine lowered her head, her voice trailing off.
Unhappy with her continued sadness, Dominic furrowed his brow slightly, then cupped her chin and raised her face to meet his eyes.

“I happen to have some dried Sorne petals. They were a gift, quite by chance. But I’d like to give them to you—for someone precious to you.”

“Sorne petals? Those are incredibly rare! I heard even Her Majesty the Queen couldn’t get her hands on them!”

“Sorne petals are a rare tonic, gifted only to the royal family of Carta. They’re known to be excellent for restoring vitality.”

Elaine’s wide eyes sparkled with delight, and soon her face bloomed into a bright smile.

“Thank you, Dominic!”

Throwing her arms around him, she kissed his cheek.

“But… are you sure it’s okay to give me something so valuable?”

“Anyone important to you… is important to me too.”

Dominic wrapped an arm around her waist, drawing her closer.
Then, leaning down, he pressed a cool kiss to her forehead.
Elaine burst into soft laughter, a joyful sound escaping between her teeth.

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