If I Can’t Be Your Wife - Chapter 108

“Was it like th-that? I thought I could open it because it was just locked…….”

Brady glanced at the gate in bewilderment. Kathleen sighed again. This is something that servants are required to learn when they first arrive, but he had clearly forgotten.

‘I guess at least you’re very strong.’

It could be misunderstood that they were secretly meeting each other and breaking the contract period to elope. Kathleen had no desire to be the protagonist of such a ridiculous play.

“Mr. Brady. I appreciate that you see me in such a good light, but I don’t think this is right.”

“What?”

He didn’t seem to understand what she was talking about yet. Kathleen let out a long sigh and continued.

“Thank you so much for the cake. You also made the reservation for me yesterday, and you woke up early in the morning today and worked hard. I am really touched by such diligence and kindness, but…….”

Being kind isn’t a sin, so she carefully chose her words so as not to hurt him. Then she heard someone walking behind her. As the restless feeling enveloped her, Kathleen turned around like lightning.

The Duke of Walten, again.

“M-Master.”

Brady loudly uttered in surprise. Kathleen hurriedly lowered her head down as the golden eyes scrutinized her and Brady again. This time she knew for sure.

‘You look like you’re in a bad mood.’

Cold sweat broke out from the hand holding the box’s strap. If she could, she would pass the cake to Brady and run away.

The red cloak fluttered with every step that Duke Walten slowly took. The aura emanating from him felt serious so he must have had an indifferent look on his face, and even though she wasn’t making eye contact with him, her throat felt dry.

He passed Kathleen and stood in front of Brady. Then his gaze turned towards the gate.

Duke Walten, who stood with his back facing her, said leisurely.

“Go and call Alsdorf.”

He was now standing in front of Brady, exuding an overwhelming pressure. She could see Brady trembling and losing his composure.

“Didn’t you hear me?”

“Yes, Master.”

After being forced to answer quickly, Kathleen turned around. It seemed that she not only had to inform the butler, but also the gardener.

***

As the scarlet-haired kitchen maid disappeared, Alexis looked down at the man designated as the apprentice gardener whose head was bowed low in front of him.

“Why did you come to the Duke’s mansion?”

“To learn the work as a g-gardener…….”

“A gardener? How dare a person who wants to become an employee intentionally break the security rules? How do I know that you haven’t gotten in touch with someone else?”

“N-No, Master!”

The brown-haired man knelt down on his knees, pleading in fear.

“I just wanted her to be happy. It’s the truth! I had no other intentions than that.”

He made a lot of lame excuses, but they all sounded the same. Alexis looked down at him with vicious eyes.

“Duke!”

Soon after, Alsdorf arrived. Alexis turned to the butler and shot.

“Have you lost your mind bringing such a rash b*st*rd into the duke’s estate?”

“I apologize. I think as he is still an apprentice, he is still immature.”

“You’ve been too accommodating to employees.”

Alexis replied irritably. The gardener could be seen running hurriedly from afar.

“Alsdorf.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

The old butler answered nervously. Alexis recalled the woman he had seen before. He heard that she was a kitchen maid. As he remembered the box she was holding in her hand, his annoyance surged to the top of his head.

“In the future, ban employees from meeting privately.”

“Pardon?”

“I do not want to see the discipline becoming lax like now. I’m telling you not to let men and women meet separately and flirt with each other, whether it’s working hours or not.”

Alexis pointed to the lock, which had been broken, with his chin. Alsdorf’s face, which looked perplexed upon initially hearing his words, became serious.

“Yes. I will.”

“And fire this b*st*rd right now.”

He turned around after spitting out what he originally wanted to say. Behind him, he heard the man called Brad or Brady crying.

Alexis felt better then, though that didn’t make him feel very refreshed.

He had wanted to cool off before going to an early morning court meeting so he went through the shortcut to the training grounds. He must not have liked the delay in dealing with the mor*n.

– Thank you so much for the cake.

– I am really touched by such diligence and kindness…….

Yesterday, he had already overlooked them doing private things that were not related to work, but today, he[B] openly violated the contract. He[A] would be crazy to be more lenient than this and diminish the duke’s prestige.

He had no reason to care about the personal affairs of his employees, but there were certain things that they had to respect as much as they were paid.

He justified his actions like this and soon forgot.

***

Kathleen went back to her room in confusion and shook her still sleeping roommate awake. Eyes still half-closed, Emily screamed as Kathleen quickly explained the earlier situation.

