âYernia, do you mind?â Cassian asked curiously as he rested his chin on his hand.
When Yernia faced him, he flashed Vihani a glance.
âYou hate it when she and I are together, donât you?â
Yernia was shocked that her husband read her mood correctly.
How?
Cassian shouldnât have known that Yernia was hiding in the corner to spy on them.
He didnât even ask her if she saw the two of them there.
âThe reason why I donât likeâ¦.â
She couldnât say she only had one reason because she had many reasons why she hated Vihani.
The girl was too rude and stubborn for treating her, Cassianâs wife as if she didnât exist.
Yernia felt strange in this situation because she couldnât be straightforward about this even if she had nothing to be afraid of when she was the legal wife.
In the meantime, she had lived her life making sure she would bravely express her opinions.
If she didnât like something, then she wouldnât force herself to like it.
She wouldnât even try to engage with it.
But that wasnât the case for Vihani.
She couldnât seem to say anything even though she hated Vihaniâs behavior.
Yernia chose to turn a blind eye because she didnât want to show how much Vihani pissed her off just in case Cassian seemed to care about her.
Despite the circumstances, she had no choice but to care about this b*tch.
âYouâre acting weird, Yernia.â
Cassian realized that his wife was acting differently.
She didnât seem like herself every time she looked at him and Vihani.
Perhaps, she was jealous or something.
As soon as she thought about it, Yernia felt doom and lost all strength in her hands.
Her champagne glass rolled over the table, pouring out its contents.
âAre you in pain, Yernia?â Cassian looked at her. âYou almost hurt yourself.â
Her heart reacted when she saw him.
Yernia could vaguely guess what this feeling was.
No way.
Did she like Cassian?
A quiet injustice flowed out.
âNo, I donât.â
Cassian glanced up at Yernia.
It was hard to meet those dark blue eyes.
âThatââThat canât be true.â
She couldnât have liked Cassian again like what she did before.
She couldnât afford to do that.
Herena, the female lead of this novel, was about to appear.
This shouldnât be love.
***
âYernia.â
Yernia pretended not to hear his voice as she kept looking out the window to stare into the vast sea.
She felt it was dangerous to face Cassian right now.
âYernia, did you sleep well?â
It was obvious that he was smiling without looking at him.
Why was he in such a good mood this morning?
Yernia decided to continue ignoring him.
âI guess you canât even hear me. Were you still upset because of Vihani yesterday?â
Yernia was furious at his words.
Whoâs upset?
It was true that she didnât feel good about her, but Yernia wasnât that childish to be upset about it.
Yernia stirred a teaspoon of bitter coffee to get her act together.
She didnât add any syrup or sugar to it.
Because she didnât want to deal with Cassian at the moment, she just kept stirring it.
Later, she glanced at Cassian to pretend she just found him right then and there.
âOh. When did you get here?â Â Yernia asked heartily, âI didnât realize you were sitting here next to me.â
âDidnât you just turn your head to the side on purpose so that you donât have to look at me?â
âWhat did you just say earlier? Didnât you ask me if I was upset with Vihani?â
Yernia changed her mind.
Fortunately, Cassian didnât cling to the subject of her avoidance for too long.
âYes. Youâve been weird since yesterday, Yernia.â
Yernia thought sheâd tell him for sure.
She wasnât sulking because of Vihani at all.
She wasnât angry, either.
âIâm upset about what you did. Something like that. No. Not really.â
âReally? Were you upset or not?â
Even if she said so, Cassian didnât seem to believe her that much.
Was the reason why Cassian had been cheeky today was due to Vihani?
âMarquis.â
Vihani approached them again.
She was pretty with her hair tied up on one side and her face had no signs of swelling even if it was early in the morning.
âI need to talk to you for a moment. Itâs about yesterday.â
Vihaniâs attitude toward Cassian had changed a little.
This time, she didnât talk to Cassian informally.
Yernia sat next to him as usual but Vihani didnât cling to Cassian anymore by forcing herself to be near him.
When Yernia regarded the other girl with interest, Cassian whispered in Yerniaâs ear as if to show off.
âI told her to stop clinging to me. Didnât you find her bothersome when sheâs around your husband?â
âWell done.â
Yernia suppressed the urge to praise him and replied coyly instead. âWell, I didnât think about it.â
âAha. So, you ran away yesterday because you havenât thought of what you have seen? Did you change seats because you didnât think about it too?â
âWhat are you talking about?â
Did Cassian notice what she did yesterday?
Suddenly, Yernia became anxious.
âIf you werenât thinking about that, do you think itâs alright for me to talk to Vihani alone?â
âWell, do as you please.â
âAll right, then.â
Laughing as if he was enjoying her ire, Cassian stood up from his seat and turned his back on her without regret.
Perhaps, he wanted to leave her from the beginning.
Yernia stared at him with longing as he walked farther away from her.
Cassian had been in a good mood since this morning.
Was it because he knew she couldnât sleep well last night?
Yernia tried to think so.