“Master?! No, why was he there?”

“I don’t know either. Wasn’t he usually not in the mansion?”

“Right.”

Kathleen placed the box of cake, that felt like a nuisance, on the table, and looked outside with a serious face. Fortunately, it was still peaceful. Brady was probably not being tortured.

Kathleen mumbled in a determined tone.

“I should definitely go back.”

“No!”

Emily screamed again and jumped out of bed in her pajamas and blocked the door.

“Do you even know what crimes you will be charged with if you go now?”

“But what if Mr. Brady ends up in jail for something like divulging secret information?”

“It’s true that he broke the door and left. No one told him to go and get the cake! Let’s observe the atmosphere first. It was the butler and the gardener who brought him in anyway.”

“That’s true, but…….”

“If Brady wasn’t really intending to leak secrets, he’d be fine. Besides, he’s the gardener’s nephew so he has more connections than maids like us, so it’ll be okay.”

Emily held on to Kathleen and convinced her, saying that just because someone looked nice didn’t mean that they were actually good, and that she regretted her choice.

Kathleen was still not relieved as it happened because of her birthday cake. Therefore as soon as it was time for breakfast, she separated from Emily and went back to the east side road.

The surroundings were quiet considering the chaos earlier in the morning. The servants using broomsticks in the yard looked very sleepy, but had calm faces.

‘What happened?’

Kathleen looked around carefully, but there was nothing. She then went back to the kitchen because it was time for work. While completing her tasks, she tried to get more information about Mr. Brady, but came up empty.

“Kelly!”

It was lunchtime and Emily, whom she met at the dining area, waved her hand. She was carrying the very cake that had caused trouble that morning.

“Emily! What about Mr. Brady?”

“Lunch first. I’ll tell you once we’re done eating.”

Grabbing Kathleen’s hand, Emily dragged her and sat at a corner, slicing the cake and placing it on her plate. At Emily’s taunts that she was ignoring her gift, Kathleen was forced to start eating the cheesecake. True to its reputation, it tasted marvelous.

Emily, who was watching Kathleen eat the cake with eyes wide open, asked as they ate the cake together.

“Is it delicious?”

“Yes, it’s really delicious. Thank you. It’s also from Sofner Bakery.”

“I’m glad that at least the cake was safe.”

“At least the cake?”

“You know Kelly, Mr. Brady was fired.”

The fork fell from Kathleen’s hand. Emily, conscious of the surroundings, quickly put the  fork back in her hand.

“Don’t be surprised and eat the cake.”

“No, is that really true? Mr. Brady was an apprentice gardener.”

“He was. Until this morning.”

A noble’s gardener was different from a mere servant. The mansion had a lot of high-quality flowers and maze gardens, so people who specialized in managing them were needed.

So usually, gardeners would handover their positions to their children or nephews. The pay was quite high as it was a job that required physical strength and knowledge, and unlike maids and servants, it was a position that was passed down from generation to generation by family. Therefore, even if he was still an apprentice, it was almost as if he had already been confirmed as the next gardener.

They heard that the gardener, who had been working at the Duke of Walten for over ten years, also worked for a fairly prestigious noble family. It was hard to believe that such a person’s nephew got fired.

“Luckily, the gardener wasn’t fired. And I don’t think Brady received any other punishment.”

“That’s a relief…….”

“Don’t feel guilty at all, Kelly. Who told him to break the lock? Anyway, being ignorant and careless is really a problem.”

Emily grunted as she put the last piece of cake into her mouth.

“Next time, I’ll definitely introduce you to a decent man. Hey, I heard some news from the laundry room. They said that new soldiers will join the Knights? Most of them look so manly. I went there once…….”

“Pay attention for a moment!”

Just as Emily’s eyes twinkled and was quickly explaining another of her plans, a handmaiden appeared. She said in a loud voice, grabbing people’s attention by hitting a glass with a spoon.

“Starting today, one rule has been added to all employees working in the duke’s residence. There are no exceptions, so everyone should keep it in mind.”

She, who was close to the nanny, coughed and without beating around the bush said.

“In the future, meetings with the opposite s*x among employees are prohibited.”

“What?!”

Emily cried out involuntarily, covered her mouth then looked to her side, Kathleen. Kathleen also looked at her friend in astonishment.

‘It must be because of Mr. Brady.’

Perhaps this was how the butler Alsdorf handled it. They thought he would be lenient as usual, but he likely had to deal with it harshly since it was about security and discipline.